First Hawaiian Bank Reports Business Activity Up

First Hawaiian Bank, Kihei branch. Photo by Sonia Isotov

By Sonia Isotov

The second quarter First Hawaiian Bank Business Activity Report (BAR) showed an increase of 8.05% in “same store sales” over the comparable period of 2011, according to Keith Nagata, senior vice president and Business Services Division manager, First Hawaiian Bank.

For the first six months of 2012, overall card sales transaction for debit and credit cards were up 9.27% over the first half of 2011.

“We’re pleased to see positive growth overall in every quarter since 2010 which is further validation that the economy is improving,” said Nagata, in a written statement.

“This is the third consecutive quarter in which 15 out of 16 sectors in the Hawaii Bar showed positive growth over prior year.”

The BAR tracks sales activity in 16 different economic sectors including automobile, retail, hotels, home improvement, restaurants, shipping and travel, among others. First Hawaiian Bank has over 7,500 merchant locations throughout Hawaii, Guam, Commonwealth of Northern Marianas Islands and the US Mainland and therefore is able to provide a broad measure of economic activity.

In 2011, the bank processed over 4.1 billion worth of credit and debit card sales transactions, an increase of 8.0% over 2010 and more than any other local financial institution.