leaders for "nightly busine" i'm mike santoli at the new york exchange. >> taxes. and whether we will pay more or less under a new administrat in last night's debate, the issue came up it wasn't clear-cut. steve liesn t a look at what we know and what we don't about the candidates' plan >>> a debate overtaxes finding a sliver of air time amid the personal attack that dominated last night's meeting of the two presidenti candidat here's some of the controversial exchange. we're cutting taxes for the middle class, and i will tell you, we are cutting them big league f middle class. and i will tell you, hillary cl is raising your taxes, folks. you look at me. she is raising your taxes. really high. and what that's going to do is a disaster for. >> so it's true. trump is proposing tax cuts for the middle but it appears to be false that all the low and middle class will benefit. new york univers law prof and former obama aide, lily batchelder said 7.8 million mostly middle class single parent families with children will actually see tax increases, some because trump would

but as mike santoli tells us, some want to know if this is the calm before anothe >> the stock market's recent move to record highs has been unusually subdued. by some measures, the past month has seen the calmest market in 75 years. that's based o narrow trading range. in all but two days in the last weeks the s&p has gained or lost less than half a percent. and this is not just a pattern of late summer doldrums. august often seize erratic trading and has been among the weakest month for stocks in recent years. wh volatility now? several have turned at once. the vote by the uk in june to leave the european union was over done. u.s. economic data brightened considerably and companies began surpassing profit forecast, even as investors gained confidence the federal reserve would not lift interest rates soon. yields on government bonds have remained near record lows. the resulting slow-motion rally has confounded many markets of continues unsettled markets following the sharp wintertime downturn. the question now is whether this lull is simply the calm before another market storm. the odd

mike santoli explains why. >> on the surface, the recent rise might seem like a good thing for stocksdon't rising yields mean the economy is improving and investors are willing to take on more risk? in one sense, this is true. and yields are still quite low, of course, with the ten-year treasury well below 2%. it is a pullback in equity since last week shows u.s. stocks are for now acutely sensitive to an bankrupt selloff of bonds which lifts their yields. investors have piled into sectors and dividend income, making these stocks less appealing as yields on safer government bonds go up. for these dividend sectors, utilities, telecom, consumer staples and real estate, together make up 18% of the s&p 500 index. the financial sector is only 13% of the index, once real estate stocks are excluded. another factor, rising yields add pressure to the stock market's overall valuation. one of the key arguments for stocks in recent years, low bond yields help justify stocks somewhat elevated values in the eighth year of a bull market. with the recent rise in the ten-year treasury yield, on this b

mike santoli takes a closer look. >> reporter: the current bull market in stocks is old by historical standards, but at the moment refuses to act its age. the market run that began in march 2009 is nearing its eighth bir birthday. in recent months and particularly since the election of donald trump, the sector is doing best resemble the usual leaders of a bull market just getting started. smaller, riskier stocks surged ahead of big stable ones. economically sensitive industries such as railroads, autos, motels and banks are among the biggest winners lately. and very few of the older market advance have emerged. these include very high valuations, overheated investment fads or rampant speculation among smaller investors. so what explains the youthful behavior of such a mature bull market? face value, the rapid shift toward more sick california faster moving stocks on jobs, spending and business spending. along with optimism about possible tax cuts, fiscal spending and deregulation under a president trump. some market-watchers also argue the bull market is not truly as old as it looks.

for "nightly business report," i'm mike santoli at the new york stock exchange. >>> nike gets hit ontock downgrade and that is where we begin tonight's market focus. bank of america, merrill lynch to underperform, essentially a sell down from neutral, citing an increase in competition from companies like adidas and under armo armour. the bank/ed its price target to $46 down from $55, saying it's not convinced nike has innovative products in its pipeline. to 50.18. >>> cost cuts helped turn a profit with results exceeding estimates. the company said its refer knew grew. williams' shares finished the day down more than 1.5% at 29.to 20. >>> southern company topped profit expectations thanks to higher retail revenue and strong performance in a company subsidy area. southern saw its revenue rise. shares rose 87 cents to $51.57. >>> pharmaceutical distributor, cardinal health, said drug pricing pressures caused profit to fall but still results managed to surpass estimates. the company posted higher than expected sales. however, cardinal cut its earnings outlook for the year, citing short

for "nightly business report," i'm mike santoli. >>> while the stock market is climbing, there's one stock that is not participating. valiant. earlier this week the company slashed its revenue forecast and delayed its 10k filing. the ankling of the stock began months ago on accusation busy a short seller and scrutiny from washington over drug price increases. this year alone shares are now about 70%. valiant's creditors are starting to get antsy. >> reporter: the uncertainty continues for valiant pharmaceuticals. the biggest immediate concern, the company's more than $30 billion of debt. because the embattled drugmaker hasn't filed its annual report for 2015 it risks triggering defaults with bondholders. the company says it will negotiate with creditors to extend the deadlines though some fear the terms may become onerous. bmo capital market estimates the company has about $6 billion of assets it could potentially divest, ranging from neurology business to prescription eye drugs and dentistry unit. the company has said paying down debt is a key priority for the year. finally investor

for "nightly business report," i'm mike santoli at the new york stock exchange. >>> elsewhere, deutscheank could settle with department of justice this week. and at least according to reuters, the amount they settle for could be less than the $14 billion originally reported. this settlement, of course, relates to the sale of toxic mortgage debt that con contributed to the 2008 financial crisis. back in september, there were reports that surfaced that deutsche bank could face that $14 billion penalty and it prompted the bank to deny speculation that it needed any bailout from the german government. >>> the head of the international monetary fund has been found guilty on criminal charges linked to the misuse of public funds. the case is linked to christine la lagarde. the judge did not impose a fine or sentence. experts say that may allow her to keep her position. but the organization's board will have the final say. >>> a hedge fund founder and other executives were charged today with defrauding investors, making it one of the largest alleged scams since bernie madoff's ponzi scheme. and

as mike santoli reports that group think may not necessarily be a good thing. >> the so-called trump rally has investors looking on the bright side again. a recent pick-up in economic growth and hope for business friendly trump policies have lifted the dow jones more than 8% since election day and boosted several measures of investor confidence to levels not even in years. that's the good news. in the short-term signs of overoptimism are flashing a caution signal for stocks. immediate further upside could be limited with the bullish bandwagon looking pretty full. surveys of both professional and individual investors have shown an extreme surplus of bulls expecting higher share pluses over shrinking group. at a conference board measures hit at 15 year high at last report while positive for household spending such high confidence readings are associated more with rallies nearing a high than one that sets the speed even higher. by wall street's often contrary logic, extreme optimism typically means stocks are set to stall or tip in the coming weeks. this setup is complicated by the sect

and as mike santoli reports, not all of them are created equal. >>> exchange-traded funds are a bit likehe smartphone apps of the investing world. remarkably cheap and useful, new ones pop up every day and there are far too many. because they offer sufficient exposure at low costs, one of the hottest growth areas. some 1,700 etfs controlling assets. still the market is dominated by a handful of very broad funds. the ten largest, including state street's s&p 500 trust, and the van guard total market command more than a quarter of all etf assets. this is driven fund companies to push a variety of gimmicky etfs to appeal to niche interests. among, one for the drone economy and others for most every agricultural commodity. the success rate is pretty low. more than half of all listed funds have less than $100 million in assets, a common threshold for determining a fund's viability. and one website that tracks the death watch now lists more than 400 funds vulnerable to closure. one promising area within etfs is known as smart beta or pursuing automative stock selection strategy to outperform t

for "nightly business report," mike santoli in orlando. >>> shares tumble in after-hours trading. the companies set current quarter profit and revenue will come in below wall street estimates. the professional social network cited weakness in some businesses outside of north america. that warning comes despite strong results in its most recent quarter. shares dropped sharply in after-hours trading as you can see there. but in the regular session the stock was fractionally higher to 192.28. >>> clothing retailer ralph lauren posted a decline in sales for its latest quarter missing expectations. unseasonably warm winter, stronger dollar, and fewer north american tourists hurt its holiday sales. the retailer cut its sales outlook for the current year. that news sent ralph lauren shares down 22% to 89.95. and a similar story at the retailer kohl's which saw shares fall after cutting its earnings forecast for 2015. the retailer cited poor sales during the holiday season and sluggish demand for winter products. the company is expected to report full fourth quarter results later this mon

mike santoli was tracking the ups and downs for us. we're going to walk through some of the market's biggest trends and events. good to see you, mike, as always. >> hi, sue. you as well. >> all right, first, the worst start to the year ever. i still remember that, thinking, whoa, this is going to be a rough one. what triggered the decline? >> you know, it was really several hostile trends coming together at the beginning of the year. oil prices were collapsing, as you mentioned there, going below $30 a barrel, really to levels nobody saw, and it happened in a hurry. that destabilized lots of other markets, for example the market for corporate bonds was carried down by that. at the same time, there was a fear of a steep chinese economic slowdown and global industrial production was coming down at a fast pace. so, essentially, all this suggested to investors that the risks of a recession here and across the world were really rising at a time when we actually thought the economy was going to be on decent footing. so, all of that did feed

but as mike santoli tells us, there's some evidence that the buyback trend may have peaked. >> reporteranies have been by far the biggest, most reliable buyers of stocks since the bull market began in 2009. corporate share buybacks have totaled nearly $500 billion a year since 2013. and companies have authorized another half trillion dollars of future repurchases. yet these purchases don't happen automatically. january is typically the slowest month for buybacks. only 3% of annual e. purchase volume since 2007 has occurred in the first month of the year since goldman sachs. this could be a reason this market has had little support as it sold off the past two weeks. and perhaps it's a reason we've had three weak januarys in a row. while plenty of buybacks could hit the market once companies report earnings as the month goes on, it's not clear that big companies will be as aggressive with buyback plans in the current environment. earnings growth has stalled and the debt markets for many companies borrowed with finance buybacks have grown for stingy. in the latest 12 months some 130 compan

mike santoli takes a look. >> have we finally seen the bottom for interest rates?n abrupt selloff lifted bond yields across yield markets and raised this question. from japan to europe to the u.s., investors have stepped back from bonds, and central banks continued willingness near historic lows. this is a reversal that took hold over the summer when trillions of dollars worth of bonds traded with negative yields and investors bet that banks in japan and europe would continue buying government debt indefinitely. meantime, federal reserve officials continue to suggest the rate increases likely before the year is out. if not after next week's policy meeting, perhaps in dece. of course, many have incorrectly predicted rates would start to climb for years now and the rise in the ten-year treasury yield from a low of 1.6% in early july to just above 6.5% now is hardly a dramatic move in the larger picture. that ended above 2.25%. this could prove to be another fleeting balance in yield and even if the rates have been seen, low growth and inflation should keep them from

for "nightly business report," i'm mike santoli. >> so can stocks extend their gains?oe durand is ceo of united capital. that's the question on the table, joe. can they? >> absolutely can. you have two big things that are affecting us today. one, what do we think is going to happen with the trump administration. if you end up -- if he passes only one thing, which is reducing corporate taxes, that has a huge impact on earnings. and they have companies to reinvest. if this one thing happens, it has a huge impact on future earnings growth and obviously that is very good for stocks. the second thing that's not to be ignored is the timing. we have got a time this week in particular, but also from here to year-end, typically a very good time to be invested, especially when the market has done better than 5% but not as well as 20%. i think you've got a nice tailwind here. again, you're going to see some volatility. we've got maybe too much of a trump lift since he got elected. so we'll see some volatility. but a lot of reasons to be quite optimistic. >> i don't want to be the

for "nightly business report," i'm mike santoli. >>> and before we go, here is another look at whereket stands. the dow notched its 17th record close since the election, rising 91 points to 19,974. the nasdaq to an all-time high. the s&p 500 up 8, just shy of its own record. >> it will be inching across the finish line. >> or limping. one of the two. that's "nightly business report" for tonight. i'm sue herera. thanks for joining us. >> i'm bill griffith. have a great evening, everybody. see you tomorrow. >>> "nightly business report" funded in part by hss. >>> our value principles are patient first, and we want to deliver the highest quality care. >> the goal of creating and sustaining value is all about putting the patient at the center of the equation. >> the purpose of this organization is to help people get back to what they need and love to do. alan judith's pregnant. caroline is it yours? john yes! she's not slept with anyone else. gillian robbie's got this new girlfriend cheryl hellooo! i'm cheryl, how do you do? raff she's moving in with him, apparently. gillian right. lawre

mike santoli runs through some of the deeply discounted groups. >> 2016 has turned out pretty nicely for wall street with the average u.s. stock gaining more than 10%. that hasn't stopped the annual ritual of searching for the most beaten down sectors to play for a dramatic comeback in the new year. it's difficult to buck the market tide. buying stocks that have suffered extreme declines over a prolonged period can offer spring-loaded gains in years to come. a good example from the past year, coal stocks had lost some 80% over four years entering 2016. so far this year, coal stocks as a group have more than doubled. in hunting for such potential comeback plays, investors can start with sectors down more than 50% from their highs over two or more years. one group that now meets these conditions is specialty pharmaceutical stocks. makers of generic drugs have seen their shares drop by 50% to 80% since early 2015 on a litany of concerns over drug pricing and regulatory threats. names such as endo international, and mylan now trade at unusually depressed valuations. the pricing and polic

mike santoli takes a look. >> reporter: the stock market is warming to the idea of industrial revival. shares of big american manufacture others a roll. industrial stocks as a group up 4% year to date compared to a flat s&p 500 indelks. since industrial giant 3m reported upbeat results two months ago the sector is up 14%, more than twice the gain in the s&p 500 since then. the largest, ge, climbed to an eight-year high. the question now is it simply fleeting rebound for industrials? or is factory activity poised for an upswing? economists see cause for optimism. a key gauge of manufacturing due friday is projected to show the first monthly expansion since last summer. goldman sachs economists suggested manufacturing is indeed turning a corner. pointing to higher volumes and firmer oil prices. the pullback in the u.s. dollar has also eased pressure on american producers to sell goods. any manufacturing rebound would likely be fragile given slowing auto sales and a possible rebound in the dollar. at least for now investors are willing to bet that the worst is over for the industrial eco

mike santoli takes a look. >> reporter: no ceo would ever likely enjoy an incoming president trying totate how a business should be run. but the current generation of corporate leaders is perhaps uniquely out of step with president-elect trump's approach to production, trade and capital investment. for the most part, today's ceos are globalists, climbing to the top job by creating global supply chains and pushing to maximize open trade relationships. they have also come of age in an era of constant productivity enhancement aimed at minimizing labor costs. in the current economic expansion, labor shared economy has remained depressed compared to the long historical trend. on the financial side, most ceos have a bias toward sending excess cash to shareholders in the form of share buybacks and dividends. all of these ceo priorities run counter to trump's push to have companies make more products in the united states for the american workers. his threat to punitive tariffs and promised incentives to plow cash into new domestic projects. some corporate consultant liken the challenge to the

mike santoli explains. >> on the surface, not much is different. the corporate profit outlook for this year is about the same. the yield on the ten year treasury was below 2% then and hardly budged. but oil prices have continued climbing. up more than 10% in the past five weeks to reach $50 a barrel. this helped the market for riskier bonds to strengthen further, which offers better support for stocks. and shares of big banks often viewed as a bellwether are up nicely since the broad s&p 500 index was last at the 2100 mark. these factors suggest the market is on slightly firmer ground than it was in april. perhaps the biggest change comes in investors perception of the u.s. economy and the federal reserve's plans for raising interest rates. consumer and industrial data have been good enough to support the case for a second quarter pickup in growth and federal reserve officials have consistently suggested in recent weeks that another boost to short-term rates could come in june or july if the economic data keep improving. the wall street consensus h

mike santoli takes a look. >> by crossing before the 19,000 mark for the first time ever, the dow jonesndustrial average has exceeded most wall street forecasts made even a few months ago. yet as investors assess the meaning of this landmark it's worth remembering 1,000 dow points are not what they used to be. since the dow first hit the 18,000 level amounts to a 5.5% gain and took the dow two years to advance this modest distance after first reaching 18,000 in late december 2014. for an extreme comparison, after first reaching 10,000 in march of 1999, the dow added its next 1,000 points in only five weeks, at a time when 1,000 points equalled a 10% jump. during the 23 months since its first trip, the dow dropped below 15,500 after the federal reserve raised interest rates, oil prices collapsed and the chinese currency plunged. the bounceback from the february market lows came as the fed eased back on its rehiking plan. oil prices rebounded and the credit markets calmed down. on a fundamental level, it's no great surprise that the dow has taken a relatively long time to make its latest

well, mike santoli has some ideas. >> reporter: the violent market sell-off has sent investors graspinghe typical safe havens of treasury bonds, cash, and gold. if there are other investments that can provide some shelter if stocks remain under pressure while still offering an attractive return in the event the market recovers. high-grade corporate bonds have come down modestly in price and are relatively secure. the i shares ibox funds yield about 3.5% for example. some strategiesists and investment advisers also recommend seek out closed end bond funds which often trade at steep discounts to the value of their portfolios. investors have now also able to invest in big corporate loans which are paid back before a company's bonds if trouble strikes. this etf yields more than 4%. for those wishing to participate in a potential stock market rebound while taking a bit less risk shares of the most financially solid blue chips have become a good deal cheaper. one fund that holds several is ishares usa quality factor etf. finally a couple of dozen stocks have higher dividend yields than their

. >> michael santoli, yahoo finance. >>> ahead, why it may seem the force is with disney shares. big hurdles remains for one of the world's most recognizable >>> disney's ceo has been at the job for ten years and the stock is up about 300% during that time. shares trading about $106 a share, just shy of the all-time high. and while it may seem like the company is firing on all cylinders, some challenges do >> reporter: big powerful brands and digital innovation are helping the magic kingdom soar to new heights. disney's frozen sequel and three new star wars films due out over the next three years are more than just movies. they're valuable intellectual property. part of bob iger's strategy to build or buy brands to the movie studio consumer digital properties and park. the strategy helped disney shares triple since bob iger was appointed ceo ten years ago today. >> the magic will only last so long. >> we'll see that strategy at this weekend's box office with cinderella plus a frozen short ahead of it. expect to grow $60 million in the u.s. and to go on to match maleficent with 76

that may be just what inves do mike santoli explains. >> even after some choppiness in past with, thetock market uncommonlily calm so far. the s&p 500 index has traded in a narrow range this month and is less than 3% off its record high. invests looki for a nice fourth rally should prob be wishing for more nervs trading andr bull backe in the second half of the month. pronou octob weakness is a strong setoff for the end of th. in the past 25 years, an october pullba of at least 3% when stocks wer already in a bear market has led to an even better fourth gain near 7% on the bear market bit is signif 2000, and in 2008, with the u.s. econo in recession, an october d proelded further declin. year offer a bit of a counr example. october was unusually strong, the stocks rising 8% as the market rec from the deep late summe selloff. yet the indexes peaked and the mark went on to suffer a nasty into february. the seasonal factors are not laws of nature. corpore earnings results wilhe the market and bond yields and whethe the fed's expected dece rate increase generates much financial stress. hi

mike santoli has a look into when the market is anything less. >> with stocks near record highs and bondsolding up well, is there anything more in coming years? on the surface, it might seem stocks are due for a pause since february that's capped off a fine five-year run. the late summer of 2011, the european debt crisis sent stocks reeling, the standard & poor's has learned ab average of 16% poor year, well above the historical average and a relatively high valuation compared to corporate earnings. all else being equal, buying stocks tends to produce sub par gains in the future. standard portfolio of 60% stocks and 40% bonds has gained more than 10% annually over the past five years. both stock and bond markets supported by low interest rates around the world anchored by central banks trying to promote growth. with the fed looking to lift rates again and stocks already sitting on impressive gains, it's fair to ask whether investors should race for a rougher ride from here. some market watchers insist the bull market is not quite as old and vulnerable as feared. stocks only begin making n

i'm mike santoli at the new york stock exchange. >> t it for "nightly busine tonight.'m sue herrera. thanks for watching. >> i'm tyler matheson. ha evening, everybody. we'l father brown: russula emetica. mrs. mccarthy: are you casting a spell? father brown: common name: the sickener. sounds delicious. well, we can't eat this. i only wanted something to put in my pie, i wasn't planning to spend the morning traipsing around after you. so i am going to go to the grocer's to buy some mushrooms. look. what's wrong? it's... it's a head. i think you should stay here. man: please stay away. oh! please stay back. father brown: i just want to offer my prayers for the deceased. the branch was blocking the road at head height. he hit it at speed.

for "nightly business report," santoli. >>> general electric issued better than expected earnings in revenue and affirmed its operating forecast for the year. but shares of the widely held stock fell on a drop in orders for the second quarter. dominic chu has more now on ge, a company considered a bellwether for the broader economy. >> reporter: the general electric of today looks a lot different than the ge consumerers and investors knew just about a decade ago, and for good reason. the company has gone to great lengths to reinvent and reposition itself as more of an industrial company and less of a financial one. that transformation is still in the process of playing out. over the past few years, gerks e has focused more on developing the parts of the business that focus on power generation and utilities, oil and gas, aviation and transportation among those industries. making things like turbines that create electricity also natural gas pipeline components, jet engines and trains that haul all kinds of goods. and that's just to name a few. according to chairman and ceo jeff immelt,

mike santoli explains why. >> reporter: there's a case to be made for stocks moving nicely higher in coming months but investors aren't listening. money pulled from stock funds for six straight weeks. even the stock prices have recovered from the winter sell-off. surveys show focus on market turbulence than excitement about th chance for gains. those staying in the market prefer what they see as safer stocks such as dividend-paying stocks. on one level all this caution is understandable. the broad market has made no progress in more than a year and a half. stocks look at least fully valued with corporate profits flat since 2014. there's a growing chance the economy's doing well enough to prompt another federal reserve rate boost but not well enough to drive fast corporate profit growth. a noisy presidential campaign between two polarizing candidates lies ahead. it's worth keeping in mind market conditions could be on the verge of improving once investors least expectation it. oil prices rebounded. the u.s. dollar has dipped which should help corporate profits grow again by the third