Economy

... Hawaii economists say Lahaina locals could be priced out of rebuilt town without zoning changes  ....

“Tourism…dropped off the edge of the Earth.”

...DBEDT reduces its economic growth projections for Hawaii from 1.8% for 2023 to 1.1% and from 2% to 1.5% for 2024....

... we cannot afford to further burden our economy with our usual high-tax and high-spending habits ....

... best-selling author Connor Boyack will explain why the next generation is critical to ensuring justice and prosperity ....

... "It would be potentially catastrophic if no one traveled to the island," Green said ....

... but the number of jobs decreased ....

... The industry supports about 5,000 jobs in American Samoa, chief among those a StarKist Co. tuna cannery ....

" ... if the government spending is growing faster than the private sector, then it is unsustainable .... "

... in comparison with March 2020 (the last month prior to pandemic effects), nonfarm jobs were down by 24,200, or -3.7 percent ....

... Energy-producing and tourism-dependent states took the biggest hits in productivity: Hawaii was down 5.3% to $75.39 ....

... some contribute more than others ....

... projected economic growth rates for Hawai‘i for both years are better than the expected growth rates for the nation ....

... A national recession will weigh on Hawaiʻi later this year ....

"...While international tourism will continue to recover, domestic travel will soften as the US economy contracts later this year...."

... DBEDT kept its economic growth projections for 2023 and 2024 at 1.7 percent and 2.1 percent, respectively ....

... It’s clear that some people are better than others at handling their finances ....

... With the average hotel occupancy projected to be about 63% across the nation this year, Hawaii is projected to have a 78% occupancy rate. Its rate in 2019 was 80%, the report showed ....

... factors that contribute to the state’s high cost of living, such as its high cost of housing, high taxes, boondoggle projects, shortage of medical professionals and more ....

... The 3.3% annualized expansion rate was the 17th largest ....

... According to recent data, searches for side jobs have seen an increase of 49.89%, with Hawaii ranking sixth among the states ....

... "7.2% of the individuals were furloughed, or reduced their working hours while 6.6% of them reported having someone in their family furloughed or reducing working hours" ....

... According to the Index, Hawaii’s areas for improvement include business environment (ranked 51st), economic quality (ranked 51st), infrastructure (ranked 35th) and education (ranked 28th) ....

... Jobs increased by 25,800 over-the-year ....

... Honolulu showed a Consumer Price Index change of -0.6% over the last two months ....

... Rising interest rates, dwindling pandemic era savings and the coming U.S. downturn will cause a pause in growth next year. But the belated recovery of the Japanese visitor market and surging public sector construction will prevent a recession in the islands ....

... comparing the actual outcomes during the affected period with the pre-pandemic forecast ....

... DBEDT kept economic growth projections for 2022 and 2023 for the State unchanged at 2.6 percent and 1.7 percent, respectively ....

...Job gains occurred in Leisure & Hospitality (+2,700); Education & Health Services (+500); Construction (+400); and Professional & Business Services (+200)....

... high inflation, higher travel costs, and the Fed’s interest rate hikes will still adversely impact Hawaii households and businesses ....

... DBEDT lowered Hawai‘i economic growth projections for 2022 and 2023 mainly due to the declining investment caused by the increasing of interest rates and inflation ....

... Hawaii had the second-largest percentage shortfall -6.6 percent, -2,500 jobs ....

... based on changes in unemployment claims for several key benchmark weeks ....

... Changes in Unemployment Rate by State ....

... To rank America’s Top States for Business in 2022, CNBC scored all 50 states on 88 metrics in 10 broad categories of competitiveness ....

... “2022’s Best and Worst State Economies.”  In that site, our humble little state had lots of reasons to be humble, coming in at a bottom-scraping 48th ....

... Hawaii rate of increase second only to Massachusetts ....

... total outstanding credit card debt stood at $222.6 million in the first quarter of 2022, or an average of $15,709 per household ....

... In May, there were notable gains in sectors including leisure and hospitality but Hawaii still lags ....

... Hawaii lost 1,600 construction jobs, -4.3 percent, the largest percentage loss in USA ....

... Hawaii's labor force increased by 7,400 people from May 2021 to May 2022 ....

... From a rate of 1.9% in 2018, inflation jumped to 7.1% in 2021 and was 8.2% as of April 2022 ....

“...In many concentrated insurance markets such as Hawaiʻi, insurers have few incentives to negotiate lower prices. They can easily pass these costs onto premiums without losing market share....”

... Hawaii improved significantly in 2021 after initially being hard hit by the pandemic ....

"...In the largest sector (government), the Hawaii economy added 400 jobs between January 2021 and April 2022...."

... 2022’s Best & Worst State Economies ....

... despite U.S. economic growth projections being revised downward ....

... Inflation in the Islands hit 7.5% in March ....

... and total spending by visitors who came to the islands in March 2022 was $1.53 billion, which was higher compared to the $1.49 billion (+2.5%) reported for March 2019 ....

... Honolulu business environment ranks 84th of 100 large cities in USA ....