Buy an EV now or later? The tax credit rules are about to change
DETROIT — Consumers who can find an electric vehicle or plug-in hybrid that qualifies for the $7,500 tax credit now may want to snap it up before the end of the year, experts say, while others wanting to purchase EVs that aren’t eligible might be better off waiting until 2023.
Tom Yamachika: ‘Dedicated funding source’? Nah
I’m sometimes asked how we can achieve true fiscal reform here in the Aloha State. It’s easy to imagine an end goal, with government spending within its means and with no gargantuan liabilities (the big two are the State’s defined benefit pension plan and the EUTF health system for state retirees) hanging over our heads like swords of Damocles. But to know which direction we need to travel, we need to know where we are now. This, unfortunately, is a big problem.
Exxon, Chevron reap $31 billion profit from energy crunch
Exxon Mobil Corp. and Chevron Corp. amassed more than $30 billion in combined net income as politicians blast Big Oil for raking in massive profits at a time when consumers are struggling with soaring inflation and energy shortages worldwide.
Business news at a glance
Inflation and wages continue to climb rapidly, in bad news for the Fed
Tom Yamachika: Yes, people move because of taxes
This week, we focus on a study that has just come out of the national Tax Foundation (with whom the Tax Foundation of Hawaii shares a name but not much else). That study looks at IRS and census data to see if tax considerations affect people’s decisions to move from one state and to another.
Small businesses brace for cautious holiday shoppers
NEW YORK — Small businesses are stocking the shelves early this holiday season and waiting to see how many gifts inflation-weary shoppers feel like giving.
Business news at a glance
IRS raises contribution limits for retirement savings plans
Judge rules for California baker over same-sex wedding cake
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. — A California judge has ruled in favor of a bakery owner who refused to make wedding cakes for a same-sex couple because it violated her Christian beliefs.
Big Island native Arnold Martines tapped to lead Central Pacific Bank
Arnold Martines, a Big Island native, has been promoted to president and CEO of Central Pacific Bank, one of the largest banks in Hawaii.
FDA proposes new definition for ‘healthy’ food, but will it make us healthier?
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has proposed a new definition for what constitutes “healthy” food, taking a more holistic look at nutrition and food groups instead of focusing solely on a few vitamins, minerals and nutrients.
Tom Yamachika: State financial condition still dismal
Here in Hawaii, we have weathered a major pandemic. The primary driver of our economy is, and has been for a long time, tourism. Tourism was in the toilet during the pandemic, with our Governor going so far as to publicly urge tourists to stay home or go somewhere else. Now, with the brunt of the pandemic apparently past us and tourism levels back up to pre-pandemic levels, and with bazillions of federal dollars coming in to prop up our teetering economy, you would think we would be in reasonable shape financially, right?
Worsening inflation will pressure Fed to keep raising rates
WASHINGTON — Inflation in the United States accelerated in September, with the cost of housing and other necessities intensifying pressure on households, wiping out pay gains and ensuring that the Federal Reserve will keep raising interest rates aggressively.
Tom Yamachika: Love-hate relationship with P3
Our state has a love-hate relationship with public-private partnerships (P3). P3s are where public (government) interests and funds partner with private companies to cooperate and share risks and benefits.
To buy Twitter, Musk has to keep banks, investors on board
If the squabbling ever stops over Elon Musk’s renewed bid to buy Twitter, experts say he still faces a huge obstacle to closing the $44 billion deal: Keeping his financing in place.
Halloween costs are rising. Will that frighten away haunt fans?
Sean Nyberg is a professional investor who has been keeping track of the rising cost of attending Disneyland Resort’s annual Halloween celebration.
Work-from-home or return to the office? A rift is emerging among US workers
Tensions are brewing at work between employees who have returned to the office and those who’ve continued to work from home, according to a survey of U.S. workers.
Business news at a glance
Another month of solid US hiring suggests more big Fed hikes
Tom Yamachika: Three years to spend $600 million
The Department of Hawaiian Home Lands (DHHL) is charged with administering about 200,000 acres of public lands that are to be leased to Native Hawaiians. Those lands were set aside due to the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act of 1920, a federal law passed largely due to the efforts of Prince Jonah Kuhio Kalanianaole, who after the overthrow of the Hawaiian monarchy and annexation by the United States became, and was for two decades, a delegate representing Hawaii in the U.S. Congress. At the time, he wrote to U.S. Senators: “After extensive investigation and survey on the part of various organizations organized to rehabilitate the Hawaiian race, it was found that the only method in which to rehabilitate the race was to place them back upon the soil.”
Business news at a glance
Resilient US consumers spend slightly more in August
Grocery prices prompt ‘trading down’ to cheaper alternatives, more awareness of food waste
More grocery shoppers are turning to store brands and frozen food as inflation forces cost-cutting and a drive to reduce personal food waste, recent surveys show.
