this is "nightly business report" with tyler mathisen and sue herera. >> big oil, big changes. exxon mobil oil has profits. >> $4 trillion that's the size of the budget president obama proposes. what he wants to spend, who he wants to tax, and whether his plan has a snowball's chance on capitol hill. months into the slowdown at the nation's busiest ports, we have exclusive access inside to see what's really going on. all that and more tonight on "nightly business report" for monday february 2nd. good evening, everyone. a dramatic finish on wall street today. stocks rallied into the close to start the month of february

exactly where january left off. with big swings and triple-digit moves. for much of the day the focus was on energy. the third consecutive day of gains, tacking on 11% in that period its best three-day gain since july of 2012. some of the late day gain attributed to hopes overseas. the s&p rose 25. as for crude, prices near $50 a barrel settling at $49.57. brent was also higher. energy companies rallied alongside those increase in oil prices makesing exxon mobile and chevron the best two stocks in the dow jones industrial average. exxon mobil was the latest big oil company to report its earnings. the results were sur

jackie d'angelis has more. >> reporter: while earnings per share for the fourth quarter were above expectations revenues were light. analysts expressed concern. >> these results were flattened by legal win that they had regarding venezuela and some additional u.s. tax giveback neither of which are a true operational earning. we're not considering this to be a defeat for exxon. we think it's a slight miss. >> reporter: fourth-quarter earnings dropped 20% from the previous year and many in the industry and on wall street are worried over capital expenditures in 2015 not just for exxon, but for all the other oil majors as well, some of which have curtailed investment because of plummeting oil prices. >> none of these companies are showing good reserves for replacement. we're going to see much less

spending. and it's going to be difficult, i think, to avoid much higher oil price the in the future. >> reporter: the company's slashing of the buy-back program raised red flags after chevron said last week it was suspending its share buy-back for the year. management tried to stay upbeat saying that the company's balance portfolio uniquely positions it to deliver superior results throughout the commodity price cycle. traders anticipate more trouble ahead. >> the markets in some sort of flux right now. it looks like there's a lot of people think we could test $60 first before we go to $30. and that's where maybe all this volatility is coming from. >> it's not the first time oil prices experienced severe volatility. in 2009 prices dropped from $144 to $33, and that slide did not happen in a straight line. falling prices may be

troubling big oil companies, but consumers aren't complaining about the plunge in oil prices. a new report says the cheapest gas prices though may be in the rear-view mirror for now. aaa says the average gas price has increased over the last seven days and will keep moving higher at least for a while. the national average is now $2.06 a gallon but there's hope whatever increases do occur will be short-lived and slight. union works at nine of the largest refineries and oil plants went on strike for the second day today, as nearly 4,000 employees looked to change the terms of their contr. walkouts the largest since 1980 were targeted at plants with a combined 10% of the country's capacity. shell is leading negotiations for th. let's turn to our guest for more on the energy sector and

outlook. he's rob fumel, managing director at portis capital advisers a $17 billion energy investment firm. rob, i hope i pro noused your last name correctly. let's get to the point here. have we seen the short-term lows for oil prices and hence for gasoline prices and if so why? >> i think we look at the oil price from a fundamental perspective. the way that we see the oil market evolving is in the first half of 2015 we see supply continuing to grow and demand slowing a little bit because of the refinery maintenance season. we see that as a challenge and overcontinued supply in the oil market for the first half of 2015. that all changes in the second half of 2015 when the summer driving season hits everybody goes on vacation most everybody drives their car more than last year. demand increases and all the effects of this lower supply as a result of all of the capital expenditure cuts you're hearing about in the oil and gas

industry take place in the second half of '15, and we become more balanced in the second half which is a benefit to oil prices. >> it sounds like you're saying there might be less volatility going forward after we get past the winter months? >> absolutely. so far, we've started to see a little less volatility and actually seen a couple updates in the oil markets recently. we think that's a good thing. >> exxon mobil did not announce in i capital expenditure cuts today, but they said in the past they intend to spend about $37 billion in this year that's lower than last year. explain to me just to make sure i understand it correctly why lower capital expenditure translates into higher oil prices. >> yeah. great thing to follow is the u.s. rig count. if you look at where the u.s. rig count peaks, it was about 1,900 rigs. we've seen 300 rigs basically

idled. you see the rig count decline by 300. that means less capital is spent drilling for new oil and gas every day. oil and gas naturally declines if you don't drill for new sources of oil and gas. and so as a result of the less spending in the oil and gas industry you see natural declines in oil. so that has an impact on the overall supply of crude oil. we're basically oversupplied right now. less oil means less oversupplied in the oil markets. >> how are you positioning your investors in the energy sector? where are you steering them? >> yeah the energy infrastructure structure is a great place to be. the energy infrastructure more of the refined product, crude oil pipeline you typically have less commodity price exposure plus it provides current income and current growth in that income and those -- that combination of growth and current yield are really a nice place to be for all investors.

the other place is in the refining sector. refiners are likely to benefit from the increased demand for gasoline and diesel that we expect to see as a result of these low oil prices. >> so refiners is exxon mobil a refiner, is shell a refiner? they certainly refine product. >> they sure do. exxon and chevron both have components of refiners. we like to focus on the pure play refiners as well as the oil and gas producers. >> that's what i was driving at. because esks son obviously does that. but they're a different breed of oil company, quite obviously. rob, thank you very much. >> thank you. >> with capital advisers out in kansas city. now to the general motors compensation fund which has seen its total number of claims filed climb to 4,100 before yesterday's deadline. the fund administrator said the fund has determined 121 claims

are eligible including those for the families of 51 people who died from accidents connected to faulty ig nig switches. feinberg said so far, no eligible claimant has rejected the money offered. >> we've had some very irate families. and that goes with the territory. the emotion surrounding these accidents, and the lost loved ones young kids driving their first automobile so the emotion is very very high. but we haven't yet had one eligible claimant when we made what i think is a generous offer turn down the money. >> the program is still reviewing claims submitted by the deadline. the jubs tis department is reportedly investigating a credit agency moody's for favorable ratings on deals leading up to the financial crisis. moody executives and justice

department officials discussed how the complex securities were rated. investigation still in its early stages and comes as the doj nears a settlement with standard and poor's. today bank rate.com is out with a surprising survey that reveals just how much homeowners don't know about their single largest monthly expense. diana olick reports. >> reporter: wicked weather may be battering much of the nation today, but there is a more perfect storm going on in the mortgage market. falling interest rates and a big drop in the cost of government-backed loans. that could mean big savings for borrowers. unfortunately, one-third of u.s. borrowers don't even know their mortgage rate. >> what is your mortgage rate? >> it's 2.7% i think. it's a 15-year. >> reporter: 2.7%? you're sure? >> it's in the high 2s.

>> reporter: what is your mortgage rate? >> 4%. >> reporter: are you sure? >> something like that. >> reporter: are you sure of the exact rate? >> no i'm not sure of the exact rate. >> reporter: lenders say the process of buying a home is so stressful the borrowers focus on the monthly payment and not the rate that gets them to that payment. >> it's really kind of a traumatic experience to sign all those papers then you go home you probably just toss that pile somewhere, it ends up in a file folder somewhere maybe. and then yeah you don't know where it is. >> reporter: but given the dynamic changes going on in today's mortgage market changes that benefit borrowers, that kind of financial ignorance could be costly. >> the issue is not so much that they don't know their mortgage rate it's that they don't know that rates are a whole lot lower right now. >> reporter: why do you know your mortgage rate? >> actually because i refinanced about eight years ago so i could pay it off sooner.

>> reporter: knowledge is financial power. as the mortgage market heats up again, borrowers who don't use that knowledge could be left out in the cold. i'm diana olick in washington. you can read more about the important facts that mortgage holders need to know on our website nbr.com. still ahead, president obama presents his vision for the country in the form of a $4 trillion budget. setting up a debate over america's economic future. the federal communications commission is ready now to propose new rules governing the internet. nos new regulations will be unveiled later this week

according to dow jones. the agency intends to change the way both mobile and fixed broadband firms are regulated. subjecting them to greater regulation on things like pricing and forbidding providers from slowing down or speeding up specific websites in exchange for payments. the president today unveiled a nearly $4 trillion budget. the 2,000-page plan includes programs to improve the nation's infrastructure and help the middle class. primarily financed by higher taxes on corporations and the wealthy. and it sets the stage for a big budget fight with republicans. >> i know there are republicans who disagree with my approach. and i've said this before if they have other ideas for how we can keep america safe grow our economy, while helping middle class families feel some sense of economic security, i welcome their ideas. but their numbers have to add

up. >> more on the proposal from washington. there's some fighting words out there in this proposal. does it have a chance? >> no sue, it doesn't. this is doa on capitol hill. some budgets to some extent really are. what happens at the beginning of the budget cycle is the president puts out his wish list up to capitol hill. that's controlled by republicans. they're not going to necessarily take everything obama wants. but think of this as the opening valveo in a year-long negotiation. the president is setting out where he wants things to go. >> whom would they hit? >> a lot of taxes for wealthy, taxes on banks, inheritance, also taxes on corporations including a proposal to tax companies' earnings that are overseas right now. initially the teaser rate obama would have at 14%, but then after that it would go up to 19% per year. in the outgoing years. so a couple of new taxes there for corporations and the

wealthy. obama said that he would match those with credit and benefits for people in the middle class and the poor. >> if you had to be a betting man, ayman, what proposals do you bet would actually gain some traction on the hill? is there anything in the budget that might work with republicans? >> the president is proposing more spending for the pentagon. that's obviously something that republicans like. and i also think that ultimately they're going to have to do something about the foreign earnings of u.s. corporations. somewhere in there is a compromise waiting to happen. we'll see whether or not these are the numbers. probably not. but they're sitting at a table and they're proposing some deals here. we'll see whether they can get something done this year. >> very quickly, does the word sequestration appears? >> the president would like to get rid of sequestration. remember that was the deal they had a couple years ago that actually ended up lowering a lot of the deficits. the president here taking credit for a lot of that deficit lowering but saying that was

mindless austerity and he wants to move past that by increasing spending in certain areas that he thinks are important. >> ayman, thank you as always. verizon may be nearing an asset sale. according to reports, the telecom company is close to selling a package of cell towers and wire line assets for more than $10 billion. it involves different buyers and could be announced this week. shares up almost 3% to $46.98. another report out today about the fate of radio shack, saying the electronics retailer is now preparing to shut do. sprint would take over half of the existing store base. but another bidder could emerge to buy the chain and continue to run it. shares of radio shack off 14% today. they fell to 24 cents. sprint fell slightly to $4.27. land's end announced changes at the top today, the clothing retailer's chief edgar huber will step down in two weeks to be replaced by fredericka

marchioni. shares were up a fraction to $34.93. boy, that's a good italian name. apple planning to sell as much as $6.5 billion bonds. they plan to sell a combination of bonds and maturities ranging from 5 to 30 years, coming at a time when investors are paying near record premiums for high quality issues. shares were 1% higher there at apple to $118.63. pit any bowes had revenue that missed. 2015 guidance well below what the analysts were expecting. their earnings forecast was also light. but pitney did unveil a $100 million buyback plan. investors were not impressed and shares fell 27%. united technology hiked its dividend by nearly 9%. the quarterly payout will now be 64 cents a share and paid to

shareholders in march. the yield on that dividend is just about 2%. arco petroleum posted a big miss on both top and bottom lines. still the company's loss narrowed when you compare it to last year. that's when it took a big legal charge. its oil and gas output increased during the quarter. shares were volatile in after-hours trading. during the regular session the stock closed up to $82.77. stratusis shares way down. the 3-d printer maker preliminary estimates missed as did its 2015 forecast. it said operating expenses will also increase. the stock dropped sharply after hours. at the close, the stock was up a fraction to $80.08.

management and the unions have been blaming each other for intentionally slowing down work at the docks. what's really going on? jane wells got exclusive access inside a dispatch hall to try and set the record straight. >> reporter: it's a little after 6:00 a.m. at a union dispatch hall down the street from the nation's largest container port complex. long shormen gather to wait for jobs. >> morning, brother. >> good morning. >> reporter: every job is filled. and yet according to one shipping analyst, the los angeles long beach port complex is suffering the worst congestion in history. for months management and the union have each been blaming the other for intentionally slowing down work here at the docks adding to the congestion. the shipping companies have been saying the union is not offering up enough workers. the union says quite the opposite. the shippers are not asking for enough crews. we thought we might get the

right answer to what was really going on inside the union hall. what have you seen change since november? >> i haven't really seen anything change. >> reporter: turns out a union member who works jointly with the shippers running the dispatch hall blames congestion instead on bigger ships and a lack of well maintained truck trailers. you're not seeing any intention intentiona slowdown on the operator side or longshoreman side? >> i'm not seeing a slowdown on anybody's part. >> reporter: we looked at this month compared to a year ago. he's right. the same jobs are called for and all are being filled. if there's no intentional slowdown could congestion just be due to lack of space and equipment? they say the log numbers do not reflect reality. the final numbers are massaged to give the appearance of equilibrium. however, they have not offered any proof of that.

as the war of words continues in public there may be some good news behind closed doors with negotiations. management reports the issue of fixing broken truck trailers is a real problem on the docks, and may soon be resolved. if that's the case it may be the domino which sets off the final resolution before the ports completely shut down. jane wells, san pedro, california. coming up virtual reality. the technology may seem far away from everyday reality, but will the capital money continue to flow into what some are betting will be the next big thing. a federal judge has rejected an nfl concussion settlement for

a second time. the league's proposal of more than $750 million involved 5,000 former players who have sued over head injuries. the judge said the nfl should expand payments for some of those claims especially for families of players who suffered from chronic brain damage diagnosed only after their deaths. strong outlook out today from the rail industry a sector that is looking to spend more and hire more this year. freight railroads planned to spend nearly 30 billion to lay track, add engines and create around 15,000 new jobs. this comes as the national rail network has been tested by energy and agriculture deliveries. the air bag problems just got worse. regulators announced the recall of nearly 2 million vehicles to fix faulty crash sensors that could cause air bags to deploy for no reason. it includes toyota fiat and honda, who had already issued recalls, but the repairs haven't stopped the problems.

the recalls are not related to those faulty takata air bags but there's an overlap of about 1 million vehicles who are impacted by both issues. >> and finally tonight, virtual reality, facebook got into it so did google. it's not just the big companies that are investing in this new technology. many startups specialize in it too. the question for them is will big money from venture capital firms continue to fo josh lipton has the story now from silicon valley. >> reporter: there's nothing that simulated about the excitement surrounding virtual reality. tech giants are moving hard and fast into this technology which allows users to experience totally immerseive 360-degree simulated environment. facebook for example, spent $2 billion last march to buy ouculusvr.

google already shipped 500,000 vr products. it's not just tech titans that are dedicating time and money to this technology. a number of startups are also now specializing in virtual reality and some venture capitalists are willing to supp >> what's inspiring about it is we're solving hard problems. >> reporter: this company for example is providing $100,000 in seed funding to ten startups in exchange for equity in the companies. rothenberg sees a number of applications in industries ranging from health care to education. >> imagine that you would like to go attend virtually a wonderful college class, but you're in a different country from where you want to go. this can make you feel like you're there. >> reporter: one startup he now supports is called emblematic group, which builds content to the ocular set.

the company's founder says the purpose is to bring attention to the civil war in that country. but while rothenberg is excited about virtual reality, many of his peers are not. in 2014 only 11 companies focused on virtual reality, received venture funding totaling just $54 million according to the money tree . to put that number in context, venture capitalists invested nearly $49 billion in total last year so why the lack of enthusiasm from professional investors. vc say while the startups might boast technology some don't have a significant number of users or viable business plans. >> it's about show me the money. virtual reality is now being show me the losses. until they actually make money, they will not get a lot of support from venture capitalists. >> reporter: still, fans of virtual reality are constant

and confident it will rede fine many industries from gaming to travel. now all they need is mass adoption. for "nightly business report," i'm josh lipton in silicon valley. >> funky looking gear. to find out more about the virtual reality technology trend, head to our website nbr.com. that does it for us on "nightly business report" for tonight. i'm sue herera. thanks for watching. >> and thanks from me as well. we hope to see you right back here tomorrow night.

♪ the law ♪ ♪ the law for the good ♪ ♪ the law for the ugly ♪ detective inspector poole. i take it you're here for me. very good. what gave us away? unless you're on some weird stag do... vincent carter. this is the prisoner leon hamilton.

he is officially now in your custody. but i've been given orders to escort you to saint-marie. thank you, vincent. mr. hamilton you understand that, on arrival we will take you directly to saint-marie jail where you'll serve the remainder of your sentence. carter: pardon.