this is nightly business report with tyler mathisen and suzie guerin. >> what happens next? stocks snapped back today, but will investors continue to shake off last week's selloff or is it a taste of what's to come? >> magic number, investors bid up shares of disney one day ahead of its earnings. collision course, how dangerous are our roads? a first in a three part investigative series looking at highway safety and the long haul trucking industry. all that and more tonight on nightly business report for monday august 4th. good evening, everybody. >> welcome, everybody, i'm tyler mathisen, it was a quiet august day on wall street. for today at least, last week's

seismic jitters about the middle east, central europe, u.s. central bank policy, took a back seat to news from portugal. that country's government threw a lifeline to one of its biggest lenders. that was enough to spark a rebound from last week's steep losses. the worst in two years for the s&p 500. unwinding of short positions bets the market will fall a little bit today. at the end of the day, the dow was higher by 76 points. and the s&p added 13. stocks seeing a healthy bounce back, at least for today, a lot of people are asking what's driving the markets right now. and what's the mood among traders. >> it was the best day in two weeks for the s&p 500, the rally began in europe where the portuguese government bailed out its largest banks, bond and stockholders took a big hit.

stocks started the week in the u.s. the absence of bad news for europe and the ukraine lifted commodities stocks. energy stocks also rose as oil moved up for the first time in four days. for the rest of the week, traders are going to keep a sharp eye on europe. is the worst over? it may be too early to tell. >> there will be lingering concern about the economic condition in europe. worrying about them struggling under the sanctions, and we're going to wait to see if this honeymoon with the portuguese bank lasts. they had a bounce back there, it wasn't anywhere near the kind of selloff they had in previous days. >> earnings have been better than expected. with three fourths of the s&p 500 reporting, earnings are approaching a 10% gain from the same period a year ago, it's the best showing in about three years. and revenues are up about 5%.

for nightly business report, bob pasani at the new york stock change. >> another important issue for investors is inflation, whether it's happening and by how much. for the first time in a while, some corporations, but not all are saying they have the ability to raise prices. sara eisen looks at which companies are seeing pricing power and why it's happening now. >> expect to pay more for candy and chocolate. hershey's and mars are lifting prices 7 to 8%. that goes for coffee as well, starbucks, and kraft are boosting prices for packaged coffee and beverages. kraft is raising prices on cheese and oscar mayer meats. >> as the economy improves as the labor market improves, it's become increasingly clear that individual companies from across the spectrum are finding the environment a little more amenable to price increases. it's certainly not anything

that's going to set alarm bells off. certainly something we haven't seen in the last several quarters. >> it's not just at the grocery store. you may have noticed a slight cost in burritos at chipotle. make can i and pepsico which make frito-lay snacks both talked about raising prices on new sneakers or chip flavors. for the most part, those higher prices are feeding into fatter profits. pulte group and camel cigarettes both mentioned higher prices behind a better quarter. >> i'm not sure the economy is strong enough, companies are going to find it endlessly profitable and favorable to raise prices. in the short term, you have to look at these modest increases. chipotle and netflix say they're prices aren't having an impact

on consumer spending. consumers at the middle and low income level are still facing challenges in this recovery. companies are going to have to walk a fine line between pricing and attracting sales. for nightly business report, i'm sarah eisen. >> even though stocks rallied today, there's plenty of debate between the bulls and bears on wall street. in this seen, he's going to play the bl bear and our bull is chris gaffney, a senior market strategist at ever bank. and for purposes of tonight's discussion, he's going to be on the bull side. chris, let me start with you, sara icen just talked about whiffs of inflation in the pipeline. companies that have been able to push through some price increases. are you worried about inflation? >> no, we're not worried about

inflation yet. there's no wage inflation here, the labor market as chairman yellin said recently, there's still slack in the labor market. we do see some price inflation in select items. but again, i'm not -- that does not worry me at this point. >> peter, you are worries, not necessarily or specifically about inflation, but you're worried about the fed and perhaps the last week's volatility is a taste of what's to come? >> yes, i'm not worried about high inflation, i'm worried about higher inflation. the consumer price index is already at 2%. the pce which is their preferred rate, is up two tenths month over month. the fed has a problem on their hands because rates at zero is holy inappropriate with even that level of inflation, we can say, yes, it's only 2%, it's not a big deal, it doesn't quarterly, well, with zero interest rates. that's the major head wind.

the stock is falling well behind the reality of the data. >> peter, among the other things he's worried about. not that peter's a worry ward, i promise you he isn't. is in his riou, the likelihood that quantitative easing and monetary stimulus, the fed has signaled it's going to wind down going to be a negative disruption for stocks? how worried are you about that process? >> well, let's face it, the bond buying is going to end in october. however, as bob pointed out at the beginning of the show, earnings for this earnings season are very good. and in fact the gdp number rebounded dramatically. consumers are very confident. so again, i think the environment for companies and for really the equity market is very good right now, and will continue to be good through the end of the year and into 2015. >> peter, take the other side of

that, i know that you really feel as though the fed has some tools in its toolbox to address inflation, it's not all that concerns you in this market? >> let's look at 2013. gdp growth was 2%, earnings growth was 5%. the fed printed a trillion dollars, to ignore the influence of the fed, regardless of the economic environment, earnings environment is a mistake, after qe 1 and qe 2, the s&p fell about 15 to 20%. it feels great when qe is on, but there's a flip side to what the fed is doing. we pull forward a lot of returns, we're going to have pay back -- qe is a form of tightening, and then we have potential shrinking -- >> pulling away -- >> pulling away qe. the gains we've seen over the past few years has pulled forward potential earnings. earnings can be okay this year,

but we have well more than a price set in. >> some of the gains that we otherwise would have had from the real economy have been brought forward and are, therefore, vulnerable. >> well, the fed is definitely supported the equity markets with these low rates and again the qe will end in october. the bond buying portion will end in october. the fed is not going to raise rates. they're going to keep interest rates very accommodated, well into 2015. as long as we don't see any big spike in price inflation or wage influgs, and with the slack in the labor market, i don't think we're going to see that. >> when you look at the equity market are the rates undervalues overvalued or reasonably valued?

>> overvalued. profit margins that are 75% above their means. putting a normal pe on peak profit margins is not the right thing to do. market cap to gdp. 2,000 was the only time you've seen a more expensive market. price to sales, 2000 was the only time we saw a more expensive market. the market is very expensive, there's no margin of safety for fed accommodation. >> appreciate you're being here. thank you opinion. earnings after the bell from american international group, aig easily topped wall street's estimate, making $1.25 per share. that's a 20 cent per share beef with profits rising more than 12%. revenue also topped forecast, getting a boost of a leasing

unit. aig announced a new $2 billion share buy back plan. shares rose in trading after hours. one of the biggest drivers in the dow today and this year has been disney. shares up 2% on the session trading near their all time highs. just one day ahead of the company's latest quarterly earnings report. julia bors step takes a look at what investors should expect. >> marvel's guardians the galaxy grossed $94 million in the u.s. setting a new august record. investors are optimistic marvel's parent company disney won't be defeated at the box office. earnings are due out tuesday afternoon. >> last year's megahit frozen is expected to help the past quarter's results. the biggest animated movie ever. it should boost the studio division and frozen products. analysts expect disney revenue to gain 5% in earnings per share

to move 13% higher. benefiting from consumer spending more at the theme park and espn getting a big boost from the fifa world cup. >> they're really just cable channel companies. disney is espn. as goes espn goes disney. >> the company's largest, expected to face a tough advertising market, the benefit from growth overseas as well as feeds from cable and satellite tv providers. beyond disney's own results, bob eiger is likely to face questions about the m & a of his company. too big distribution deals pending. comcast and time warner cable in at&t and direct tv. >> i think of everybody, they've got for this quarter, if you believe in the sizzle in the quarter, the world cup, frozen, they're going to sound pretty good. >> all the attention on time

warner shines a spotlight on all cable assets including disney. disney shares are trading around an all time high, outperforming the market up 30% for the past year. still to come, disappearing homeowners. the share of americans who own a home has fallen to a two decade low. what does it mean for the broader economy? more troubles for pimco's total return fund. they saw outflows of $830 million in july. the 15th straight month of money

moving out. don't worry, let's put this in perspective. the total return fund still had $223 billion in assets under management at the end of the month. good news for anyone looking for a loan these days, the federal reserve says banks have been easing up on lending standards for a variety of business and consumer loans, including mortgages. leading to a surge in loan demand in the second quarter of the year. homeownership fell again over the last three months and is now at its lowest level in 19 years. widely expected to go even lower. what's behind the drop or perhaps more to the point, who is behind it. diana olick has that story. >> millennials, they're just not buying homes the way previous generations did at their age. >> currently i'm not sure how long i'll stay in the city, but also, i need to save up money to at least have a deposit. >> the average age of a first time home buyer is now expected to jump to over 34 according to

zillow. it may seem like a small jump, that would keep homeownership lower, keep rents higher and could impact sales of home goods. because the time for owning and renovating would be shorter. >> there's been a great delay for younger home buyers. they're doing a lot of things later in life. buying a home later, getting married later, having children later. higher debt burdens, higher unemployment and higher wage growth. >> and higher home prices. each $1,000 increase in the newly built home forces 206,000 potential buyers out of the market. that's according to a new survey by the builder. >> the cost of living has gone up substantially, and i think buying a house will pose an obstacle for many people in my generation. >> mortgage rates may be low. bankrate.com reports closing costs rose 6% over the past year, blame compliance with new mortgage regulations for the

hike. and then there is student debt. loan depot, an independent lender looked at loan applications for potential home buyers between 2010 and 2014. specifically those with student debt. with all other factors equal, the difference between those approved for a mortgage and those denied was a monthly student loan payment of less than $300. at my age i don't think it's possible without going through it with someone backing you and helping you. >> in previous generations, parents often help their kids buy that first home, today, smarting from the great recession. a lot of parents don't have the ability to do that. instead, they're opening their homes to their children once again hoping that free rental slowly help fund that first down payment. for nightly business report, diana olick, washington. high end retailer posted results that easily topped

estimates with same store sales climbing 24%. investors worry that the company won't be able to avoid the discounting that weighing on the retail industry. the current quarter was below estimates and it expecting margins to shrink as it expands in europe. shares off almost 6%. the close of 77 dollars. cardinal health said the expiration of its contract with walgreens was what weighed on the earnings report. the company posted strong results despite a year of big transitions for the overall industry, still shares down nearly 3% to finish at $70.28. itt educational services fell to their lowest level in nearly 14 years after the for profit college operator set a deal to sell some of its properties fell through. a potential buyer college

portfolio dropped out after itt refused to extend a due diligence period. the stock plunged 47%. new york's top financial regulator is investigating whether the company is over charging struggling homeowners for insurance. shares there fell two and a half% to $26.98. ge will invest $2 billion in africa by 2018. the continent is the most promising growth region globally. its projects will include supplying gas turbines and rail -- amgen saw its shares rise after its company's blood cancer drug met its role in a late stage trial. the second most common form of blood cancer, multiple myeloma.

two companies working hard on experimental ebola treatments. tetmira opened strongly in the hopes that its trial for the illness will be helpful in remedying the disease. shares of tech mira fell 7%. biochris saw its shares rise. it's worth mentioning that both of these are small cap stocks. tenet health care posted a narrower than expected loss late today. the hospital operator raised its full outlook. shares were volatile in after hours trading. the stock was nearly 2% higher at 53.30.

p. f.chang's asian bistro is the last to admit card numbers may have been stolen. they got the cardholders name and card expiration date as well as the number. sales in china are getting hit by last month's food safety scare which forced it to halt sales of certain items. in a regulatory filing, the world's largest burger chain said the affected markets account for 10% of its total revenue. most outlets in china are expected to offer the full menu options again. safety on the roads, why is the number of fatal accidents involving long haul trucks on the rise. and what's being done about it? the first of our three-part investigative series, collision course is next.

if you're someone who enjoys the cell phone free zone this one's for you. as reported by the wall street journal, the u.s. government is getting closer to making a decision on whether or not to allow or ban making or receiving phone calls on airplanes. a formal ruling from the department of transportation is not expected until early next year, and while the dot takes comments from airlines, phone companies and travelers. more potential problems for general motors. this time at the automaker's financing unit. gm has been subpoenaed over sub prime auto loans it made to borrowers. >> u.s. safety regulators are

close to issuing a recall for a third of a million honda accords. that's after officials received about 300 complaints from owners of 2008 four-door models that the air bags can deploy when the car doors are slammed closed with too much force. finally tonight. the first in a three part series on the safety of the nation's roads after an alarming rise in the number of highway traffic deaths. an increasing number of drivers appear to be on a collision course with long hall big rig trucks. >> a horrendous collision. >> terrible accident that left actor tracy morgan in critical condition. >> new details are emerging tonight in the fiery bus crash. >> tragedies like the tracy morgan and fedex crashes are anything but isolated incidents. >> very large explosion. >> happening near 11 times a day, across the united states, and causing neerlg 4,000

fatalities according to the national highway traffic safety administration. >> there are any number of causes, from driver error to fatigue and serious mechanical problems. federal regulators say 20% of trucks inspected on the road in 2013 had problems, like faulty brakes or bad tires and shouldn't be on the road at all. that's over 2 million vehicles. and more than 170,000 drivers had enough violations to be pulled from behind the wheel. >> it's an 80,000 pound missile. when it hits somebody, it's catastrophic. >> dan is the founder of the association of interstate trucking lawyers in america. >> roughly 4,000 a year are killed in crashes in big trucks. it's the equivalent of a commuter jet that has 80 people on that plane. having one of those jets crash, and everyone on board dies. every friday of every week of every year. >> ann farrow is the outgoing

head of the federal motor carrier safety administration, which is tasked with regulating interstate trucking. the trucking industry collected over $600 billion for carrying 9.7 billion tons of freight in 2013. fatal truck crashes have gone up 18% from 2009 to 2012. why are the fatal accidents going up instead of down? >> we see it as a combination of economic growth, intensified traffic on our roadways. >> any other industry that has 4,000 people killed. you would see regulators shutting the entire industry down. why isn't that happening in trucking? >> the changes of industry practices themselves has resulted in a decline of truck crashes from about 5,000 a decade ago to 4,000 a day. you're absolutely right, the increase from about 2009 to the present has continued to tick forward and tick upwards.

>> who is to blame for the growing number of truck crashes is the subject of a fierce and ongoing debate between the trucking lobby and advocacy groups. dave asecki is the top lobbyist for the trucking association. >> 70% of those crashes are initiated by someone other than the truck driver. the car driver. the suv driver. we're responsible for about 30% of those crashes. what are people doing wrong when they're out on the roads driving the trucks? >> motorists who aggressively pass trucks, cut in front of trucks, tailgate trucks and who linger on the sides of trucks. >> john lannan is the executive director of the truck safety coalition. he thinks it's the big rigs that are more often to blame. >> unfortunately, there's a cultural aspect that this industry has a tolerance too high a tolerance level for deaths and injuries and we need to work on it.

>> our collision course series continues tomorrow with a look at what's being done to ensure better safety on u.s. roads. for more information on the trucking industry, head to our website, nbr.com. >> some sobering statistics. >> the rise from 2009, maybe more truckers driving a little more fatigued. >> absolutely, there's a lot of pressure. a lot of pressure. on that note, that will do it for nightly business report for this evening. thanks for joining us. have a great evening, everybody, we hope to see you back here tomorrow night.

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