More than 1,000 job seekers, resumes in hand, went job hunting Wednesday at the Tacoma Dome Exhibition Hall.

The occasion was the Northwest Job Expo in its 8th annual version.

Those hiring ranged from DaVita Inc. to Emerald Queen Casino. Organizers said the number of exhibitors this year was less than half of the 70 that attended last year's expo. Missing were government agencies which had neither the budget to open a booth nor jobs to offer.

For Starbucks' fans, here's a bit of good news to counter the bad that has befallen the Seattle-based coffee retailer recently.

Starbucks' Pike Place Blend coffee recently won unanimous praise from a panel of "java junkies" in a St. Petersburg Times blind taste test.

The Starbucks blend was named "best hot coffee," surpassing McDonald's, Dunkin Donuts' and 7-Eleven's.

Starbuck's iced mochas came in second behind McDonald's.

Pierce County's office vacancy rate increased from 11.90 percent in the second quarter from 10.62 percent in the first quarter of this year, according to a report released today from Colliers International.

The report credits the troubled economy with the increase in available office space. Multiple companies have departed, according to the report, and the vacant space at Tacoma's Old City Hall was added back into the inventory.

The office vacancy rate in the second quarter of last year was 11.10 percent.

Meanwhile, the vacancy rate for industrial real estate in the county dipped ever so slightly to 9.14 percent in the second quarter from 9.3 percent in the first quarter.

This was due to completed lease transactions and a few new owners moving into their buildings including O'Reilly Automotive and plastics company Saint-Gobian in Puyallup, Colliers reports.

Bearish traders are buying Costco "put" options in unusual volumes this week, betting that the Issaquah-based membership retailer's stock will fall further this year.

Put options increase in value if the selling price of the stock declines.

According to Barrons.com, Costco usually trades about 9,000 puts and calls a day. But that volume rose to almost 40,000 Monday including 15,000 October 45 put options.

Costco has reported declining year-over-year sales in recent months, although some of that decline was attributable to currency valuation changes and the relative bargain prices of gasoline compared to this time last year.

Costco stock closed today at $45.04 a share, down three cents from Tuesday. That price is closer to the 52-week low of $38.17 than it is to the 52-week high of $74.89.

In a move that could affect the number of cruise ship passengers departing from Puget Sound on Alaska cruises, the cruise industry says it plans a legal challenge of the Alaska cruise tax.

Micky Arison, chief executive of Carnival Corp., the world's largest cruise line, this week told reporters that the industry will take the 49th State to court over the $50 per passenger tax.

The cruise industry claims that tax is cutting into its Alaska cruise business. Seattle is now the main home port for Alaska cruises, taking the place long held by Vancouver, B.C.

Cruise lines have cut their Alaska capacity for next summer in part because of falling traffic on Alaska cruises.

Alaskans approved the tax in 2006. The cruise industry has lobbied the Alaska Legislature for two years in a fruitless attempt to get the tax repealed.

Cruise lines contend eliminating the tax will reinvigorate the business, attracting more tourist to visit Alaska by ship.

Transportation and logistics company American Fast Freight plans to start construction soon on its new 90,000-square facility in Fife.

The company -- now located in Tacoma's Tideflats -- ships cargo to Alaska, Hawaii, Guam and Puerto Rico.

American Fast Freight currently leases property from the Port of Tacoma and is moving to make way for the port's planned expansion onto the Blair-Hylebos Peninsula.

The new building will house the company's northwest sales group, administration and customer service departments and will feature a cold storage facility and 100 shipping and receiving doors, according to a news release from the company.

The company recently obtained its construction permits and expects to begin construction on the facility -- at 7400 45th St. Ct. E. -- immediately. The building will be finished by the end of this year or early next.