Rebates offered for switch to LED exit signs
Businesses in Oahu, Maui and Hawaii counties are eligible to receive a rebate of $40 for each incandescent "exit" sign they replace with one that is illuminated with a light-emitting diode, or LED.
The rebates are being offered by Hawaii Energy, the ratepayer-funded energy conservation and efficiency program that operates in the three counties. The offer is available through May 31.
LED exit signs certified by the Energy Star program use about 44 kilowatt-hours of electricity a year compared with 350 kilowatt-hours a year for an incandescent sign — a savings of 87 percent, according to a news release from Hawaii Energy. For each incandescent exit sign replaced, the savings is about $80 to $100 a year, according to Hawaii Energy.
For more information visit www.hawaiienergy.com/lighting or call 839-8800 on Oahu and 877-231-8222.
GM recalls 1.5M cars for steering defect
DETROIT » General Motors Co. said Monday it is recalling 1.5 million vehicles worldwide because the electronic power-steering assist can suddenly stop working, making them harder to steer.
The new recall brings to 6.3 million the number of vehicles GM has recalled since February. The initial recall — now at 2.6 million small cars for an ignition switch defect — prompted the automaker to name a new safety chief and speed up the review of cases that might lead to recalls.
The recall includes Chevrolet Malibu, Malibu Maxx, Chevrolet HHR, Chevrolet Cobalt, Saturn Aura, Saturn Ion and Pontiac G6. Model years vary, but all of the vehicles are from the 2010 model year or earlier.
Caterpillar targeted over tax strategy
WASHINGTON » Sen. Carl Levin says manufacturing giant Caterpillar Inc. has used an aggressive tax strategy to shift profits overseas to avoid paying billions in U.S. taxes.
The Michigan Democrat chairs the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations. The committee’s Democratic staff said in a report released Monday that Caterpillar avoided paying $2.4 billion in U.S. taxes since 2000 by shifting profits to a wholly controlled affiliate in Switzerland.
The report raises questions about the validity of the tax strategy but does not accuse the Peoria, Ill.-based manufacturer of breaking the law.
The company said that it complies with all tax laws and pays an effective income tax rate of 29 percent, among the highest for multinational manufacturers.
Japanese retailers tout pretax hike deals
TOKYO » Buy now or pay more later: Japanese retailers are luring customers with promises of steep discounts ahead of a sales tax hike Tuesday that economists expect to slow but not derail the recovery of the world’s third-largest economy.
Japan’s sales tax will rise to 8 percent from 5 percent. It is the first such increase since 1997, when the combination of the tax hike, an unwinding of debt from Japan’s bubble economy days and the impact of a regional financial crisis plunged the country into recession.
The "Abenomics" strategy of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe aims to spur inflation and pull Japan out of its two-decade economic slump by getting consumers and businesses to make purchases sooner rather than later.
Johnson & Johnson sells Ortho-Clinical arm
NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. » Johnson & Johnson has accepted a roughly $4 billion offer from the private equity firm The Carlyle Group to buy its Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics business.
The New Brunswick, N.J., health care giant said Monday that the deal should close by midyear.
J&J said in January that Carlyle had offered $4.15 billion for the business, and that it would talk to works councils and trade unions representing its employees before making a decision.
The Ortho-Clinical business serves hospitals, testing laboratories and blood banks. It supplies equipment and chemicals to screen donated blood for HIV, hepatitis C and other serious diseases. It also makes technology for advanced testing of blood to diagnose health conditions and to monitor medication effects.
3-day strike grounds Lufthansa flights
BERLIN » Germany’s Lufthansa will cancel about 3,800 flights because of a three-day strike by the pilots union later this week, hitting more than 425,000 passengers.
The cancellations include domestic and intercontinental connections Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, the airline said Monday.
A union representing pilots at Lufthansa called for the strike last week in a long-running pay dispute. Though the strike starts Wednesday, some Tuesday flights have been canceled for logistical reasons.
Lufthansa, Lufthansa Cargo and the company’s budget airline Germanwings are all affected.
Low rates to continue
Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen made clear Monday that she thinks the still-subpar U.S. job market will continue to need the help of low interest rates for some time. Yellen indicated that the Fed still thinks rates should remain low to stimulate borrowing, spending and economic growth. 
ON THE MOVE
Hawaiian Host has promoted:
» Sean Kanda to production supervisor. His responsibilities include assisting plant and production managers with production schedules, supervision, training and personnel changes of the production crew.
» Jon Iwaoka to production manager. His responsibilities include preparing weekly schedules to ensure productivity targets are achieved as well as maintaining the plant and production equipment.
IHOP has donated more than $14,000 to Kapiolani Medical Center for Women & Children. The money was raised from donations on March 4, National Pancake Day, which is part of IHOP’s annual campaign.
Summa International has announced the appointment of Tony Kotas to the position of chief operating officer. Prior to joining Summa, Kotas was president and representative director of Aflac Technology Services in Japan.
American Savings Bank has announced that Dan Eliot has been promoted to senior vice president-director of enterprise risk and regulatory relations from first vice president. He has been with the bank since 2012.
