---

[ FAST FACTS HAWAII ]

---

BACK TO TOP
|

HAWAII

Horizon Lines raises shipping surcharge

Horizon Lines has raised its fuel surcharge for customers shipping items to Hawaii and Matson Navigation Co. may follow suit.

Horizon has informed its customers it will impose a 2.5 percent emergency fuel surcharge because of rising fuel prices caused by Hurricane Katrina. The company, Hawaii's second-largest shipping company, already has an 11.5 percent fuel surcharge.

Jeff Hull, a Matson spokesman, said the company is scheduled to make a quarterly announcement concerning its fuel surcharge later this week. Hull did not say whether Matson would increase its surcharge above the 11.5 percent it already charges.

Crude oil and gasoline prices have surged following Hurricane Katrina, which crippled oil production platforms in the Gulf of Mexico and damaged several major refineries.

Luxury homes planned for Ko Olina

The No. 2 U.S. home builder plans to construct another 247 resort homes at Ko Olina Resort & Marina in Leeward Oahu.

Dallas-based Centex Homes, a subsidiary of Centex Corp., announced yesterday its plans to build two upscale condominium towers, called the Beach Villas at Ko Olina, along one of the resort's lagoons.

The project, which will break ground on Sept. 29, will go on the market next month. Prices for a two-bedroom villa are expected to start at $1.8 million. Sales reservations, which include a $50,000 refundable deposit, are being accepted.

Centex, which recently brought Ko Olina Kai Golf Estates & Villas to the Oahu market, is also responsible for developing two Big Island resort communities, Halii Kai at Waikoloa and the Kolea Beach Club.

NATION AND WORLD

Northwest Air talks resume today

MINNEAPOLIS » Northwest Airlines Corp. will resume talks with striking mechanics today and demand steeper cuts than those that prompted the workers to walk out.

The announcement by both sides yesterday came one day after Northwest told the union it would begin hiring permanent replacements by Sept. 13 unless a deal was reached.

Northwest's 4,427 mechanics, cleaners and custodians walked out on Aug. 20 rather than accept 25 percent pay cuts and layoffs of some 2,000 workers.

Ford may sell Hertz to investors

The Ford Motor Co. is planning to recommend to its board today that it sell its Hertz rental car business to a group of investors led by the Carlyle Group for more than $10 billion, according to executives involved in the deal.

Ford, which has been weighing a plan to spin off or sell Hertz, the world's largest rental car company, was working last night to complete final terms with the Carlyle-led group that would be presented at the board meeting today, the executives said.

Hertz, which operates in 7,000 locations in more than 140 countries, was acquired by Ford in 1994 after a decades-long relationship in which Ford supplied the company's fleet of vehicles.

Apple introduces music-playing phone

SAN FRANCISCO » Apple Computer Inc. Chief Executive Steve Jobs introduced a long-anticipated music-playing cell phone yesterday and surprised the faithful with a new pencil-thin iPod.

The phone, called the ROKR and made by Motorola Inc., will come loaded with iTunes software, store up to 100 songs and include a color display screen and a built-in camera. The ROKR, Apple's first foray into the mobile telephony market, will include built-in dual-stereo speakers as well as stereo headphones that also serve as a mobile headset.

The new iPod, called the Nano, replaces the iPod Mini. In contrast with the Mini, which is hard drive-based, the Nano relies on flash memory, making it lighter and more energy-efficient.

South Korean stock market hits new high

South Korea's stock market soared to a new high yesterday, surpassing its old record set nearly 11 years ago and symbolizing the economy's resurgence from its collapse during the 1997-98 Asian financial crisis.

The Korean economy was battered and humbled by that ordeal, which sent the currency, the won, into a nosedive, brought down the Daewoo conglomerate, and forced the nation to accept a $58 billion International Monetary Fund bailout.

The stalwarts that have emerged from those trials -- Samsung Electronics Co., Hyundai Motor Co., Posco and Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co. -- are stronger and more competitive than ever before.