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Business Briefs

Reported by Star-Bulletin staff & wire

Tuesday, January 18, 2000

Hawaiian Air traffic up 4% in December

Hawaiian Airlines Inc. said today it carried 442,542 passengers in December, a 4 percent increase from 425,438 in December 1998. The airline said its load factor, the percentage of available seats that were occupied by paying passengers, slipped to 70.9 percent last month, from 74.8 percent in the year-earlier month. The airline has been adding capacity to its mainland-Hawaii, interisland and Hawaii-South Pacific services, and in December had 20 percent more available seat-miles than in the year-earlier month. Through all of last year, Hawaiian carried 5.71 million passengers, a gain of 8.5 percent from 5.26 million in 1998. The airline's 1999 load factor averaged 77.2 percent, up slightly from 76.5 percent in the previous year.

Closed for business

By Kathryn Bender, Star-Bulletin
A crane operator takes a bite out of what used to be the Yum Yum Tree
at Kahala Mall during demolition yesterday. The restaurant closed last
month and a Chili's restaurant will be built in its place. Pacific Restaurant
Group, which operated the Kahala outlet, now has just two Yum Yum
Trees -- among other eateries -- left on Oahu.

Dole explores sale, other options

WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif. -- Dole Food Co., the world's largest maker of fresh fruit, hired Goldman, Sachs & Co. to explore options, including a possible sale, to help it revive its lagging stock price amid a prolonged banana war in Europe. Dole's shares have lost about 46 percent of their value over the past 12 months, hurt by a trade rift between the United States and the European Union. Dole, based in Westlake Village, was founded in Hawaii and has substantial agricultural operations in the state.

Kakaako Kitchen moving to Ward

Kakaako Kitchen is moving from its Waimanu Street location to Ward Centre in March. The plate-lunch restaurant, set to open at its new location March 1, will occupy about 5,000 square feet at the ewa end of the shopping center. The space previously was occupied by Bernard's New York Deli.

In other news . . .

SAN JOSE, Calif. -- JDS Uniphase Corp., the world's No. 1 maker of fiber-optic equipment parts, agreed to buy E-Tek Dynamics Inc. for $15 billion in stock to alleviate shortages in capacity and make new products faster.

SCHAUMBURG, Ill. -- Motorola Inc., the world's No. 2 maker of cellular phones, said fourth-quarter profit more than tripled on digital mobile phone sales. Profit from operations was $514 million, or 82 cents a share, from net income of $159 million, or 26 cents, a year ago. Analysts expected a profit of 81 cents.

NEW YORK -- Citigroup Inc., the biggest U.S. financial services company, said fourth-quarter earnings rose 86 percent, led by gains in investment and consumer banking. Profit from operations for the three months ended Dec. 31 rose to $2.61 billion, or 75 cents a share, from $1.4 billion, or 40 cents, a year ago. Analysts expected a profit of 70 cents.