Honolulu Star-Bulletin Business

[ FAST FACTS HAWAII ]

[ HAWAII INC. ]

NEW JOBS

>> Hawaiian Hotels and Resorts has appointed Lalo Fernandez general manager of the Royal Kona Resort on the Big Island. He has over 20 years of experience in the hospitality industry. He most recently served as Castle & Cooke Resorts sales director on Lanai.

>> Roberts Hawaii has appointed Mapu Wright Dilliner as sales director. She previously worked as an investment specialist for HonFed and First Hawaiian Bank.

>> Finance Factors has hired Aaron Sato as a finance assistant vice president. He will be responsible for managing the treasury functions of the company. He previously served as Central Pacific Bank senior treasury analyst.

>> CB Richard Ellis Hawaii Inc. has hired TyMuoi Kim Ha as an associate. She will specialize in Maui retail properties. Before joining the company, she served as a sales agent for the Auto Club of Southern California.

HAWAII
Hilton guests can check in at airport

Starting today, guests of Hilton Hawaiian Village Beach Resort & Spa will be able to check into their hotel and get their room keys before leaving Honolulu Airport.

While self-service airline, baggage and hotel check-in has become a common offering, Hawaii will be the first state to offer hotel guests access to a self-service kiosk at the airport and in the hotel lobby, Hilton said.

Using a credit card provides Hilton hotel guests security and the ability to navigate the system. In addition to checking in, Hilton hotel guests may also use the self-service kiosk to change their preferences or upgrade their reservations.

Last year, Hilton launched advance Web check-in at more than 2,200 of its hotels, including Doubletree, Embassy Suites, Hampton Inn and Hilton Garden Inn. Radisson Hotels & Resorts also offers this service.

Ex-Hawaiian Air chief pays loan

Former Hawaiian Airlines Chief Executive Bruce Nobles, who is leading one of the reorganization efforts to purchase the bankrupt carrier, has repaid a $1.5 million loan from the company that was due in February 2005.

Nobles raised the money to pay off the loan by selling his remaining 300,000 shares of Hawaiian Holdings Inc. stock that he has insisted all along should be worthless. He said the price he received for his stock was "north of $6" a share.

Nobles, who would become CEO of Hawaiian under a reorganization plan for the carrier proposed by aircraft lessor Boeing Capital Corp. and turnaround firm Corporate Recovery Group LLC, said he still believes the airline is insolvent because its obligations exceed its value.

Hawaiian Airlines' emergence from bankruptcy could be delayed again because of a pending $129 million tax claim lodged against it by the Internal Revenue Service. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Robert Faris yesterday set a hearing on the matter for Dec. 13 and 14. However, the judge put the IRS claim on a fast track by rejecting the agency's request for a May 1, 2005, hearing that would have extended the bankruptcy until next summer.

The fate of a previously scheduled mid-November hearing to confirm a plan for the airline will be determined next month.

Firm recommends buying HEI

A stock analyst firm recommends that investors buy power company Hawaiian Electric Industries Inc. and other energy stocks, and sell oil giant Exxon Mobil Corp., according to a Wall Street Journal story.

John S. Herold Inc. of Connecticut says it has tracked a small group of energy companies against Exxon's stock price in the past three years, and found that the group returned 31 percent will Exxon Mobil yielded 12 percent.

Lingle spotlights life insurance

Gov. Linda Lingle has proclaimed this September to be "Life Insurance Awareness Month" in Hawaii to draw attention locally to the widespread of lack of life insurance across the nation.

A ceremony will be held Sept. 16 at the Capitol office of Lt. Gov. Duke Aiona.

NATION
Invesco will pay huge penalty

Invesco Funds Group and its sister company will pay more than $450 million in penalties, restitution and lowered fees to settle allegations they allowed wealthy investors to trade their mutual funds improperly.

Divided pilots balk at U.S. Airways offer

US Airways' efforts to extract $800 million in cuts from its unions and avoid a return to bankruptcy suffered a setback when a divided pilots union refused to submit a contract proposal to its membership for a vote.

US Airways has warned that a bankruptcy filing could happen in the coming weeks if it cannot cut new labor deals with its unions. A study commissioned by the pilots' union concluded that bankruptcy loomed as soon as mid-September if the airline could not implement changes to its current operations.

The airline is seeking $295 million a year in cuts from its 3,000 pilots, and $800 million from all its unions as part of an overall plan to cut costs by $1.5 billion a year. Details of the contract proposal were not made public, but people familiar with the negotiations said they would have required pilots to accept a pay cut of about 20 percent and cuts to their retirement plan of about 50 percent.

Monday night's vote of the Master Executive Council of the Air Line Pilots Association revealed long-simmering divisions within the pilots' union. Four pilot representatives based in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia were able to block a ratification vote under union bylaws.

ASIA & PACIFIC
China warns of strains on its pensions system

BEIJING >> China warned yesterday that the next two decades will be critical for the development of a universal pension and welfare system, as the "cradle-to-grave" guarantees of the nation's planned economy fade away.

Since abandoning the so-called iron rice bowl, China has been experimenting with several social security schemes as it seeks to support a ballooning number of retirees and laid-off workers.

A first-ever Cabinet white paper on social security, released yesterday by the State Council, says the government faces an arduous task.

"Since China is an aging society, we are facing more and more pressure in terms of funding," said Meng Zhaoxi, director-general of the Labor Ministry's Social Security Administrative Center, speaking at a news briefing as the report was released.

Hotel firm Shangri-La says profit hits record

Shangri-La Asia Ltd., the largest luxury hotel operator in Asia, said first-half profit rose to a record, exceeding analysts' forecast, as travel demand in China and Hong Kong rebounded after SARS was curbed.

Profit rose to $68.7 million, or 2.97 cents a share, from $5.6 million, or 0.26 cent a share, a year ago, the Hong Kong- based company said. A Bloomberg News survey of three analysts had a median forecast of $50 million. China and Hong Kong made up about 53 percent of first-half sales, which rose 54 percent to $340.8 million.

Timber magnate to sell shares in paper

Malaysian timber magnate Tiong Hiew King may raise about $38.7 million selling shares in Sin Chew Media Corp., publisher of the nation's biggest Chinese-language newspaper by circulation.

Tiong, who controls Sin Chew Media, plans to sell 73.6 million existing shares at about 2 ringgit apiece, Executive Director Gan Chin Kew said. The company owns the 75-year-old Sin Chew Daily newspaper.

Sin Chew, which has 50 percent of the Mandarin-language newspaper market, joins AirAsia Sdn. and other Malaysian companies that are planning share sales in the fastest economic growth in almost four years.

Truck sales lift Toyota's Thai unit

The Thai unit of Toyota Motor Corp. has got orders for 22,000 of the new pickup trucks it started selling two weeks ago, signaling a rebound in sales for the company in Southeast Asia's biggest automotive market.

— ADVERTISEMENT —

Business Briefs Reported by Star-Bulletin staff & wire [ FAST FACTS HAWAII ] BACK TO TOP \| [ HAWAII INC. ] NEW JOBS >> Hawaiian Hotels and Resorts has appointed Lalo Fernandez general manager of the Royal Kona Resort on the Big Island. He has over 20 years of experience in the hospitality industry. He most recently served as Castle & Cooke Resorts sales director on Lanai. >> Roberts Hawaii has appointed Mapu Wright Dilliner as sales director. She previously worked as an investment specialist for HonFed and First Hawaiian Bank. >> Finance Factors has hired Aaron Sato as a finance assistant vice president. He will be responsible for managing the treasury functions of the company. He previously served as Central Pacific Bank senior treasury analyst. >> CB Richard Ellis Hawaii Inc. has hired TyMuoi Kim Ha as an associate. She will specialize in Maui retail properties. Before joining the company, she served as a sales agent for the Auto Club of Southern California. HAWAII Hilton guests can check in at airport Starting today, guests of Hilton Hawaiian Village Beach Resort & Spa will be able to check into their hotel and get their room keys before leaving Honolulu Airport. While self-service airline, baggage and hotel check-in has become a common offering, Hawaii will be the first state to offer hotel guests access to a self-service kiosk at the airport and in the hotel lobby, Hilton said. Using a credit card provides Hilton hotel guests security and the ability to navigate the system. In addition to checking in, Hilton hotel guests may also use the self-service kiosk to change their preferences or upgrade their reservations. Last year, Hilton launched advance Web check-in at more than 2,200 of its hotels, including Doubletree, Embassy Suites, Hampton Inn and Hilton Garden Inn. Radisson Hotels & Resorts also offers this service. Ex-Hawaiian Air chief pays loan Former Hawaiian Airlines Chief Executive Bruce Nobles, who is leading one of the reorganization efforts to purchase the bankrupt carrier, has repaid a $1.5 million loan from the company that was due in February 2005. Nobles raised the money to pay off the loan by selling his remaining 300,000 shares of Hawaiian Holdings Inc. stock that he has insisted all along should be worthless. He said the price he received for his stock was "north of $6" a share. Nobles, who would become CEO of Hawaiian under a reorganization plan for the carrier proposed by aircraft lessor Boeing Capital Corp. and turnaround firm Corporate Recovery Group LLC, said he still believes the airline is insolvent because its obligations exceed its value. Hawaiian Airlines' emergence from bankruptcy could be delayed again because of a pending $129 million tax claim lodged against it by the Internal Revenue Service. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Robert Faris yesterday set a hearing on the matter for Dec. 13 and 14. However, the judge put the IRS claim on a fast track by rejecting the agency's request for a May 1, 2005, hearing that would have extended the bankruptcy until next summer. The fate of a previously scheduled mid-November hearing to confirm a plan for the airline will be determined next month. Firm recommends buying HEI A stock analyst firm recommends that investors buy power company Hawaiian Electric Industries Inc. and other energy stocks, and sell oil giant Exxon Mobil Corp., according to a Wall Street Journal story. John S. Herold Inc. of Connecticut says it has tracked a small group of energy companies against Exxon's stock price in the past three years, and found that the group returned 31 percent will Exxon Mobil yielded 12 percent. Lingle spotlights life insurance Gov. Linda Lingle has proclaimed this September to be "Life Insurance Awareness Month" in Hawaii to draw attention locally to the widespread of lack of life insurance across the nation. A ceremony will be held Sept. 16 at the Capitol office of Lt. Gov. Duke Aiona. NATION Invesco will pay huge penalty Invesco Funds Group and its sister company will pay more than $450 million in penalties, restitution and lowered fees to settle allegations they allowed wealthy investors to trade their mutual funds improperly. Divided pilots balk at U.S. Airways offer US Airways' efforts to extract $800 million in cuts from its unions and avoid a return to bankruptcy suffered a setback when a divided pilots union refused to submit a contract proposal to its membership for a vote. US Airways has warned that a bankruptcy filing could happen in the coming weeks if it cannot cut new labor deals with its unions. A study commissioned by the pilots' union concluded that bankruptcy loomed as soon as mid-September if the airline could not implement changes to its current operations. The airline is seeking $295 million a year in cuts from its 3,000 pilots, and $800 million from all its unions as part of an overall plan to cut costs by $1.5 billion a year. Details of the contract proposal were not made public, but people familiar with the negotiations said they would have required pilots to accept a pay cut of about 20 percent and cuts to their retirement plan of about 50 percent. Monday night's vote of the Master Executive Council of the Air Line Pilots Association revealed long-simmering divisions within the pilots' union. Four pilot representatives based in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia were able to block a ratification vote under union bylaws. ASIA & PACIFIC China warns of strains on its pensions system BEIJING >> China warned yesterday that the next two decades will be critical for the development of a universal pension and welfare system, as the "cradle-to-grave" guarantees of the nation's planned economy fade away. Since abandoning the so-called iron rice bowl, China has been experimenting with several social security schemes as it seeks to support a ballooning number of retirees and laid-off workers. A first-ever Cabinet white paper on social security, released yesterday by the State Council, says the government faces an arduous task. "Since China is an aging society, we are facing more and more pressure in terms of funding," said Meng Zhaoxi, director-general of the Labor Ministry's Social Security Administrative Center, speaking at a news briefing as the report was released. Hotel firm Shangri-La says profit hits record Shangri-La Asia Ltd., the largest luxury hotel operator in Asia, said first-half profit rose to a record, exceeding analysts' forecast, as travel demand in China and Hong Kong rebounded after SARS was curbed. Profit rose to $68.7 million, or 2.97 cents a share, from $5.6 million, or 0.26 cent a share, a year ago, the Hong Kong- based company said. A Bloomberg News survey of three analysts had a median forecast of $50 million. China and Hong Kong made up about 53 percent of first-half sales, which rose 54 percent to $340.8 million. Timber magnate to sell shares in paper Malaysian timber magnate Tiong Hiew King may raise about $38.7 million selling shares in Sin Chew Media Corp., publisher of the nation's biggest Chinese-language newspaper by circulation. Tiong, who controls Sin Chew Media, plans to sell 73.6 million existing shares at about 2 ringgit apiece, Executive Director Gan Chin Kew said. The company owns the 75-year-old Sin Chew Daily newspaper. Sin Chew, which has 50 percent of the Mandarin-language newspaper market, joins AirAsia Sdn. and other Malaysian companies that are planning share sales in the fastest economic growth in almost four years. Truck sales lift Toyota's Thai unit The Thai unit of Toyota Motor Corp. has got orders for 22,000 of the new pickup trucks it started selling two weeks ago, signaling a rebound in sales for the company in Southeast Asia's biggest automotive market.	— ADVERTISEMENTS — — ADVERTISEMENTS —