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Irish-themed chain plans Hawaii eateries

A Texas-based restaurant chain is looking for a business or businesses to pick up franchises for as many as seven Bennigan's Grill & Tavern outlets on Oahu.

The company, Metromedia Restaurant Group, said its market research shows opportunities in the Hawaii market for its Irish-themed restaurants. There are more than 300 Bennigan's outlets in the United States, but the company said it has not yet expanded to the West or the East Coast.

Metromedia is looking for experienced restaurant operators who can invest up to $2 million, not counting real estate, and who are willing to pay a franchise fee of $65,000 up front, 4 percent of gross revenues and other fees in return for a brand identity and international marketing assistance.

The company's Web site www.bennigans.com shows Irish-named American menu items such as "The Dubliner," a 12-ounce ribeye steak, and "Finnegan's Filet," an 8-ounce filet steak, plus Irish drinks including Guinness stout.

The company said it expects Hawaii operators to take advantage of its rule allowing franchises to provide local dishes for up to 20 percent of the menu.

Mortgage applications plunge

Applications for U.S. mortgages fell last week to the lowest this year as a rise in mortgage rates slowed the pace of refinancing, an industry report showed.

The Mortgage Bankers Association of America's index of applications for refinancing and home purchases slumped 24.3 percent to 972.4 from 1284.3. It was the biggest weekly drop since October 1998. The index has fallen by almost half since reaching a record of 1856.7 in the last week of May.

The Washington-based group's refinancing index plunged 32.9 percent to 4145.8. Franklin Raines, chief executive officer of Fannie Mae, said the percentage of homeowners for whom it would be profitable to refinance has been cut to 39 percent today from 90 percent in June because of the surge in mortgage rates.

Pillowtex to liquidate, slashes jobs

Pillowtex Corp., the maker of Royal Velvet and Fieldcrest sheets, towels and pillows, closed 16 plants and dismissed 6,450 workers, the largest firing in U.S. textile history, as the company seeks to liquidate its assets in bankruptcy.

The Chapter 11 filing in Wilmington, Del., is the second within three years for Pillowtex, which exited bankruptcy in May 2002. GGST LLC, a company formed by SB Capital Group, Gibbs International, Gordon Brothers Retail Partners and Tiger Capital Group, offered $56 million for Pillowtex's assets, court papers say. The bid is subject to an auction and court approval.

Today's bankruptcy filing is the latest by U.S. textile companies, which have struggled with slumping sales and low-cost imports. Since January 2002, 70 U.S. textile plants have closed, eliminating 41,900 jobs, according to the American Textile Manufacturers Institute. In North Carolina alone, excluding Pillowtex's cuts, 19,000 jobs have left.

Profit shrinks at Hearst-Argyle

Hearst-Argyle Television Inc. posted an 11 percent drop in second-quarter profit, citing a decline in political-campaign advertising.

The New York company -- which owns 24 television stations, including ABC-affiliate KITV in Hawaii -- had net income of $27.3 million, or 29 cents a share. It earned $30.8 million, or 33 cents a share, a year ago.

The latest results beat the mean estimate of analysts surveyed by Thomson First Call for earnings of 28 cents a share, as well as the company's own estimate, issued earlier this month, for earnings of 27 cents a share.

Revenue dipped 1.5 percent to $179.6 million from $182.3 million.

In the second half of the year, Hearst-Argyle said it will be difficult to reach last year's revenue levels, which were boosted by political advertising.

Bill Gates buys 7% of Mexican broadcaster

Bill Gates, chairman of Microsoft Corp., bought a 7 percent stake in Mexico's Grupo Televisa SA, the world's largest Spanish-language broadcaster, through his investment fund and charity.

Gates owns 6.35 million of Televisa's American depositary shares through Cascade Investment LLC and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, according to a Televisa filing to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The announcement helped push Televisa's U.S.-traded shares up $1.02 to $37.04 yesterday.

"You look at Bill Gates and think that's a pretty smart guy," said Whitney Johnson, Latin American telecommunications analyst at Merrill Lynch & Co. in New York. "When someone takes more than a 5 percent stake, they usually think there's an opportunity there."

Televisa is seeking to boost sales and profits by selling its programming across the American continents.

British Airways settles dispute with 3 unions

British Airways and its three trade unions said yesterday that they reached a settlement, easing the threat of more wildcat strikes.

After 10 days of negotiations, the airline -- which is amid a cost-cutting program to eliminate 13,000 jobs -- has agreed to give its administrative staff a 3 percent pay raise retroactive to January. The staff has agreed to an identification system that keeps track of the hours they work, electronically. The system was unpopular with check-in staff, who feared it was the first step to split shifts or sending employees home when lines were short. But the airline has assured its unions the system will not affect work hours.

Unions and management have been discussing the pay raise for six months. British Airways would not quantify its cost, but a spokesman said it does not expect the raise to be material to earnings.