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Visitors Bureau takes on Taiwan

The Hawaii Visitors & Convention Bureau hits Taiwan Nov. 23 with a 16-day Hawaii tourism promotion in major business and population centers, starting with an "Art of Hula" exhibit at the Taipei International Travel Fair.

Following the trade show, the HVCB will head to Tainan for a promotion at the Tayih Landis hotel through Dec. 8. Four Seasons Resort Hualalai executive sous chef Ryan Vargas will prepare a Hawaii-influenced menu daily. Miss Hawaii Teen USA Erin Madden will perform the hula.

Taiwan generates more than 6 million travelers each year, approximately one-fourth of the nation's population, the HVCB said.

Federal mediator calls for break in port talks

SAN FRANCISCO >> A federal mediator has called for a one-week break in contract talks between shipping lines and West Coast dockworkers after the two sides failed to agree on a pension package.

Mediator Peter Hurtgen called for the break Tuesday, saying that the Pacific Maritime Association, which represents the shipping lines and terminal operators, needed time to review the union's pension package demands.

Shipping lines offered a pension increase of nearly 25 percent in October. The increase brought the retirement pay for a fully-vested longshoreman to about $50,000 per year. The International Longshore and Warehouse Union said it expected a larger increase in exchange for accepting a breakthrough deal on technology.

Tesoro posts quarterly loss

SAN ANTONIO, Texas >> Tesoro Petroleum Corp., a western U.S. independent oil refiner whose businesses include Hawaii's biggest oil refinery and 36 gasoline stations in the islands, posted a quarterly loss today

The San Antonio-based company blamed record U.S. gasoline production and imports for poor refining margins.

Tesoro reported a third-quarter loss of $15.8 million or 24 cents a share, compared with a profit of $32.8 million, or 79 cents per share, a year before. Revenues rose to $2.17 billion from $1.41 billion in the same quarter last year.

The company was expected to record a loss in the range of 2 cents a share to 30 cents a share, with the mean estimate at 17 cents a share, according to Thomson First Call.

Burger King sale may collapse

LONDON >> Diageo Plc's $2.26 billion sale of Burger King to Texas Pacific Group may collapse as revenue growth at the restaurant chain stalls, delaying plans by the world's biggest liquor maker to focus on its drinks business.

Texas Pacific and partners Bain Capital Inc. and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. want to renegotiate the terms of the July agreement, said Kathryn Partridge, a Diageo spokeswoman. Stagnant sales, mainly in the United States, may hinder the buyers' plans to borrow $1.5 billion to fund the purchase, she said.

"To what extent it is in jeopardy, it's too early to say," said Anne McCreaddie, who helps manage 15 billion pounds ($24 billion) of funds at Britannic Asset Management, including Diageo shares. "The market is still hopeful a deal may go through. It just may be a matter of reducing the price."

London-based Diageo plans to sell the world's No. 2 hamburger chain to concentrate on beverages after last year's $5 billion purchase of some Seagram Co. brands. Analysts said the company may have to accept less than $2 billion to ensure a swift sale.

Consumer borrowing rose $10 billion

WASHINGTON >> U.S. consumer borrowing rose more than expected in September as Americans took on more credit card, auto-loan and other debt, the Federal Reserve said.

Personal debt, excluding mortgages, rose at a 6.9 percent annual rate, or $10 billion, in September, the Fed said. Economists expected a $5.5 billion increase. In August, debt rose at a 3.9 percent rate, or by $5.6 billion.

The increase in credit mainly reflects higher September auto sales, fueled by zero-interest loans and other discounts. Such incentives, coupled with modest income growth and low interest rates, are giving consumers the means to spend.

Economists expectations were based on the median of 37 forecasts in a Bloomberg News survey. Consumer debt in September totaled $1.73 trillion, up from $1.72 trillion in August.