Hawaiian boosts service to Portland, Oakland

Hawaiian Airlines is increasing service to Honolulu from both Portland, Ore., and Oakland, Calif.

The airline will add seat and cargo-carrying capacity to its Portland-Honolulu service by transitioning to its 294-seat Airbus A330-200 beginning May 10 from its 264-seat Boeing 767-300. The larger aircraft will add nearly 11,000 new air seats to the route annually and boost Hawaiian’s cargo capacity on the route by 25 percent.

Hawaiian also will increase service between Oakland and Honolulu to daily flights from four days a week from June 15 to Oct. 3. Hawaiian will continue to use a Boeing 767, but the increase in flights will add more than 12,000 new air seats from the Bay Area during the 16-week period.

Carnival cancels 12 more Triumph cruises

HOUSTON » Carnival Cruise Lines has canceled a dozen more planned voyages aboard the Triumph and acknowledged that the crippled ship had been plagued by other mechanical problems in the weeks before an engine-room fire left it powerless in the Gulf of Mexico.

The company’s announcement on Wednesday came as the Triumph was being towed to a port in Mobile, Ala., with more than 4,000 people on board, some of whom have complained to relatives that conditions on the ship are dismal and that they have limited access to food and bathrooms.

EU, U.S. to seek trans-Atlantic trade pact

BRUSSELS » The European Union and the United States announced Wednesday that they have agreed to pursue talks aimed at achieving an overarching trans-Atlantic free trade deal.

The 27-country EU said such an agreement would be the biggest bilateral trade deal ever negotiated. Any agreement could boost the EU’s economic output by 0.5 percent and the United States’ by 0.7 percent, according to some estimates. That would be a highly desirable outcome when the EU and the U.S. are both struggling with slow growth, high unemployment and high levels of debt.

Retail sales rise 0.1% after tax increase

WASHINGTON » Americans barely spent more last month at retail businesses and restaurants after higher taxes cut their paychecks. The small increase suggests consumer spending may be weak in the January-March quarter, which could hold back economic growth.

Retail sales ticked up 0.1 percent in January from December, the Commerce Department said Wednesday. That follows a 0.5 percent increase in December and is the smallest in three months. Sales fell at auto dealerships, clothing stores and furniture stores. The declines came after big gains in each of those categories in December. Sales rose last month at home-improvement stores, gas stations and online retailers.

$16.7B deal affirms Comcast’s faith in TV

LOS ANGELES » Comcast’s $16.7 billion deal to buy the remaining half of NBCUniversal ahead of schedule represents a resounding vote of confidence in the future of TV, even as the growth of Internet video reshapes the entertainment landscape.

The decision was driven largely by Comcast Corp.’s belief that it would end up paying substantially more for General Electric Co.’s remaining 49 percent stake if it had waited until 2018.

ON THE MOVE

The Hapuna Beach Prince Hotel has named Thomas Cross as hotel manager. He was previously at Turtle Bay Resort for seven years as resort manager. His experience also includes serving as director of conference/food and beverage services and director of operations at Turtle Bay Resorts as well as food and beverage director at Kona Village Resort and the Hawaiian Regent Hotel, now known as the Waikiki Beach Marriott Resort and Spa.

The Queen’s Medical Center has named Dr. Alan T. Suyama as its medical director of anesthesia services. He was previously chief of the department of anesthesiology at the Queen’s Medical Center for six years. In addition to his appointment, Suyama currently serves as an assistant clinical professor of surgery at the John A. Burns School of Medicine at the  University of Hawaii at Manoa.