BUSINESS BRIEFS
Gas price gap narrows to 56 cents
Advertiser Staff
The gap between O'ahu's average prices for retail regular gasoline and wholesale regular gasoline fell to 56 cents a gallon during the week ended Sept. 9, the state Public Utilities Commission reported this week.
That was down from a gap of 62 cents a gallon the prior week. Lawmakers mandated the disclosure in hopes it will discourage unfair pricing, after the suspension of controversial gasoline price caps in May 2006.
The average retail price before taxes fell a penny to $2.78 a gallon. At the same time, the average wholesale price rose a nickel to $2.22.
The PUC's average wholesale price has been criticized as inaccurate and inflated because it combines different types of wholesale transactions into one price.
Under the program, oil companies must file monthly and weekly reports disclosing in some cases crude oil costs, wholesale prices, gross margins and other figures.
HOMESTREET BANK DONATES $5,000
HomeStreet Bank presented two checks yesterday for $2,500 each to Habitat for Humanity Maui and the Maui Food Bank at a special gathering to bless the bank's new Maui home loan center, located at 285 West Ka'ahumanu Avenue in Kahului.
"HomeStreet has a deep commitment to community involvement," said Alan Sakuma, vice president and manager of HomeStreet Bank's Maui branch.
"The occasion of the blessing of our new office presented a special opportunity to give to two important community organizations."
STOCK FORECAST FOR HEI UPGRADED
Hawaiian Electric Industries was raised to "outperform" from "neutral" by analyst David Parker at Robert W Baird & Co., Bloomberg News Service reported.
The target price for HEI shares is $27. The company's shares closed up 37 cents at $22.11 yesterday on the New York Stock Exchange.
CATALYST RX OPENS PHARMACY
Catalyst Rx, the pharmacy benefit management subsidiary of HealthExtras Inc., has opened a pharmacy in the Pan Am Building on Kapi'olani Boulevard to serve its customers.
HealthExtras Inc. is a full-service pharmacy management company. Its clients include self-insured employers, including state and local governments, third-party administrators, managed care organizations and individuals.
The company's integrated pharmacy benefit management services, marketed under the name Catalyst Rx, include: claims processing, benefit design consultation, drug utilization review, formulary management, drug data analysis services and mail-order services. Additionally, the company operates a national retail pharmacy network with more than 60,000 participating pharmacies.
CEMENT SHIPMENTS TO ISLES OFF 12%
Hawai'i's Portland cement shipments fell 12 percent in September to 33,301 metric tons from the same month a year earlier, according to data from Bloomberg News Service.
Cement is the basic ingredient in concrete, mortar and stucco, and shipments are an indicator of construction activity in each state.
The decline in shipments here compared with a 9.5 percent drop nationally.
Correction: Catalyst Rx, the pharmacy benefit management subsidiary of HealthExtras Inc., is opening an office this month in the Pan Am Building on Kapi'olani Boulevard to serve its customers. A previous version of this story incorrectly stated the purpose of the office.
