2 isle resorts nominated for world’s best

Four Seasons Resort Maui at Wailea and the Fairmont Orchid on Hawaii island are among 50 nominees for the best hotels in the world.

The Virtuoso travel network whittled the list to 50 nominees from submissions collected through its magazine.

Four Seasons Resort Maui at Wailea is among five nominees for Hotel of the Year, which recognizes a property "that continually epitomizes excellence in the categories of design, ambience, service, food and beverage, spa, family programs, innovation and social responsibility," according to a statement. The Maui property is competing against resorts in China, Venice, Italy, and California.

The Fairmont Orchid is nominated in the Most Innovative Guest Experience category, which honors a property that "continually raises the bar by featuring clever and meaningful guest experiences that move the industry forward," the Virtuoso statement said. The Orchid is in the running alongside hotels in French Polynesia, India, Italy and Thailand.

Winners will be named Aug. 14 at the Bellagio in Las Vegas.

Better Place, a former EV operator in Hawaii, is resurrected

JERUSALEM » A group of investors has taken over the remains of Israel’s bankrupt electric car venture, pledging to give the project another boost.

The electric car company Better Place filed for liquidation in May, less than six years after unveiling a plan promising to revolutionize the auto industry by reducing the world’s oil dependency. Last August, the company was valued at $2 billion.

Better Place, which operated 77 EV charging stations in Hawaii, sold the network to Oregon-based OpConnect in March for an undisclosed amount.

On Wednesday, an Israeli court allowed a consortium that included Better Place car owners and entrepreneurs to purchase its assets for less than $12 million.

Efi Shahak, who heads Israel’s electric car drivers association, said the group was committed to maintaining Israel’s 2,000 charging spots and its battery swap services.

Japan more upbeat about economic recovery

TOKYO » Japan’s central bank is turning more upbeat about the nation’s economy after implementing an ambitious monetary policy aimed at boosting inflation and growth.

The Bank of Japan, ending a two-day policy board meeting today in Japan, chose more optimistic language to describe the world’s third largest economy. It said the economy was "starting to recover moderately." It also said exports were picking and company profits were improving.

The bank has been engineering a stimulus program, known as "Abenomics" for the new Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who took office late last year. It kept its super-easy monetary policy unchanged. The BOJ is expanding the monetary base by about ¥60 trillion ($606 billion) to ¥70 trillion ($707 billion) over two years by mopping up Japanese government bonds.

Apple colluded on e-book prices, judge rules

NEW YORK » Apple Inc. broke antitrust laws and conspired with publishers to raise electronic book prices significantly in spring 2010, a federal judge ruled Wednesday, citing "compelling evidence" from the words of the late Steve Jobs.

U.S. District Judge Denise Cote said Apple knew that no publisher could risk acting alone to try to eliminate Amazon.com’s $9.99 price for the most popular e-books, so it "created a mechanism and environment that enabled them to act together in a matter of weeks to eliminate all retail price competition for their e-books."

"Apple seized the moment and brilliantly played its hand," Cote said. She wrote that Apple’s deals with publishers caused some e-book prices to rise 50 percent or more virtually overnight.

Apple said it would appeal the decision. A trial to determine damages will follow.

Minutes of Fed meeting show divisions

WASHINGTON » Federal Reserve officials seem far from a consensus on the question that’s consumed investors for months: When will the Fed slow its bond purchases?

Minutes of their June 18-19 policy meeting show many of the 19 officials felt the job market’s improvement would have to be sustained before the Fed would scale back its bond purchases, which have helped support spending and growth, lifted stocks and kept mortgage rates near record lows. Many thought the purchases should extend into 2014, according to a summary released with the minutes.

Vintage Apple computer fetches $387,750

NEW YORK » An original Apple computer from 1976 has sold at auction for nearly $388,000. Known as the Apple 1, it was one of the first Apple computers ever built.

It sold Monday for $387,750 at a Christie’s online-only auction. Bolaffi, an Italian collections company, said in a statement that it bought the computer. The seller was a retired school psychologist from Sacramento, Calif.

Vintage Apple products have become a hot item since Steve Jobs’ death in October 2011. Jobs joined forces with Steve Wozniak to build computer prototypes in a California garage, and Wozniak built the Apple 1. Another Apple 1 was sold in May for a record $671,400 by a German auction house. It broke a record of $640,000 set in November.

ON THE MOVE

The Four Seasons Resort Hualalai hired Chris Bateman as its executive chef. He has more than 20 years of experience, including executive chef at Jumeriah Creekside Hotel in Dubai, and has served in various positions with Jumeriah in Dubai at Jumeriah the Mayden, Jumeriah Emirates Towers Dubai and Jumeriah Essex House in New York City.

Architects Hawaii has promoted:
>> Charles H. Nishimoto to associate from project architect. He joined the company in 2008 and has more than 25 years of experience in retail, institutional, restaurant, office and federal government buildings.
>> Raymond N. Okamoto to associate from construction administrator. He has worked for the company for 14 years.
>> Susan T. Lam to interior designer/drafter II. She joined AHL in 2011 and has four years of experience in interior design.
>> Ethan J. Twer to project architect. He has 18 years of experience in the construction and design industries.
>> James A. Hoapili Jr. to project administrator from designer II. His most recent projects include the Haiku Fire Station and the University of Hawaii Windward Community College Library and Learning Commons.