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HAWAII

Northwest to stop Kansai-Honolulu flights

Northwest Airlines Corp., the fourth-largest U.S. carrier, will suspend flights between Kansai airport and Honolulu because of a slump in demand, spokesman Masaharu Takahashi said.

The Eagan, Minn.-based airline, which operates seven flights a week on the route, will stop the service Oct. 1, Takahashi said. Northwest also canceled flights from Kansai, which serves the western Japanese city of Osaka, to Los Angeles and Seattle.

Airlines worldwide may lose between $5 billion and $6.5 billion on international routes this year, according to the International Air Transport Association. Airlines slashed capacity as people canceled trips because of fears they'd be infected by severe acute respiratory syndrome.

Decision makers head to Waikiki

A Hawaii convention of association executives is coming up later this month, and state officials say the event could usher in $1.3 billion in future convention business in the islands, statistically speaking.

The American Society of Association Executives will hold its annual meeting and exposition -- known as the "Super Bowl of Conventions" -- at the Hawaii Convention Center Aug. 23-26.

ASAE, based in Washington, D.C., is one of the world's biggest meeting industry associations with 25,000 members representing 10,000 other associations.

The state says one in five of the executives who attend an ASAE annual meeting will book their own meetings in the same city in the following five years.

Attendance at the event, booked by the Hawaii Visitors & Convention Bureau in 1999, is expected to be about 3,500 people, down from a previous estimate of 5,500 attendees.

American offers Hawaii bonus

American Airlines Vacations is offering its customers 10,000 bonus miles in the airline's AAdvantage frequent-flier program if they book at least five nights at any of several dozen participating hotels throughout Hawaii. The Fort Worth, Texas-based vacation packager said the deal is good for bookings made through Sept. 30 for travel between Aug. 15 and Jan. 31 2004.

American Airlines said its frequent-flier program, launched in 1981, has 45 million members worldwide. For more information about the Hawaii program, go to www.AAVacations.com, contact a travel agent or call (800) 321-2121.

Coffee pickers wanted

Kauai Coffee Co. is looking to hire as many as 112 full-time temporary workers for the upcoming harvest season. The harvest of the 3,400-acre estate begins September and ends in November.

The company will hold a job fair at the Kukui Grove Shopping Center Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., but those interested may also apply in person to the company's human resources department at Numila Camp or call (808) 335-5481.

Auditor quits Ceatech

Ceatech USA Inc., which lost $11.3 million since its inception in January 1995 through its fiscal first quarter that ended in April, said in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing yesterday that its accountant, Pricewaterhouse Coopers LLP, has resigned.

The Kauai shrimp producer said there have been no disagreements with PWC regarding Ceatech's annual financial statements for the two most recent fiscal years or the fiscal 2004 second quarter that ended July 28. Ceatech noted, though, that in the last two annual statements that PWC expressed substantial doubt about Ceatech's ability to continue as a going concern. Such language is commonplace in SEC filings of start-up companies.

Ceatech, which is thinly traded on the Over-the-Counter Bulletin Board, hasn't had any trading activity since July 16 when it closed at 45 cents.

Phone calls to Ceatech officials were not returned.

ELSEWHERE

Daiei to seek bailout for baseball business

Daiei Inc. will ask a government bailout fund to help improve the finances of its Fukuoka baseball and hotel business in preparation for selling it, the Tokyo Shimbun newspaper said.

The fund, Industrial Revitalization Corp. of Japan, will probably agree to the request, the paper said, without saying where it obtained the information. Daiei, Japan's most indebted retailer, owns a professional baseball team, stadium and adjacent hotel in Fukuoka, the biggest city on the country's southwestern island of Kyushu.

U.S. investment firms Ripplewood Holdings LLC, Lone Star Group and Colony Capital LLC are seeking to buy the stadium and hotel.

Daiei spokesman Mitsuru Sano said nothing has been decided on how to deal with these Fukuoka businesses.

Verizon to continue union talks today

Verizon Communications Inc. the biggest U.S. local-telephone company, and unions representing 78,000 employees are likely to continue contract negotiations tomorrow, the Communications Workers of America said.

"Several major issues have not yet been resolved," the CWA said in an e-mailed statement. Bargaining over those issues is continuing, the CWA said. Verizon workers will remain on the job during the talks, the union said.

Verizon has been in negotiations with the CWA and another union for seven weeks, seeking to avoid a strike that analysts say may disrupt service in 13 states and hurt the company's sales and stock price. The main issues include job security and unionization of Verizon's mobile-phone unit.