Koa Ridge development hearing cut short

A continued state Land Use Commission hearing Friday on the planned Koa Ridge housing development in Central Oahu was cut short due to availability of witnesses.

Only five witnesses testified Friday, including experts in water availability and urban design for developer Castle & Cooke.

The city conveyed its support for the plan calling for 5,000 homes, medical facilities, two elementary schools, a 150-room hotel, parks and nearly 500,000 square feet of retail, office and light industrial space.

Two Central Oahu residents also expressed concerns about traffic and school capacity as witnesses called by the chairman of the Mililani/Waipio/Malemanu Neighborhood Board, Richard Poirier, who is challenging the project before the commission.

Resumption of the hearing is expected sometime in April.

Economics Academy taking applications

The Hawaii Council on Economic Education is accepting applications through March 30 for its inaugural summer Economics Academy program for high school juniors and seniors, to be hosted at Maryknoll School from June 11 through July 19.

Led by economics teacher Lance Suzuki, students will learn economics and financial literacy concepts by taking behind-the-scenes tours of local businesses and developing personal financial plans integrating college and career choices. Suzuki was named the country’s top teacher of economics at the 2005 Nasdaq National Teaching Awards. In 2011 he coached Maryknoll’s economics team to victory in the David Ricardo division of HCEE’s 2011 Island Insurance Cos. Economics Challenge.

Classes run 20 hours per week for six weeks on Mondays and Wednesdays from 8 a.m. to noon, and on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Applicants must have a minimum grade point average of 2.0. Tuition is $600 per student.

Full-tuition scholarships are available for students from Title I public schools. Scholarship applicants must meet general application guidelines and also submit two letters of recommendation from teachers and/or counselors along with a two-page essay. General and scholarship applications are available at hcee.org.

AMR sees no merger while in bankruptcy

AMR Corp.’s American Airlines plans to exit bankruptcy as a stand-alone carrier and would consider making acquisitions afterward, Chief Executive Officer Tom Horton said.

"All of our energy and focus is on completing the restructuring as an independent company," Horton said Friday in an interview at Bloomberg’s New York headquarters. "We don’t want to be distracted by the notion of mergers right now."

American wants to negotiate new union labor agreements as part of a plan unveiled this week to cut 13,000 jobs and cut annual operating costs by $2 billion, Horton said. That would damp the risk of outside offers for Fort Worth, Texas-based AMR and achieve a goal of leaving bankruptcy by year-end, he said.

The third-largest U.S. airline became a takeover target after filing for court protection on Nov. 29. US Airways Group Inc. has confirmed hiring advisers to examine a possible bid, while Delta Air Lines Inc. has done the same, a person familiar with the matter has said.

Making an acquisition is a possibility after AMR reorganizes, said Horton, 50, who became CEO on the day the company entered Chapter 11.

Panasonic projects record annual loss

TOKYO » Panasonic on Friday nearly doubled its projected loss for the fiscal year to a record 780 billion yen ($10.2 billion) amid weak TV and mobile phone sales and ongoing restructuring costs after acquiring smaller Sanyo Electronics Co.

Panasonic joins Sony and Sharp as the latest major Japa­nese electronics maker to predict huge losses for the year through March. That reflects the battering these brand-name companies have taken from the yen’s surge, a weak global economy, last year’s tsunami disaster and flooding in Thailand, which disrupted supply networks.

For the October-December quarter, Panasonic reported a loss of 197.6 billion yen ($2.6 billion). A year earlier it had a profit of 40 billion yen for the same quarter.

Greek bailout deal held up by labor talks

ATHENS, Greece » Greek unions and employers associations on Friday rejected private-sector wage cuts, as demanded by the country’s international bailout lenders if Athens is to receive a new rescue package and avoid bankruptcy.

The impasse appeared to be holding up final negotiations for massive new debt agreements — a eurozone finance ministers meeting, previously scheduled for Monday to back the new proposals, was postponed to later in the week.

Apart from the bailout talks, Greece is also conducting urgent negotiations with its private creditors, who are being asked to take steep losses on their Greek government bonds. More talks on the write-down — which would slash Greece’s national debt by $131.6 billion — will be held in Athens over the weekend.

ON THE MOVE

Hawaii National Bank has promoted: 

» Mark Saiki to assistant manager of the Kapiolani branch from loan officer. He will be responsible for consumer and commercial loan underwriting and business development and will oversee branch operations.

» Kelli Myers to loan officer at the Kihei branch. She was in the bank’s management training program in 2006 and joined the bank as a credit analyst in 2003.

Hawaiian Airlines has promoted Russell Ryan to managing director of treasury from senior director of fleet acquisition. Ryan has 20 years of aviation experience, including as director of fleet planning for Aloha Airlines.

Halekulani Corp. has appointed Terry Hamada to director of food and beverage. He will be responsible for executing and guiding the strategic vision of Halekulani’s food and beverage program. Hamada was previously a hotel manager of the Grand Park Otaru Hotel in Hokkaido, Japan.