Happy days are here again, soon?

Twenty percent of Hawaii’s tourists come from Japan, so good economic news from Tokyo is generally positive for the islands as well.

The audience at the First Hawaiian Bank Business Outlook Forum on Thursday heard a hopeful report from Richard Koo, chief economist for the Tokyo-based Nomura Research Institute, who said he’s "actually quite optimistic about the Japanese economy for the first time in 20-some years."

Government policies that increase private investment, keep inflation-adjusted interest rates low and increase spending are a boon for Japan’s beleaguered economy, he said. That means they could be a boon for Hawaii’s economy, too. We’ll see how it goes.

Waikiki gets another vote of confidence

Another sign that Japan and Hawaii are economically intertwined is the investment announced this week by Japan’s Kyo-ya Hotels & Resorts.

Reflecting the company’s confidence in Hawaii as a tourist destination, it is proceeding with the biggest re-investment ever made in a single Waikiki property — $500 million to upgrade the Sheraton Princess Kaiulani.

The bad news is the renovation will displace some 350 "associates" of the property during the three years the renovations are going on, but the good news is that the hotel’s manager, Starwood Resorts, is working with the employees’ union, United Here Local 5, to find them jobs at other Kyo-ya-owned resorts in Hawaii, which Starwood also manages.

The renovation also will provide new construction jobs and add pizzazz to the heart of Waikiki.