Maui home, condo sales mixed in October

Maui single-family home and condo sales were mixed last month, though median prices rose.

Sales of single-family houses declined 18 percent to 81 in October from 99 in the same month last year, according to data Thursday from the Realtors Association of Maui. Condominium sales rose 6 percent to 102 from 96 in the same comparable period.

Median prices for single-family houses rose 12 percent to $545,000 last month from $485,000 a year earlier. The condo median price was up 3 percent to $360,000 from $349,995.

Volta adds 2 charging stations on Oahu

Volta Industries will expand its network of free electric-vehicle charging stations on Oahu to 19 with the installation next week of two more units.

Pearlridge Shopping Center Downtown will add its second EV charger, while a unit going in at Ward Warehouse will bring the total number of charging stations in the Ward area to six, according to Volta. The installation of the new charging stations is expected to be completed Nov. 15.

The company uses a business model in which EV owners are able to hook up to a Volta charging station at no cost. The service is paid for through advertising on the charging kiosks. Volta generally places the charging stations in locations with high visibility, such as shopping malls.

Big Isle’s isolated south gets radio service

KAHU-FM 91.7 has returned to the airwaves in Pahala, Naalehu and other isolated areas of Hawaii island’s southern half.

Hawaii Public Radio bought the previously silent station earlier this year and restored radio service to the southernmost part of the United States on Wednesday.

The station carries the HPR-2 program stream originated on KIPO-FM 89.3 in Honolulu.

"It is absolutely essential that this population be served, particularly when it comes to emergencies and civil defense," said Michael Titterton, HPR president and general manager.

While KAHU initially will only be heard in the Kau district, HPR plans to incrementally rebuild and expand the station’s signal coverage throughout East Hawaii. HPR-2 can be heard in West Hawaii on KIPM-FM 89.7 and KHPH-FM 88.7.

The HPR-1 program stream can be heard on all islands.

Credit card use in U.S. continues to fall

WASHINGTON » Americans cut back on using their credit cards in September for the fourth straight month but boosted borrowing in the category that covers auto loans and student debt.

Consumers increased their borrowing by $13.7 billion in September to a seasonally adjusted $3.05 trillion, the Federal Reserve reported Thursday. That is a record and follows a gain of $14.2 billion in August.

The increase was driven entirely by higher borrowing for auto and student loans, which rose $15.8 billion. Credit card debt fell $2.1 billion following a decline of $885 million in August.

The string of declines in credit card debt will likely hold back consumer spending, which accounts for 70 percent of economic growth.

Theme parks boost Disney profit by 12%

LOS ANGELES » Disney ended its fiscal year in blockbuster style Thursday, reporting solid growth in fourth-quarter profit, unveiling a substantial Netflix deal and savoring a stock price that has climbed 35 percent over the last 12 months.

Its challenge now is to keep the momentum going.

For the fiscal quarter that ended Sept. 28, the Walt Disney Co. reported a profit of $1.39 billion, or 77 cents a share, a 12 percent increase from $1.24 billion, or 68 cents a share, a year earlier. Revenue climbed 7 percent, to $11.57 billion. The results beat analyst expectations.

Disney’s theme parks provided the biggest boost, although one resort — Disneyland Paris — continued to slump.

ON THE MOVE

Mobi PCS has announced Philip Ris­ken as vice president of engineering and chief technology officer. He has nearly 30 years of telecommunications industry experience.

Central Pacific Bank has appointed Shannon Sheets to vice president and credit administrator. Sheets has 18 years of financial and risk analysis experience and two years of audit experience, including serving as a loan processor and compliance manager for Pacific Mortgage Co. as well as a credit risk review consultant at Bank of Hawaii.

Central Pacific Bank has promoted Lawrence Pai to vice president and business banking senior team manager. Pai was previously a vice president and business banking team manager for CPB. Pai also served as a senior lending officer at Ohana Pacific Bank and senior assistant manager at Household Finance Corporation.