Hawai'i's per-capita income grew faster than that of the nation as a whole last year, according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. But when adjusted for inflation, the gain was below the national average.

Hawai'i's growth rate was 6.0 percent, compared with the national average of 5.2 percent.

The increase ranked as 10th highest among states, the agency reported yesterday.

Hawai'i's actual per-capita income last year was $39,239, up from the $37,023 of a year earlier.

That placed Hawai'i as having the 18th highest per-capita income in the nation. The national average was $38,611.

The agency said Louisiana led the nation in per-capita growth with a 9.2 percent gain.

Arizona had the lowest growth at 3.4 percent. Personal income consists of income received from all sources including wages, interest income, rental income and money received from other sources such as dividends.

But while Hawai'i ranked high in the increases in per-capita personal income, people here probably didn't feel as if they were 6 percent richer last year.

That's because the rise in personal income was not as big when inflation was considered. In 2007, inflation in Honolulu rose by 4.8 percent. So the inflation-adjusted gain in per-capita income here was less than 2 percent.

Nationally, inflation rose 2.6 percent last year. Given that, the inflation-adjusted gain in per-capita personal income was more than 2 percent nationally.