Travel Experts Predict Long Slump for Hawaii

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The Honolulu Star Bulletin reports that a panel of travel experts and economists who met this week at an annual tourism forecast in Waikiki sponsored by the Travel & Tourism Research Association and the Pacific Asia Tourism Association, predict a protracted slump for Hawaii tourism. Hawaii's visitor industry is facing its deepest low since 9/11, and might not begin recovering from the economic downturn until 2010, according to the experts. The economic deterioration of this cycle is likely to be steeper and the recovery slower than other periods in Hawaii's history, panel experts said. Factors for the decline include the U.S. recession and housing collapse, the global financial crisis and the ensuing contraction in global consumer confidence.