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Tourism improves economic outlook for the Big Island

HILO, Hawaii (AP) - The Big Island's economic outlook is improving thanks to the statewide tourism boom.University of Hawaii economist Jack Suyderhoud says the tourism industry's strength will spread to other sectors of the island's economy.Suyderhoud told the 39th Annual First Hawaiian Bank Business Outlook Forum on Aug. 21 that Big Island private building permits are up 25 percent in the first part of the year.He says construction jobs are up by about 1,000. He says this makes a good dent in the 3,000 construction jobs lost after the 2008 financial crisis.Suyderhoud says the ...

Business/In Brief • Aug. 24, 2013

Study: Police highest paid public workersKAILUA-KONA - Hawaii's police officers were the highest-paid public employees in the state in early 2011, a newspaper reported.A full-time police officer in Hawaii earned an average of $6,685 a month in March 2011, West Hawaii Today reported Thursday, citing newly released U.S. Census Bureau data.University professors made an average of about $6,500 a month and firefighters averaged of about $6,400 at that time.Hawaii's police officers will be paid even more after winning a 16.8 percent raise over four years after binding arbitration.The census ...

Registrations of vehicles up

Maui saw a 12.1 percent increase in the number of new vehicle registrations in the first six months of this year, according to a Hawaii Auto Outlook released by the Hawaii Automobile Dealers Association.The number of new vehicles registered from January to June on Maui was 2,562, or 277 more than in the same period of 2012, the outlook said.Hawaii island saw the largest percentage increase, 16 percent, among the four local markets in the state. Its number of new vehicle registrations rose by 348 from 2,169 to 2,517. Kauai's 15.6 percent increase was slightly behind the Big Island's, but ...

Business/In Brief • Aug. 17, 2013

HONOLULU - Hawaii's attorney general says a tax appeals court judge has ruled in favor of the state against nine popular travel sites.Tax Appeal Court Judge Gary Chang entered his final judgment on Thursday, saying the companies including Orbitz Worldwide Inc. and Expedia Inc. owe Hawaii an additional $25 million for statutory interest on tax penalties.The attorney general says the nine companies now owe about $246 million in taxes, penalties and interest for unpaid taxes from 2000 to 2011.

Business/In Brief • Aug. 15, 2013

Developers request secrecy on wind farmHONOLULU - Developers of a proposed Lanai wind farm want to keep information on the project secret.Attorneys for Castle & Cooke Properties Inc. on Monday asked the Hawaii Public Utilities Commission to keep confidential the information submitted for regulatory review.Castle & Cooke in 2008 proposed a 200-megawatt wind energy project on Lanai with transmission to Oahu by undersea cable.The Honolulu Star-Advertiser reports the utilities commission opened a new case in July to review progress on the project after a majority ownership stake was ...

Tides of Commerce

Hale Ali'i, a beachfront estate in Kapalua, has been featured on the cover of Christie's International Real Estate magazine, the first Hawaii property to be featured on the cover of the magazine.Mary Anne Fitch, principal broker and owner of Maui Estates International LLC, the Maui affiliate of Christie's International Real Estate, and Zack Wright, Christie's senior vice president, regional manager Western region, made the announcement.They say that the estate is the first Hawaii property to be featured on the cover of the magazine that reflects luxury properties around the world, ...