Worried about the economic outlook for 2023 in the ongoing face of inflation and fears of a national recession?

Rest easy, Big Island residents—things are looking up!

A recent report generated by the University of Hawai’i’s Economic Research Organization (UHERO) for the first quarter of 2023 shows that things are humming along here in the Aloha State, particularly with regard to several vital sectors of our economy:

At the top of the list is our island chain’s ongoing recovery in our traveling sector. Inflation-adjusted spending has all but fully recovered as of the second quarter of 2022, and with the returns from our friends in Japan still only at around a quarter of the pre-pandemic figures we expect these numbers to rise rather nicely as the year progresses.

Furthermore, inflation has somewhat-surprisingly cooled both here on the Big Island and across the nation itself, adding to the hopes that Hawai’i will experience a ‘soft landing’ to any ongoing recession concerns later in the year and into early 2024.

Notably, the state’s local labor market has continued to make some impressive gains, with Kaua’i and Maui catching up with Maui and the Big Island with regard to payroll-reported employment figures.

All of this leads to potentially the best news of all: overall prices are remaining flat in the first quarter of 2023 after spiking over 20% on items like food over the past few years.

 

Needless to say, this is great news for potential buyers and sellers here on the Big Island. It’s prime time for both groups to take advantage of the recent economic forecast, and Karen Bail is just the woman to help you do it. Give her a call today to capitalize on the favorable conditions to increase your personal outlook (and bottom line!) today.