The ‘Delta Tide May Be Turning,’ But Hawaii’s Economic Recovery Is Slow … Gov. David Ige’s plea to tourists not to visit Hawaii helped stop a nascent economic recovery. It’s not clear when the state will regain its momentum.
A little more than a month ago, the Covid-19 pandemic was heading in an alarming direction. Case counts and hospitalizations rose so steeply that Gov. David Ige on Aug. 23 sent a surprising message to potential visitors: “Now is not the time” to visit Hawaii.
Today, new case counts are on a steady downward path, and while there’s no indication Ige will roll out the aloha mat for visitors before October, there is a growing consensus that the pandemic has turned a corner.
The University of Hawaii Economic Research Organization said as much on Friday in an economic forecast for the third quarter of 2021.
