Matson to raise fuel surcharge
Advertiser News Services
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Citing higher fuel costs, the state's largest cargo shipper said yesterday that it will raise its fuel surcharge by 1.5 percentage point next month.
Starting Oct. 2, Matson Navigation Co. said it will tack on a 13 percent fuel surcharge for its services between the Mainland and Hawai'i, Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands.
"While we continue to invest in modern, fuel-efficient vessels that help reduce our overall fuel consumption, the impact of fuel prices on Matson's business remains a cost factor we cannot simply absorb," said Dave Hoppes, Matson's vice president for ocean services. "In the past three months, bunker fuel prices have risen over 10 percent, necessitating this new adjustment."
The San Francisco-based subsidiary of Alexander & Baldwin Inc. had raised the surcharge to 11.5 percent in July.
Earlier this week, Horizon Lines told its customers an emergency 2.5 percent fuel surcharge will take effect Thursday.
AUTOMAKERS DISPLAY HYBRIDS
Ford, Honda and Toyota brought hybrid vehicles, which run on a combination of gasoline and electricity, to the national convention of the Sierra Club in San Francisco yesterday.
Ford offered its latest hybrid sport utility vehicle — the 2006 Mercury Mariner Hybrid, which can get 33 miles per gallon in the city.
Honda unveiled its 2006 Civic Hybrid, which can get 50 miles per gallon on highways and city streets.
Toyota announced earlier this year it would soon start selling a hybrid version of its Camry sedan and a seven-passenger SUV called the Highlander Hybrid.
MERCK TO FIGHT VIOXX LAWSUITS
On the eve of the second trial over its painkiller Vioxx, pharmaceutical giant Merck & Co. yesterday reasserted that it plans to aggressively fight the mounting lawsuits over the withdrawn drug, despite recently saying it might settle some suits.
Kenneth C. Frazier, Merck's general counsel and senior vice president, also tried to reassure investors that liability over Vioxx — estimated by analysts at up to $50 billion — isn't a threat to the company.
DISNEY PREPARES TO OPEN 11TH PARK
Walt Disney Co. President Robert Iger said yesterday that Hong Kong Disneyland, the company's 11th theme park, is a giant step in the company's plans to break into China's huge market.
Iger, who will become Disney's chief executive on Oct. 1, has made expanding in Asia a priority.
Iger confirmed Disney has been talking to the government in Shanghai.
During the past week, Hong Kong Disneyland has given tens of thousands of visitors a sneak peek of the park on outlying Lantau Island, about a 30-minute subway ride from central Hong Kong. The crowds during the "rehearsal days" have complained about long lines at the rides and restaurants.
But Disneyland has refused to lower its maximum capacity of 30,000, and Iger said he was pleased with the park's progress.
