Leroy Laney, chief economist at First Hawaiian Bank, yesterday said that Maui's per-capita personal income, one of the widest measures of economic activity, grew nearly 20 percent between 1990 and 1994, despite the sluggish state economy. "It's growth rate well exceeded the other counties," Laney said in the bank's annual report on Maui's economy.
Maui's tourism industry has been a major factor in the rebound, he said. Maui's 1996 hotel occupancy rate of 76 percent through June is the second highest in the state after Waikiki.
Maui hotels also have enjoyed a 4.4 percent increase in their average daily room rate and a 7 percent rise in revenues per room during the first half of this year from the year-earlier period.
Much of that is due to increased Japanese visitors on Maui, Laney said. "Maui is attracting more Japanese visitors and catering more to their spending tastes," he said.