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[ HAWAII INC. ]

New jobs

>> Watermark Publishing has appointed Alfred "Kula" Abiva Jr. to sales and marketing director and Donovan Dela Cruz to communications director. Abiva previously served as Bishop Museum sales and marketing director.

>> Penny Bradley has been appointed director of sales for Ko'olani, a Kakaako luxury high-rise. She began her career at Earl Thacker & Co. and has over 30 years of experience in real estate.

>> Caryn Yu has been named account executive of Hawaii Home+Remodeling Magazine. Before joining the sales team, she served as Honolulu Magazine traffic coordinator. Prior to that, she worked with all PacificBasin publications as the publisher's assistant.

Promotions

>> First Hawaiian Bank has promoted five new senior vice presidents: Benjamin K. Akana, main banking center business banking team leader; Ward B. Brown, private banking officer; Charles L. Jenkins, corporate national division manager; Kathryn K. Okazaki, credit department; and Michael G. Taylor, financial management group.

>> City Mill Co. has promoted Toby Arakaki to company controller. She has been accounting manager and assistant controller since 2000. Prior to joining the company, she spent eight years with Deloitte & Touche, an international accounting and consulting firm, where she was audit manager.

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HAWAII

Big Isle building boom in housing

HILO >> Hawaii County issued 4,507 building permits in 2003, a 22 percent increase over the previous year.

The number of permits represented a combined $655.7 million worth of Big Island projects, setting a new benchmark by more than $160 million, according to county records.

One developer attributed the building boom to affordable housing, federal tax cuts and low interest rates. Eliot Merk, owner of JE Merk & Associates of Hilo, said he expects demand to continue for a couple more years.

Jessie Sanborn, co-owner of G.N. Sanborn General Contractor, said the company has a six-month waiting list for customers wanting to start building new homes. "I think it will be steady, busy," she said, calling conditions "extremely good news" for the industry.

The most activity has occurred in North Kona, while Hamakua, lower Puna and Kau also have experienced plenty of new construction, county Building Division Chief Brian Kajikawa said.

One offshoot of the building boom is the added work for county inspectors.

With no additional employees, it now takes longer to get a building permit in Hilo. The review time for building plans is now between three and four weeks, Kajikawa said.

Hogan program starts competition

The Hogan Entrepreneurial Program at Chaminade University is launching the Hogan/Bank of Hawaii Nonprofit Business Plan Competition.

The organizers hope that by offering financial and technical assistance, the competition will attract nonprofits with plans for new social service programs or new nonprofit subsidiaries. Participants in the competition must submit a statement of intent by Feb. 15 and follow with a detailed business plan by March 15.

Finalists will be selected to make oral presentations to a panel of judges comprised of senior executives, consultants and members of venture capital firms. The first-place winner will receive $15,000 and 40 hours of free technical assistance. Second place will receive $10,000 cash and 30 hours of free technical assistance. Third place will receive $5,000 and 20 hours of free technical assistance.

Winners will be recognized at an awards ceremony in May. For more information, contact Ann Lujan at 739-4673 or alujan@chaminada.edu.

NATION

Tax refund pumps up Boeing

CHICAGO >> A billion-dollar tax refund enabled Boeing Co. to nearly double its fourth-quarter earnings, capping a rocky 2003 in which ethics controversies shook the company and defense contracting overtook commercial airplanes as its biggest business.

The refund accounted for virtually all of the $1.11 billion quarterly profit announced yesterday and allowed Boeing to avoid its first money-losing year since 1997. It also temporarily took some of the sting out of the decline of Boeing's commercial jet business, which fell behind Airbus in the global market for the first time with the year-end numbers.

Former Prudential unit fined $2M by NASD

The National Association of Securities Dealers issued a $2 million fine against the former brokerage unit of Prudential Financial Inc. yesterday, charging that several hundred annuity sales violated association and New York State Insurance Department rules.

The NASD also ordered the firm to pay affected customers of Prudential Securities $9.5 million. Prudential has agreed to the sanctions, and does not admit or deny the charges, the NASD said. The Newark, N.J.-based financial giant has paid $8 million of the $9.5 million, spokesman Robert DeFillippo said.

"Prudential discovered this matter and promptly notified the proper regulators. And we have been cooperating with the regulators," he said. The NASD said Prudential alerted it and other regulators after a review of replacement sales in mid-2002 uncovered altered documents.

WORLD

Japan's unemployment rate falls

Japan's unemployment rate unexpectedly dropped to 4.9 percent in December, the lowest since June 2001, as a recovery in the world's second-largest economy spurred hiring.

The economy added 410,000 jobs, the most in six months, the statistics bureau said in Tokyo. The jobless rate had been expected to be unchanged at 5.2 percent, according to the median forecast of 38 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News.

Six quarters of economic growth fueled by rising demand for exports of digital cameras and flat-panel displays are prompting manufacturers to invest in new machines and hire more workers.

SK Telecom's profit nearly triples

SK Telecom Co.'s fourth-quarter profit almost tripled as South Korea's largest mobile-phone operator earned more from transmitting songs and games to users.

Net income surged to a higher-than-expected $369 million. Sales rose to 4.8 percent to 2.48 trillion won.

The figures were calculated by subtracting nine-month figures from full-year earnings released by the Seoul-based company. SK Telecom, which serves more than half of the country's mobile users, is widening its lead over closest rivals KT Freetel Corp. and LG Telecom Ltd. by boosting wireless Internet use in a market where seven out of 10 people have handsets. Online services accounted for about a fifth of customers' phone bills.