Department of Business, Economic Development & Tourism

DBEDT has appointed Seth Colby, Ph.D., as its chief state economist. In his new role, Colby serves as the administrator for the DBEDT Research and Economic Analysis Division.

Agribusiness Development Corp. — The Hawaii Agribusiness Development Corporation Board of Directors has elected Jayson Watts as its new chair, signaling a renewed commitment to strategic leadership, critical infrastructure investment and long-term land stewardship.

According to preliminary statistics from DBEDT, there were 857,102 total visitors to the Hawaiian Islands in June 2025, down 1.8 percent from the same month last year.

The Fourth Annual Hawaii AI and Cloud Innovation Summit: Presented by Google will take place on Wednesday, September 10, 2025, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Hawaii Convention Center.

DBEDT today announced that the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for June was 2.8 percent, the same as in May.