Information Resources
DBEDT provides the economic and statistical expertise that guides State economic development efforts. It generates important information for business and industry about their markets and the economic forces shaping the future. DBEDT, through its Research & Economic Analysis Division (READ), also runs the State’s visitor statistics program, which develops and distributes information on the roughly 7 million tourist and business visitors who come to the islands annually.
Much of READ’s work is focused on illuminating the changing economy and what it means for Hawaii’s businesses and consumers, as well as community and government agencies. READ is one of a very few economic research agencies in the nation to compile measures of Gross State Product, conduct input-output analyses of industries and prepare economy-wide studies of productivity. READ is the only public or private group looking at the State’s economy on a full-time basis. It is a responsibility the Division takes quite seriously, and it strives to provide a range of products to satisfy the spectrum of users who depend on economic and statistical information about Hawaii.