HAWAII

HVCB honors three with Maile Awards

The Royal Hawaiian Hotel, Hawaiian Host, and the Honolulu Academy of Arts were recognized with Hawaii Visitors & Convention Bureau's Maile Award at its 100th annual luncheon Tuesday.

The organizations have had a major role in Hawaii's reputation as a visitor destination, the bureau said.

The bureau also gave Kauai Mayor Maryanne Kusaka a Mahalo Award for guiding the Garden Isle through its recovery from Hurricane Iniki, and through the events of Sept. 11.

MAINLAND

Feds consider new fisheries restrictions

PORTLAND, Ore. >> Federal regulators reviewed new West Coast fishing restrictions yesterday that environmentalists say are needed to combat overfishing but which fishermen fear could hobble the industry.

The Pacific Fishery Management Council regulates Pacific waters from three to 200 miles offshore. The proposed new rules, which would govern sport and commercial fishing during 2003, would be the strictest ever.

The council met behind closed doors. Many coastal economies are already hurting from restrictions on logging and salmon fishing.

The proposed new rules are based on depth restrictions rather than harvest limits, and would affect most of the Continental Shelf from Canada to Mexico.

United unions to offer plan by Thursday

Chicago >> United Airlines' unions said they will deliver a plan to the UAL Corp. unit by Thursday to support the company's revised application for $1.8 billion in federal loan guarantees.

The world's second-largest airline has said it may have to file for bankruptcy protection if it can't get concessions from workers, vendors, creditors and aircraft-leasing companies. Former UAL Chief Executive Officer Jack Creighton said on Aug. 14 that United needed the concessions by Monday to file the revised application for the loan guarantees.

WORLD

IMF starts process to suspend Zimbabwe

WASHINGTON >> The International Monetary Fund began the formal process of suspending Zimbabwe's membership for failing to repay millions of dollars in arrears, threatening to further isolate the African nation.

The move was largely expected after the lender put Zimbabwe on notice in June that it could lose its privileges as an IMF member for unpaid arrears. The World Bank is expected to take the IMF's lead and discuss whether to strike Zimbabwe from its ranks on Sept. 17.

According to the latest data available, the African nation has $135 million in arrears to the IMF. Another $186 million is due to be paid between now and the end of 2006.

Grenada shuts down four more banks

ST. GEORGE'S, Grenada >> The government said yesterday it had shut down four more banks in efforts to clean up Grenada's offshore financial industry and have itself removed from an international blacklist.

Finance Minister Anthony Boatswain listed the four banks as ICS Placement Co. Ltd., IC Mutual Ltd., Alpha Windward and Leeward Ltd., and Commercial Asset Placement Ltd. He gave no details of why each was closed. Grenada has revoked licenses from 36 offshore banks since it began reviewing the industry in February 2001. There are just nine banks left in the Caribbean island country's offshore industry.

The review is part of Grenada's effort to have itself removed from the Financial Action Task Force's list of countries deemed uncooperative in fighting international money laundering.