Reported by Star-Bulletin staff & wire
Thursday, March 19, 1998
Aloha to supply jet for Midway charter
A 126-passenger Aloha Airlines jet will go into service between Honolulu Airport and Midway Atoll next month under charter to Midway Phoenix Corp., which operates the atoll's new tourism program for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.The Boeing 737 will fly once a week, on Wednesdays, to the island 1,200 miles from Honolulu at the northwest end of the Hawaiian Islands chain.
The flight will take two to three hours. The only current service to the wildlife preservation atoll is from Kauai, via Phoenix Air's 19-seat Gulfstream turboprop aircraft, taking four to five hours.
Midway Phoenix Corp. said Phoenix Air's service of three flights a week from Kauai will cease when Aloha begins the service April 29, but Phoenix Air will have one flight a week from Honolulu, on Saturdays.
Cyanotech signs pact to market in Europe
Cyanotech Corp., which makes health food and natural food additives from microalgae grown in Kona ponds, has signed a deal to market its products in Europe.Cyanotech, which did not name the marketing company, described it as major life sciences company operating in 150 countries.
The main product concerned is astaxanthin, a red pigment used mainly in the aquaculture industry to impart color to the flesh of farm-raised fish and shrimp. It is also used in animal feeds.
Under a letter of intent setting out the agreement, the European distributor initially will test Cyanotech's NatuRose astaxanthin and Spirulina food additive for up to six months, the Big Island company said today.
A formal marketing agreement is expected to follow.
Gucci calls Hawaii 'a problem' for earnings
FLORENCE, Italy -- Gucci Group NV, an Italian designer of luxury goods, said fourth-quarter profit fell 20 percent as Asia's economic and currency problems hurt sales less than expected.Florence-based Gucci said profit fell to $42.1 million, or 69 cents a share, in the three months ended Jan. 31, from $52.5 million, or 86 cents a share, a year earlier. The results were in line with analysts' estimates.
"Asia appears bad but not a disaster," said Flavio Cereda, a director in Italian equity research at ABN Amro in London. "These numbers tell us that Hawaii may be a problem, Hong Kong is a problem, but that Japan is going quite well."
Gucci Chief Executive Domenico De Sole said sales to Japanese travelers outside Japan accounted for the bulk of the sales decline at stores located in popular tourist destinations like Hong Kong and Hawaii. Sales in Japan and to Japanese travelers account for as much as 50 percent of Gucci's annual sales, analysts estimate.
"Obviously Hawaii was negatively impacted by the yen and the decline in traffic," said De Sole. He said the company is forecasting sluggish sales in Hawaii for 1998.
Del Monte Foods plans initial public offering
WASHINGTON -- Del Monte Foods Co., the world's largest producer of canned fruits and vegetables, will try to raise about $227 million through an initial stock offering, and use the money to reduce its debt.As it moves toward becoming a public company, San Francisco-based Del Monte also plans to build on its well-known brand name, developing new products and pursuing acquisitions of other brands.
Del Monte has applied to list its shares on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol DLM, according its Securities and Exchange Commission filing.
The Del Monte filing didn't say how many shares the company will sell, and didn't disclose the expected price range or other details.
Following an April 1997 recapitalization, Texas Pacific Group, an investment partnership that includes financier David Bonderman, obtained a controlling interest in Del Monte.
Thirty-year mortgages fall to 7.08 percent
The average rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage decreased to 7.08 percent this week compared with last week's 7.16 percent, according to a survey of mortgage rates by the Federal Hone Loan Mortgage Corp.The report also showed that the average rate on an adjustable mortgage was at 5.67 percent, down from 5.70 percent last week; and 15-year mortgage rates fell to 6.70 percent from 6.78 percent.