Hawaii’s tourism industry continues to outperform expectations, prompting the state to once again revise upward its economic growth forecast for this year and next.

Visitors are on track to spend a record $14.6 billion in the state this year, an 18.8 percent increase over 2011, DBEDT reported in its fourth-quarter forecast released Thursday. That was revised up from DBEDT’s previous forecast of a 15.2 percent rise published three months ago.

The state is expected to host a record 8 million visitors this year, up 9.4 percent from 2011. DBEDT previously estimated an 8.6 percent increase in visitor arrivals.

Overall gross domestic product, the broadest measure of the state’s economic activity, is forecast to grow 1.6 percent in 2012 and 2.4 percent in 2013 after adjusting for inflation. Those forecasts are up from DBEDT’s previous forecast of 1.5 percent and 2.3 percent, respectively.

"We remain cautiously optimistic with regard to the state’s immediate economic future," said Richard Lim, DBEDT director. "Despite political uncertainties often inherent in election cycles — and recent natural disasters — the visitor industry is projected to remain strong," Lim said in a prepared statement.

Hawaii’s job market, which suffered a severe contraction during the 2008-2009 recession, is also looking better than it did three months ago, according to DBEDT. The department is forecasting payroll jobs to grow by 1.5 percent in 2012 and 2 percent in 2013. DBEDT previously forecast increases of 1.2 percent and 1.8 percent.

One of the bright spots on the labor front is in construction jobs, which increased 1.4 percent in the third quarter of this year after 17 consecutive quarters of decline. And things are looking up for construction next year: A 39 percent increase in the issuance of building permits for the first nine months of 2012 will support construction jobs in 2013, said Eugene Tian, the state’s chief economist.

DBEDT also boosted its estimate for personal income, which is forecast to rise 1.8 percent in 2012 and 2.3 percent in 2013 after adjusting for inflation. Those increases were revised upward from gains of 1.5 percent and 2.1 percent in the previous forecast.

Other positive indicators for the economy are declines in the number of people filing for bankruptcy and submitting claims for unemployment insurance, Tian said.

Unemployment claims are down 10 percent year-to-date, while bankruptcy cases have fallen for 20 consecutive months, Tian noted.

"Not only that, we’re seeing an increase in building permits — up 39 percent for the first nine months of 2012 — that will provide a big boost to the construction industry next year. And it’s not just on Oahu; it’s happening on all the islands," Tian said.