Hawaii's Economy Continues to Rebound

Hawaii's economy continues to rebound thanks to strong tourism and construction which has propelled housing prices to record levels on Oahu and pushed unemployment down to a six-year low.  First Hawaiian Bank issued a report that credit card sales increased by 5 percent during the second quarter of 2014 as compared to the same quarter a year prior. Bob Harrison, the President and Chief Executive Officer of First Hawaiian.Bank stated, "Tourism is still the driver. We've seen over a period of time strong growth in tourism, and now you're starting to see some individual consumer activities as people feel better about how they're doing. You're starting to see things like home furnishing and home improvement pick up. We've had a very good year so far, and we're continuing to expect modest growth in the 3 to 4 percent range. If we're fortunate and stay at the 5 percent to 6 percent level (in card transactions), I think that will be exceptional. But right now we expect to see modest growth through the end of the year."

First Hawaiian Bank is the largest bank in Hawaii with $17.3 billion in assets.

Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser, 7-20-2014, www.staradvertiser.com
Posted by Jeff Uyemura-Reyes, Principal Broker, REALTOR®
Global Executive Realty, LLC
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