Posted on: Friday, August 23, 2002

Business briefs

Krispy Kreme coming to Maui

Doughnut maker Krispy Kreme has announced it has reached an agreement to lease a Maui site near the Kahului Airport for the company's first store in Hawai'i.

Chicago-based ICON LLC, which was awarded the local Krispy Kreme franchisee rights two years ago, plans to open two more stores on O'ahu over the next five years.

In June, ICON said the 4,200-square-foot Maui store, which will include a drive-thru, could open as early as next year at the corner of Dairy Road and Haleakala Highway across from Costco.

Unemployment claims down

The number of newly laid-off workers filing claims for unemployment benefits dipped slightly last week, indicating a modest improvement in the labor market.

The Labor Department said new applications for jobless benefits totaled 389,000 last week, down 2,000 from the previous week when benefits had posted a gain of 9,000.

Economists are closely watching the reports to try to detect the future course of the current recovery, which most believe began at the beginning of this year but so far has generated little job growth.

Southwest cuts priciest tickets

Southwest Airlines is cutting its highest-priced fare by one-fourth in a move aimed squarely at business travelers who fly on other airlines. Southwest said the top price for a one-way, last-minute ticket on about one-third of its routes would fall immediately to $299 from $399.

American Airlines, Northwest and Delta moved quickly to match Southwest on routes where they compete with the Dallas-based carrier.

— Staff and news services