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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Friday, December 21, 2001

Alexander & Baldwin forecasts profit decline

Advertiser News Services

Alexander & Baldwin Inc. said the real estate and shipping company's profit will decline next year because the Sept. 11 attacks and the sagging Japanese economy have cut the number of people visiting Hawai'i.

Alexander & Baldwin, which receives about 60 percent of its profit from ferrying products to Hawai'i, said profit will likely decline next year as businesses in the state need fewer goods shipped in as tourism declines. The company doesn't provide specific estimates for earnings.

"We're not terribly optimistic based on reservation bookings and accounts from those in the visitor industry," said John Kelley, a spokesman for the Honolulu-based company.

As the Japanese recession deepens, the number of travelers from the world's second-largest economy has fallen by an estimated 50 percent, Kelley said, while travel from the United States is down about 20 percent. This has led Hawai'i businesses to scale back investment and stockpiles of goods, he said.

Alexander & Baldwin earned $64.3 million, or $1.58 a share, in the first nine months of the year.

Alexander & Baldwin shares fell 39 cents yesterday to $25.61. The company noted that the sale of its 3.4 million shares of BancWest Corp. as part of that company's sale to BNP Paribas results in a gain of $68.4 million, or $1.69 per share. Cash proceeds after tax will be about $77 million.

"The fourth quarter of this year will be very difficult," said W. Allen Doane, president and chief executive of Alexander & Baldwin. "With the exception of the BWE transaction, the period clearly reflects the immediate, short-term impact of 9/11 on Hawai'i and on our operations."