Dash of Calabash

The 4th Annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey by Wendell Cox and Hugh Pavletich ranks Honolulu the 4th least affordable housing market in survey of (227) markets in the United States, Canada, Ireland, United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand. Click here for the report. Only San Francisco, Salinas and Los Angeles in California were rated less affordable.

Last year in the same report, Honolulu was ranked 3rd least affordable, behind San Diego and Los Angeles. Honolulu’s affordability rating was the same both years, 10.3. This translates to a median single-family home price 10.3 times the median household income, using third quarter data. Click here to see last year’s report.

Associated Press

BANGOR, Maine - A proposed federal rule aimed at helping U.S.-flagged cruise ships compete with foreign ships in Hawai’i could hurt the cruise ship market in Maine.

State and municipal officials and port businesses are working together to oppose a federal rule that they say would result in cruise ships spending less time in Bar Harbor and Portland and more time in ports in neighboring Canada.

Federal laws require ships flying under foreign flags to dock in another country before going to other U.S. ports. Cruise ships sailing from California to Hawai’i, for instance, typically make a token stop in Ensenada, Mexico, to meet the letter of the law.

Read the rest of the article from the Honolulu Advertiser here

A wireless monitoring technology developed at the University of Hawai’i-Manoa has reaped yet another award, earning the 2008 North American Technology Innovation of the Year Award from growth company consultant Frost & Sullivan.

The technology now being refined by Kai Sensors Inc., a company with offices in the Manoa Innovation Center, is capable of remotely monitoring heartbeats, breathing and other vital physiological signs at the same time.

Read the rest of the article from Honolulu Advertiser here

Hoku Solar Inc. yesterday announced the completion of two photovoltaic power systems for Paradise Beverages Inc. - one at its Kailua, Kona, office and another at its Lihu’e, Kaua’i, facility. Combined, the systems include approximately 100 kilowatts of photovoltaic panels and are expected to produce more than 150,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity each year.Paradise Beverages is the Hawai’i distributor for Coors, Heineken, Corona and Miller products.

Hoku Solar is a wholly owned subsidiary of Kapolei-based Hoku Scientific Inc.

Hoku Scientific’s shares closed down 12 cents at $10.65 yesterday on the Nasdaq Stock Market.

(Article taken from the Honolulu Advertiser)

Go! parent blames $80 million legal award for worst quarter

By: Rick Daysog

Reeling from an $80 million legal judgment, the parent of interisland carrier go! reported the largest quarterly loss in its history.

Mesa Air Group, which kicked off the interisland fare war when it launched go! in June 2006, said yesterday that it lost a total of $68.2 million, or $2.37 per share, during the three months that ended Sept. 30, 2007.

The loss compares with a net profit of $4.8 million, or 12 cents per share in the year-earlier quarter.

The rest of the article can be found at Honolulu Advertiser by clicking here 

Let’s see how the City, State & environmentalists react to a private company’s efforts to reduce energy and water consumption.

By: Sean Hao

A company seeking to air-condition Downtown buildings with seawater has raised $10.75 million in private financing for the project.

Honolulu Seawater Air Conditioning LLC expects to start construction on the $152.5 million system in January 2009. Remaining financing for the project, which could be completed 14 months after groundbreaking, is expected to come from $100 million in state tax-exempt revenue bonds and conventional borrowing.

Click here to read the rest of the article from the Honolulu Advertiser

Hawai’i milk production plunged 50 percent to 2.2 million pounds in September 2007, versus September 2006, according to the National Agricultural Statistics Service. Cumulative milk production for the first nine months of 2007 was down 35 percent at 29.0 million pounds.

Read the rest of the Honolulu Advertiser article here

The Hawaii Venture Capital Association named Sopogy Inc. its Venture Capital Deal of the Year winner for 2007.
Sopogy, which was founded by entrepreneur Darren Kimura, has technology that provides solar power to the distributed power generation market. The company raised a large funding round from local and Mainland venture capital firms qualifying it for the award.
Sopogy and other winners will be honored at HVCA’s annual Venture Capital Deal of the Year awards luncheon on Jan. 24 at the Plaza Club in Honolulu.

Wal-Mart reports savings of $957 per person or $2,500 per family in 2005, up from $2,329.

Does that sound about right?  Read the whole article using the link below.

Wal-Mart Facts - American Families Now Save $2,500 a Year, Thanks to Wal-Mart