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This story has been corrected.
Lance Wilhelm has been appointed senior vice president of Hawaii operations for Kiewit Corp. An earlier version mistakenly listed his company as Kiewit Building Group Inc.
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Allegiant has no cancellations in limited schedule
LAS VEGAS >> Allegiant Air reported no cancellations in its modest Tuesday schedule while crews continue a systemwide rehab of emergency exit slides on MD-80 aircraft. Spokeswoman Jessica Wheeler says the airline had 25 flights scheduled nationwide, including 12 carried over after they were canceled Monday. Wheeler says at least 32 of 52 MD-80s are back in service.
About 10 percent of Allegiant passengers endured cancelations since Friday, after the airline grounded MD-80s until each exit chute was overhauled to meet manufacturer’s recommendations. Allegiant began the effort after reviewing maintenance records following a smoke alarm and emergency evacuation of a Sept. 16 Allegiant flight in Las Vegas. The inflatable chutes worked properly and no one was hurt.
Kauai utility seeking fuel information
Kauai Island Utility Cooperative said Tuesday it is seeking information from prospective fuel suppliers to determine the cost and availability of a variety of fuels, including oil, natural gas and biofuels.
It is the first time KIUC has issued a “request for information” for a broad range of liquid and gas products, with the only requirement that they can be burned in the utility’s existing generators with little or no modification.
The RFI asks suppliers to provide nonbinding estimates of their price of fuel delivered to KIUC, including shipping, storage and taxes from 2015 through 2020.
KIUC uses nearly 30 million gallons of diesel, naphtha and used oil annually. KIUC’s current fuel supply contract expires in April 2015.
Once responses to the RFI are received and reviewed, KIUC expects to issue a more formal request for proposals. The deadline for responses is Nov. 22.
Jobs outlook hurts consumer confidence
WASHINGTON >> Americans’ confidence in the economy fell slightly in September from August, as many became less optimistic about hiring and pay increases over the next six months.
The Conference Board, a New York-based private research group, said Tuesday that its consumer confidence index dropped to 79.7 in September. That’s down from August’s reading of 81.8, which was slightly higher than previously estimated.
Consumers’ confidence is closely watched because their spending accounts for 70 percent of economic activity.
The August reading was only slightly below June’s reading of 82.1, the highest in 5 1/2 years.
While confidence has bounced back from the depths of the Great Recession, it has yet to regain a reading of 90 that typically coincides with a healthy economy. The economy has been held back this year by tax hikes, federal spending cuts and weaker global growth.
Applied Materials buys Tokyo Electron
TOKYO >> Chip-making equipment manufacturer Applied Materials is acquiring Tokyo Electron Ltd., a rival maker of equipment for production of semiconductors, flat-panel displays and solar panels.
The two companies said Tuesday their $9.39 billion all-stock transaction will result in the creation of a new company with a market capitalization of about $29 billion.
Tokyo Electron’s chairman Tetsuro Higashi said the deal is meant to create a “truly global company” to meet the needs of companies supplying consumer electronics, such as smartphones and tablets.
The new company will have shared leadership, with Higashi as its chairman and Applied Materials’ president and CEO, Gary Dickerson, as its CEO.
Fed concerned about premature trading
WASHINGTON >> The Federal Reserve is concerned about suspiciously heavy trading of gold futures after its meeting last week that may have been triggered by a premature release of market-sensitive information.
In a statement, the central bank said Tuesday that news organizations that receive embargoed information from the Fed agree to withhold information until the time set for its release. The Fed statement said, “We will be conducting follow-up conversations with news organizations to ensure our procedures are completely understood.”
Trading in financial markets is now dominated by automated computer systems, which make trades in tiny fractions of a second that can lead to millions of dollars in profit.
Receiving the data early — even by a few milliseconds — can give an unfair advantage to some firms.
Smithfield shareholders OK Shuanghui deal
RICHMOND, Va. >> Shareholders of Smithfield Foods Inc. on Tuesday approved a plan to sell the world’s largest pork producer and processor to a Chinese company.
The Smithfield, Va.-based company said more than 96 percent of the votes cast during a special meeting in Richmond were in favor of Shuanghui International Holdings Ltd.’s $34-per-share offer, or $4.72 billion in cash.
The deal, which is expected to close Thursday, will be the largest takeover of a U.S. company by a Chinese firm, valued at about $7.1 billion including debt.
Its sale to Hong Kong-based Shuanghui comes at a time of serious food safety problems in China, some of which have involved Shuanghui, which owns food and logistics enterprises and is the largest shareholder of China’s biggest meat processor.
ON THE MOVE
PacificBasin Communications has named Bobby Senaha as publisher of Hawaii Business Magazine. He joined the magazine in October 2004 as advertising director and has served as interim publisher since June.
Kiewit Corp. has named Lance Wilhelm as senior vice president of Hawaii operations. He was previously area manager, and his experience at Kiewit also includes serving as estimator, superintendent, project manager and business manager.
Kiewit Building Group Inc. has named Sharon Thom as senior vice president and Hawaii area manager. She joined the company in 2010 as the contractor’s director of pre-construction operations and had previously served as deputy director for the city Department of Transportation Services.
