Honolulu Star-Bulletin Business

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HAWAII
Isle bankruptcies continue falling

Hawaii bankruptcy filings plunged 17.9 percent in August to continue a trend that has seen filings down every month this year from a year earlier.

A resilient state economy has helped reduce the number of filings through the first eight months of 2004 to 2,154, a 17 percent decrease from 2,595 at the same point a year ago.

Chapter 7 liquidation filings fell 5.1 percent last month and are down 15.3 percent so far in 2003.

There were no Chapter 11 reorganization filings last month after there had been two in August 2003. Chapter 13 filings dropped 42.1 percent in August and are off 22.9 percent this year. Chapter 13 allows a wage earner to pay creditors over three years.

Proxy firm supports bank merger

Proxy voting advisory firm Institutional Shareholder Services is recommending that stockholders of Central Pacific Financial Corp. and CB Bancshares Inc. vote for the banks' proposed merger.

Special shareholders meetings to announce the proxy vote will be held Sept. 13, with support from 75 percent of each bank's shares needed for approval. Investors who do not vote will have their shares counted as no votes.

The proxy advisory firm cited the potential synergies of the combined bank as well as the premium that shareholders of CB Bancshares will receive.

'Andy' Anderson has Kakaako plan

Former politician D.G. "Andy" Anderson is proposing a redevelopment of the Kakaako waterfront area centered around office buildings that would be shaped like the giant sails of a Polynesian voyaging canoe.

Inspired both by the voyages of the canoe Hokulea and the Sydney Opera House, the development would be called the "Hawaii Pacific Trade Center, The Sails of Hokulea".

In a letter to the Hawaii Community Development Authority, which steers development in the area, the restaurateur and developer said the facility's main focus would be as a Pacific Rim trade show venue aimed at enticing other countries to make "more business type commercial investments in Hawaii."

The redevelopment also could feature space for retail stores, restaurants, a farmer's market, and residential units, Anderson said.

Anderson, who owns John Dominis restaurant at Point Panic, also proposed that his Anekona Hawaii Group LLC take over as master developer of certain parcels in the area.

KUD International, which is under a preliminary agreement with the HCDA to develop an Ocean Sciences Center and other waterfront facilities nearby, last month submitted its own proposal to take over as master developers of the state's wish list of entertainment, retail and residential projects in the area in partnership with General Growth Properties, owner of Ala Moana Center and the Victoria Ward complex.

Maui Land venture acquires hotel

A Maui Land & Pineapple Co. joint venture has completed the purchase of the leasehold interest in the 196-room Kapalua Bay Hotel from a fund advised by investment firm Morgan Stanley.

Maui Land is a 51 percent partner in the venture along with Marriott International and Exclusive Resorts LLC. Maui Land said it contributed about 21 acres of land at the hotel to the venture.

The group has selected Marriott unit Renaissance Hotels & Resorts to manage the property. The hotel, which had a $20 million renovation four years ago, was previously managed by Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc.

Maui Land also said it has acquired the leasehold interest in the nearby Bay Club restaurant and will renovate the seaside property. Maui Land already owns the land underneath and is in talks for a potential redevelopment of the site.

NATION AND WORLD

SEC drops bribery case after court dismissal

The Securities and Exchange Commission has dropped its foreign bribery case against two former executives of oil services company Baker Hughes Inc. after dismissal of the case by a federal trial court and legal proceedings that stretched three years.

The SEC said yesterday that it had concluded the case against former chief financial officer Eric Mattson and former controller James Harris. The agency had alleged that they authorized payment of a $75,000 bribe to a local government official in Indonesia in 1999 in exchange for a reduction in Baker Hughes' local tax payments.

American Samoa gets domestic area code

PAGO PAGO, American Samoa >> Calling American Samoa from the United States will require a few less digits starting next month.

The U.S. territory is becoming a domestic calling area with a three-digit area code for a test period starting Oct. 2 and running through April 2, according to records filed with the North American Numbering Plan Administration.

The 684 area code has been assigned for the territory's seven islands of Tutuila, Aunuu, Ofu, Olosega, Tau, Swains Atoll and Rose Atoll.

"Passion" sells 4.1M DVDs in first day

First-day sales figures for "The Passion of the Christ" hit 4.1 million copies to set one-day records for a drama, an R-rated film, an independent movie and a non-English language film, according to figures released yesterday by Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment.

ASIA & PACIFIC

China Telecom adds networks to lift profits

China Telecom Corp., the listed arm of the nation's biggest fixed-line operator, said first-half profit rose 14 percent after it added networks and secured more users for a service that competes with mobile-phone companies.

Profit rose to 14.71 billion yuan ($433 million) from a revised 13.06 billion yuan, the Beijing-based company said. Sales rose to 80.22 billion yuan from a revised 74.07 billion yuan.

The country's fixed-line phone operators have been cutting costs to compete with one another and to lure clients from mobile- phone duopoly China Mobile (Hong Kong) Ltd. and China Unicom Ltd. Less than two decades after mobile-phone service was introduced to the Chinese public, mobile users have outstripped fixed-line users.

Korea, Taiwan will resume direct flights

Korean Air Co., China Airlines and two other airlines in South Korea and Taiwan have been given the permission to fly directly between Seoul and Taipei, in the first resumption of regular flights in 12 years.

Starting next month, Seoul-based Korean Air and Asiana Airlines Inc. will be allowed to fly up to 18 times weekly to Taipei. China Airlines and EVA Airways Corp. will be allowed an equal number of weekly flights to Seoul from Taipei, according to an agreement signed today in Taiwan.

The resumption of direct services, the first since 1992 when Seoul established diplomatic relations with China, will let South Korea's carriers use Taiwan's air space to reach Southeast Asia and promote tourism between two economies that are among each other's top-five tourist destinations.

Citi, Deutsche Bank to buy China loans

Citigroup Inc. and Deutsche Bank AG bid to buy bad loans with a face value of 3 billion yuan ($362 million) from Agricultural Bank of China, the nation's fourth- biggest state-owned bank.

The two foreign investors and local rivals bid for the assets in an auction in Foshan, Guangdong province, said Wang Liangping, general manager at China Great Wall Asset Management Corp., which was formed to dispose of bad loans at Agricultural Bank.

Standard & Poor's, in a July 9 report, predicted it would cost $650 billion to bail out all of China's lenders, which it called the world's most vulnerable.

Indonesia sees most tourists since 1998

Indonesia's tourist arrivals rose 16 percent in the month of July to the highest since Oct. 1998, the Central Bureau of Statistics said.

Arrivals through the country's 13 main airports and seaports in July rose to 424,774 tourists, with arrivals to Bali and Riau provinces accounting for two-thirds of the total.

For the first seven months of the year, the country received 2.56 million visitors, 31 percent more than the same period last year, when it had 1.95 million visitors, the bureau said in a news release.

Asia-wide travel has recovered this year, after plunging the first half of last year amid an outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome.

Singapore's MobileOne to buy back shares

MobileOne Ltd., Singapore's second- largest cell-phone provider, said it plans to buy back and cancel about 7 percent of its shares to boost returns.

MobileOne will offer to buy back the shares for S$1.57 (92 U.S. cents) each, or as much as S$115.7 million, it said in a statement to the stock exchange. The price, an average of the five trading days ended Aug. 30, is a discount of 5.4 percent on today's close of S$1.66.

MobileOne's capital reduction follows similar moves by rival Singapore Telecommunications Ltd. and publisher Singapore Press Holdings Ltd.

Cebu Air buys a dozen Airbus A319 planes

Philippine budget airline Cebu Air said yesterday it will buy 12 new Airbus A319s as part of a drive to replenish its fleet. The price was not disclosed.

Cebu Air, which is owned by conglomerate JG Summit Holdings Inc., currently operates a fleet of 12 McDonnell Douglas DC9-32s and three Boeing 757s.

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Business Briefs Reported by Star-Bulletin staff & wire Thursday, September 2, 2004 [ FAST FACTS HAWAII ] BACK TO TOP \| HAWAII Isle bankruptcies continue falling Hawaii bankruptcy filings plunged 17.9 percent in August to continue a trend that has seen filings down every month this year from a year earlier. A resilient state economy has helped reduce the number of filings through the first eight months of 2004 to 2,154, a 17 percent decrease from 2,595 at the same point a year ago. Chapter 7 liquidation filings fell 5.1 percent last month and are down 15.3 percent so far in 2003. There were no Chapter 11 reorganization filings last month after there had been two in August 2003. Chapter 13 filings dropped 42.1 percent in August and are off 22.9 percent this year. Chapter 13 allows a wage earner to pay creditors over three years. Proxy firm supports bank merger Proxy voting advisory firm Institutional Shareholder Services is recommending that stockholders of Central Pacific Financial Corp. and CB Bancshares Inc. vote for the banks' proposed merger. Special shareholders meetings to announce the proxy vote will be held Sept. 13, with support from 75 percent of each bank's shares needed for approval. Investors who do not vote will have their shares counted as no votes. The proxy advisory firm cited the potential synergies of the combined bank as well as the premium that shareholders of CB Bancshares will receive. 'Andy' Anderson has Kakaako plan Former politician D.G. "Andy" Anderson is proposing a redevelopment of the Kakaako waterfront area centered around office buildings that would be shaped like the giant sails of a Polynesian voyaging canoe. Inspired both by the voyages of the canoe Hokulea and the Sydney Opera House, the development would be called the "Hawaii Pacific Trade Center, The Sails of Hokulea". In a letter to the Hawaii Community Development Authority, which steers development in the area, the restaurateur and developer said the facility's main focus would be as a Pacific Rim trade show venue aimed at enticing other countries to make "more business type commercial investments in Hawaii." The redevelopment also could feature space for retail stores, restaurants, a farmer's market, and residential units, Anderson said. Anderson, who owns John Dominis restaurant at Point Panic, also proposed that his Anekona Hawaii Group LLC take over as master developer of certain parcels in the area. KUD International, which is under a preliminary agreement with the HCDA to develop an Ocean Sciences Center and other waterfront facilities nearby, last month submitted its own proposal to take over as master developers of the state's wish list of entertainment, retail and residential projects in the area in partnership with General Growth Properties, owner of Ala Moana Center and the Victoria Ward complex. Maui Land venture acquires hotel A Maui Land & Pineapple Co. joint venture has completed the purchase of the leasehold interest in the 196-room Kapalua Bay Hotel from a fund advised by investment firm Morgan Stanley. Maui Land is a 51 percent partner in the venture along with Marriott International and Exclusive Resorts LLC. Maui Land said it contributed about 21 acres of land at the hotel to the venture. The group has selected Marriott unit Renaissance Hotels & Resorts to manage the property. The hotel, which had a $20 million renovation four years ago, was previously managed by Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. Maui Land also said it has acquired the leasehold interest in the nearby Bay Club restaurant and will renovate the seaside property. Maui Land already owns the land underneath and is in talks for a potential redevelopment of the site. NATION AND WORLD SEC drops bribery case after court dismissal The Securities and Exchange Commission has dropped its foreign bribery case against two former executives of oil services company Baker Hughes Inc. after dismissal of the case by a federal trial court and legal proceedings that stretched three years. The SEC said yesterday that it had concluded the case against former chief financial officer Eric Mattson and former controller James Harris. The agency had alleged that they authorized payment of a $75,000 bribe to a local government official in Indonesia in 1999 in exchange for a reduction in Baker Hughes' local tax payments. American Samoa gets domestic area code PAGO PAGO, American Samoa >> Calling American Samoa from the United States will require a few less digits starting next month. The U.S. territory is becoming a domestic calling area with a three-digit area code for a test period starting Oct. 2 and running through April 2, according to records filed with the North American Numbering Plan Administration. The 684 area code has been assigned for the territory's seven islands of Tutuila, Aunuu, Ofu, Olosega, Tau, Swains Atoll and Rose Atoll. "Passion" sells 4.1M DVDs in first day First-day sales figures for "The Passion of the Christ" hit 4.1 million copies to set one-day records for a drama, an R-rated film, an independent movie and a non-English language film, according to figures released yesterday by Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment. ASIA & PACIFIC China Telecom adds networks to lift profits China Telecom Corp., the listed arm of the nation's biggest fixed-line operator, said first-half profit rose 14 percent after it added networks and secured more users for a service that competes with mobile-phone companies. Profit rose to 14.71 billion yuan ($433 million) from a revised 13.06 billion yuan, the Beijing-based company said. Sales rose to 80.22 billion yuan from a revised 74.07 billion yuan. The country's fixed-line phone operators have been cutting costs to compete with one another and to lure clients from mobile- phone duopoly China Mobile (Hong Kong) Ltd. and China Unicom Ltd. Less than two decades after mobile-phone service was introduced to the Chinese public, mobile users have outstripped fixed-line users. Korea, Taiwan will resume direct flights Korean Air Co., China Airlines and two other airlines in South Korea and Taiwan have been given the permission to fly directly between Seoul and Taipei, in the first resumption of regular flights in 12 years. Starting next month, Seoul-based Korean Air and Asiana Airlines Inc. will be allowed to fly up to 18 times weekly to Taipei. China Airlines and EVA Airways Corp. will be allowed an equal number of weekly flights to Seoul from Taipei, according to an agreement signed today in Taiwan. The resumption of direct services, the first since 1992 when Seoul established diplomatic relations with China, will let South Korea's carriers use Taiwan's air space to reach Southeast Asia and promote tourism between two economies that are among each other's top-five tourist destinations. Citi, Deutsche Bank to buy China loans Citigroup Inc. and Deutsche Bank AG bid to buy bad loans with a face value of 3 billion yuan ($362 million) from Agricultural Bank of China, the nation's fourth- biggest state-owned bank. The two foreign investors and local rivals bid for the assets in an auction in Foshan, Guangdong province, said Wang Liangping, general manager at China Great Wall Asset Management Corp., which was formed to dispose of bad loans at Agricultural Bank. Standard & Poor's, in a July 9 report, predicted it would cost $650 billion to bail out all of China's lenders, which it called the world's most vulnerable. Indonesia sees most tourists since 1998 Indonesia's tourist arrivals rose 16 percent in the month of July to the highest since Oct. 1998, the Central Bureau of Statistics said. Arrivals through the country's 13 main airports and seaports in July rose to 424,774 tourists, with arrivals to Bali and Riau provinces accounting for two-thirds of the total. For the first seven months of the year, the country received 2.56 million visitors, 31 percent more than the same period last year, when it had 1.95 million visitors, the bureau said in a news release. Asia-wide travel has recovered this year, after plunging the first half of last year amid an outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome. Singapore's MobileOne to buy back shares MobileOne Ltd., Singapore's second- largest cell-phone provider, said it plans to buy back and cancel about 7 percent of its shares to boost returns. MobileOne will offer to buy back the shares for S$1.57 (92 U.S. cents) each, or as much as S$115.7 million, it said in a statement to the stock exchange. The price, an average of the five trading days ended Aug. 30, is a discount of 5.4 percent on today's close of S$1.66. MobileOne's capital reduction follows similar moves by rival Singapore Telecommunications Ltd. and publisher Singapore Press Holdings Ltd. Cebu Air buys a dozen Airbus A319 planes Philippine budget airline Cebu Air said yesterday it will buy 12 new Airbus A319s as part of a drive to replenish its fleet. The price was not disclosed. Cebu Air, which is owned by conglomerate JG Summit Holdings Inc., currently operates a fleet of 12 McDonnell Douglas DC9-32s and three Boeing 757s.	— ADVERTISEMENTS — — ADVERTISEMENTS —

HAWAII Isle bankruptcies continue falling