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HAWAII
United holiday fares offered to mainland

United Airlines has announced its annual Mele Kalikimaka fare sale for travel from Hawaii to the mainland in December. The sale covers flights departing from the Big Island, Kauai, Maui and Oahu.

Sample one-way fares, based on required round-trip purchases on www.united.com, include the following: $199 from Honolulu to Los Angeles or Las Vegas, $259 from Honolulu to Chicago, $279 from Honolulu to New York, $209 from Maui to San Francisco, $303 from Kona to Philadelphia, $216 from Kauai to San Francisco and $303 from Kauai to Baltimore.

The fares, which don't include taxes and fees, apply to flights departing Hawaii between Dec. 1 and Dec. 25. Return travel must take place between Dec. 29 and Jan. 8. Tickets must be bought at least seven days before travel and require a three-night minimum stay.

Tickets purchased through United reservation offices are $5 per ticket higher and tickets purchased at airport ticket counters are $10 per ticket higher.

Safeway remodels in Hawaii Kai

Safeway Inc. presented a remodeled "lifestyle" store yesterday to the public at 377 Keahole St. in Hawaii Kai.

The remodeled 44,000-square-foot store, the first in Hawaii, "boasts several specialty departments, making it a one-stop shopping experience for customers," the company said.

New amenities include a full-service seafood department and deli with soup cart and gourmet cheese table, sushi bar and carving station.

According to Safeway's annual report to shareholders issued earlier this year, the prototype lifestyle stores, which Safeway has been rolling out on the mainland, also have "a warm and inviting decor, with special lighting to highlight products and departments."

Mera delays filing earnings report

Mera Pharmaceuticals Inc., a Kona-based producer of nutritional supplements from microalgae, has notified the Securities and Exchange Commission that its fiscal third-quarter earnings will be delayed because the auditor's review was not completed by the due data.

The company is now scheduled to file its financial results next week.

Island Air makes it easier to change

Island Air is making it cheaper and easier for customers to change travel dates. The airline has begun charging a flat fee for changes made to a ticket as long as the route is unchanged, the company said. Passengers changing flight dates or times will be charged $10 to $20, depending on the ticket bought.

In the past, the airline had charged a heftier administrative fee, plus a differential based on the price of the ticket when it was bought and the price of the ticket for the new travel date. The new policy requires no differential and only a "nominal administrative" fee.

The airline also will accept changes regardless of ticket class, as long as a seat is available

NATION
Gates boosts stake in Berkshire

Bill Gates, Microsoft Corp.'s co-founder and the world's richest man, boosted his stake in Berkshire Hathaway Inc. by adding 100 shares worth $8.3 million.

The purchase brings Gates' total ownership in friend and fellow billionaire Warren Buffett's company to 3,940 Class A shares, according to a filing yesterday with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Gates paid $82,800 to $83,000 for the 100 shares purchased on Sept. 14, the filing shows.

Gates, who became a Berkshire director on Dec. 14, is the company's 17th-largest shareholder with stock worth $320.7 million based on yesterday's closing price of $81,400.