. >> susie: still ahead, our agriculture economy series is trucking on. grain prices are one of the best ways to check in on farming. we get an in-depth look from the head of grain futures at the u.s. intercontinental exchange. "nightly business report" is brought to you by: captioning sponsored by wpbt >> susie: stocks u-turned on the minutes from the federal reserve, tom, turning early day gains into a fourth straight closing loss. >> tom: susie, the blue chip dow had been up nearly 100 points, but it closed down 33. the nasdaq fell 19 and the s&p off nearly six points. some early optimism on wall street came from an improvement in housing starts. home construction increased 2.6% in april. it actually would have been more, but march's numbers were revised higher. >> susie: joining us with more on those f.o.m.c. minutes: brian jacobsen, chief portfolio strategist at wells fargo funds management. hi, brian. as you heard our reporting, several members of the federal reserve are ready to add more stimulus into the u.s. economy, what everyone is calling qe 3

. >> susie: all this week on "nightly business report" we're looking at the agriculture economy. organic foods make up a growing part of the american dinner plate. we buy an estimated $28 billion worth of organics every year. and one of the best known organic brands, newman's own organics, grew out of a love of charity. becca king reed reports from santa cruz, california: >> we promised a worm with every year. that's how you know it's organic. >> nell newman knows her produce. she learned from her dad. >> my earliest memories of getting groceries with my dad was at the farm stand. he would peel back the ears to make sure the corn was fresh. and you know, what did a ripe water melon sound like, and a good cantaloupe smell like. so i really got a hands on, all senses involved experience in picking your produce, and picking good produce. >> as president of newman's own organics forged a path all her own. >> my part of newman's own organics was to support organic agriculture and donate money to charity. >> newman had a vision to spin off what pop had done with his famous salad dressi

and we head to cattle country to kick-off our week-long look at the agriculture economy. we visit omaha steaks. that and more tonight on "n.b.r." we begin with greece. investors around the world are getting more and more worried about whether greece will remain in the eurozone. and if it does exit, what does that mean for the global economy. those concerns intensified today as political leaders met and failed to form a new government following last week's elections. darren gersh reports. >> reporter: the message from greece lately has been no. no to leaving the euro-zone. no to economic austerity. and today no to forming a new government. >> people assume things are under control and we still play games and strategize, but i think it becomes more and more clear that things are not that much under control. >> reporter: greece's political leaders will try again tomorrow to bridge their differences, perhaps bringing technocrats into a new government. but european leaders, annoyed by the political gamesmanship in athens have been signaling their displeasure, hinting greece ma

companies tells us about the challenges of high commodity prices and we wrap up our series, agriculture economy>> that and more tonight on "n.b.r." >> the frenzy expected for facebook friday fizzled today, the hotly anticipated ipo closed at just pennies above its offering price of $38 a share, still the stock sale raised $18 billion and more than 406 at this million shares were traded, that is a record volume for an ipo. >> susan pratt takes a look at opening day. >> facebook history was made here today at the nasdaq, when facebook, the stock, ticker symbol fc began trading. >> facebook ceo mark zuckerberg range the bell remotely from the company's headquarters in california. >> our mission isn't to be a public company, our mission is to make the world more open and connected. >> bob was on hand for the big day and to give zuckerberg some new does. >> this is the first time we got the nasdaq hoody. >> but too many orders delayed facebook's opening by a few hours. >> somewhat marg its debut. and there was disappointment about the lack of a first day pop. some had even expecte the shares to doub

the agriculture economy was stagnating. reason why so many slaves are sold because there were not to news play is needed but with the new cotton land of the southwest. and new owner may have excess capacity almost always breaking up families because what sold was aged 15 through 30 years. has been sad wives, brothers and sisters, mothers and fathers and their children. most slaves were not purchased by slave owners but traders then taking them hundreds of miles away away, marching them with the men were chained it together and walk as far from richmond to new orleans. as the real system group complete it was more common to go by railroad then sold again to the slave owners. then put to work. >> host: what was the going price? citywide it varied. we know there was a market that divided people in two categories. a had a price sheet. it listed it prime then. boys. 4-foot 3 inches and above. for flood and above. most were the mail field hands. older or younger your slaves going for less. about $1,000 or less. >> host: how did c

the agriculture economy and how one california farm is milking the cheese business. >> susie: that and more tonight on "n.b.r." >> susie: $38 a share is the magic number for facebook's stock sale to the public. this offering price values the social networking giant at over $100 billion. tomorrow morning, facebook debuts on the nasdaq under the ticker symbol "fb." suzanne pratt reports. >> reporter: you may spend a chunk of your time on facebook. but, it's unlikely you'll get even a morsel of the i.p.o., at least not at the offering price. that's because underwriters give priority to their best clients, usually institutions. most retail investors will have to wait to buy the stock until it begins trading on the nasdaq. that means they'll probably pay more than $40 a share, perhaps a lot more. analyst nick einhorn thinks facebook will open at $50, a price he says is still worth paying. >> i think you could certainly justify that price if you have good assumptions about the company's ability to keep growing quickly and not hit mature growth rates too soon. >> s&p says, if history is any g

and lakes throughout the state and soil conservation initiatives that really underscore our agricultural economy. >> how did these pins come to your collection? >> well, when we get a collection, sometimes it's somewhat organized, sometimes it is not terribly organized. but you'll -- the members will have as part of their collection some of these, this memorabilia, plaques, other sorts of things. and then sometimes we just have people that over the years know that we are in the business of preserving political history and they will offer to make donations to us. we generally do not purchase items for the collection, they are donated to the collection. some of these would have come from different collections, but they're preserved here in one. one of the things that the senate historian's office emphasizes to members is that you want to put your collection someplace where it has the capacity not only to preserve and keep your collection but also to process it and make it available to scholars. and that's why we think we urge many of our members here in the state of oklahoma to make their donation

agriculture has been one of the bright spots in the economy throughout the economic downturn, farming and ranching are still as noted, are inherently risky undertakesings from volatile markets to the whims of mother nature. i'm also pleased with the components of the agriculture risk coverage, a.r.c., and while crop insurance should be the focal point of an agricultural safety net i'm glad they have provided producers with a complementary risk management tools to help them mitigate the risks inherent in the commodity markets to help farmers adjust to lower commodity prices while input prices are likely to remain high. beyond the broader production agriculture provisions, i'm glad the committee has recognized the unique roles conservation and rural development play in rural communities and the benefits they provide the nation as a whole. so i applaud the committee for such a strong conservation title that recognizes the important role of creating partnerships with local stakeholders of a bureaucratic top-down approach, to get more buy-in from farmers, sportsmen and conservationists ali

virginia's agricultural economy was not a growing economy. but a stagnated one. the reason why so many slaves are sold out of the upper south to the lower south is because in many ways, there weren't new slaves needed in virginia and maryland and north carolina where they were needed, they were in the new caltrans of the southwest. an owner, quite often, might have what he considered excess capacity. he would sell off one or two slaves here, almost always, breaking up families because what sold and dropped money in the marketplace where people age 15 to 30 years. husbands wives, brothers and sisters, mothers and fathers and their children. they would be sent to richmond, which was a bit of a gathering place. most of the slaves purchased there were not by slave owners, but by other slave traders. they would march from overland, where the men would be chained together to buy two, and the women not change, marching at the back of the group. they would walk as far as from richmond to new orleans. as the railroad system grew more complete, it was more common for slave

. >> susie: next week on "n.b.r.", the agriculture economy. monday, we head to cattle country and visit omaha steaks to find out how it's dealing with rising food costs. we'll get a read on the american consumer, from april's retail sales numbers, to earnings at wal-mart and home depot. and we could see facebook's i.p.o. as early as next week. we'll be tracking it's path to becoming a publicly traded company. when it comes to selling a product or service, some of the best sales reps might not work for the company. tonight, lou's been thinking about customers as sales people. >> one evening, after a long day of travel, i decided to treat myself to hotel room service. the young man who came to my door a few minutes later was as much a showman as he was a waiter. he motioned me to the table near the window, snapped open a white table cloth, draped a napkin across my lap and served the food with a flourish and a smile. he stepped back like he was in a fine restaurant and asked if he could do anything else for me. "no," i said, "this is wonderful."

. >> susie: tomorrow on "nightly business report", we continue our look at the agriculture economy. from wheat to soybeans and corn, we talk grain trading with the u.s. head of i.c.e., the inter- continental futures exchange ben jackson joins us. >> tom: thanks to j.p. morgan's big trading loss, banks are back in the headlines. as the summer olympics approach, other financial names will be front and center, but for a different reason. the financial services sector is among the biggest spenders for the summer games. here's rick horrow. >> reporter: four financial firms have signed on as sponsors of the u.s. olympic committee: citi for retail banking, visa as the worldwide credit card sponsor, td ameritrade as the online-broker, and deloitte as its professional services sponsor. the reason financial service companies are so quick to align with the olympics is simple. viewers th household incomes er $100,000 are 400% more likely to watch five or more hours of olympics coverage daily than lower income viewers. it's these same affluent consumers the financial firms are spending millions

no matter where i go i'm always reminded of the important role that agriculture plays in our state's economy. you could say that agriculture is the ultimate made-in-minnesota industry, but it is also made in michigan. it's made in kansas. it's made in iowa. this is really about our country, and when you look at why a state like minnesota, unemployment rate is only at 5.8%, as much as we want it to get even better, a lot of that has to do with our rural economy that has strayed strong through the downturn and the interrelationship between that rural economy and many of our companies that are in the twin cities and throughout. the other piece of this that is so significant we've seen in some markets, like a 20% increase in agriculture exports, so it is really the way that we want to see for the rest of the country, and agriculture is leading the way. that's why there is so much at stake in the 2012 farm bill, and that's why it is so important for us to craft a strong and effective bill that gets the job done for america's farmers and a rural economy. now, it is no secret that we are operating

dakota which my family still operates and i've seen firsthand the growing impact on agricultural renewable energy in the economy. it was created in part to support the important energy programs contained in the farm bill to urge continuation tore meaningful funding for these programs and promote policy changes that will make them even more effective. in the 2002 and 2008 farm bills bipartisan majorities in congress recognized the potential for american farmers, ranchers, rural landowners and entrepreneurs to create clean, domestic, renewable energy and bioproducts by providing significant resources to the programs in the energy title. these foundational policies have transformed the promise of an emerging cleerp, renewable, sustainable rural energy sector into a growing reality. a continued commitment to these goals will accelerate this momentual and is a vital component of the all of the above energy strategy that has significant bipartisan support here in congress. across the country, we've already seen successes from these initiatives as mr. greenwood pointed out. first of their kind biorefineries will be pr

. >> i was raised on a farm and i've seen first hand the growing impact on agricultural renewable energy in the economy. the committee was created to support important energy programs con it and in the farm bill, to on taken funding and promote policy changes that will make them even more effective. in the 2002 and 2008 farm bills, bipartisan majorities in con recognize the potential for american farmers, ranchers, rural by providing significant resources to the programs and the energy title. these foundational policies have promised the -- >> into a growing reality. it is a vital component of the all of the above energy strategy that has significant bipartisan support here in congress. across the country we've already soon successes from thesish tifs, as mr. green would point it out. wind turbines are powering farms and rural ranches from maine to california. and pieio based products such as biopalace exand solvents are being produced in states like michigan, ohio and other places for application. the 2008 farm bill allocated only 0.7 of 1% of its total funding to the energy titles program yet many ne

one out of five jobs is related to agriculture inman mon, one out of five. it's a bedrock of our state's economy, and as you alluded to, madam chairwoman, you know, i don't want to overstate this point, but montana is a little bit different from other states. doesn't main in montana. we have huge counties, as you said, and our farmers, our wheat farmers really have no option. they got to plant wheat. maybe they can go a little with lengthils and other crops, but can't plant corn in montana. you can't plant sorghums in montana. you can't plant other soybeans, for example, in montana. those options are available to farmers in other states. they are not available in our state, so we've got to make sure that the farm bill makes sense. we all want, you know, a safety net that makes sense. enough of a safety net but not too much, you know, trying to find the right balance, but in each state that balance is a little bit different than it is in other states. i just am so thankful to you for working out a way that is -- that recognizes the sensitivities in our part of the country and includes north dakot

economy. on the surrounding hillsides, adequate rainfall and fertile volcanic soils sustain agriculture. the same natural forces that sustain the economy are also a source of danger. hoping to avoid a agedy, geographer patty mothes maps and monitors several volcanoes for ecuador's geophysical institute, inclu tungurahua. she is looking for any changes that might signal an eruption. es and one ofhese ways thate hat is to put a prism that's highly reflective, or a number of prisms up on the flanks of the volcano, and then, shooting with this very high-powered laser beam... narrator: the beams reflect off the prisms and back to patty's measuring device. itan dett subthangesin t shap, changes that may forecast an eruption and save lives. their concern is based on history. inside a church, a mural recalls a deadly eruption in 1773. it happened again in 1886 and 1918. so why do people live in such a dangerous place? some people simply cannot afford to move, due to limited economic means. others have businesses and rms here with family roots re, as elsewhere, decisions to le ar dger on tachnte l

which traces its roots to a whole series of structural problems in the economy that had to do with what is happening in the agricultural sector, with what is happening in the global economy versus a version of, you know, what happened to cause the great depression that says, no, actually, it started as kind of a credit crunch. you know, the great contraction and then government so-called interference, if that's what caused the great depression. so oh that version of the great depression is being replayed in arguments that say, well, what happened is, the government stepped in and bailed things out and then the obama administration made things worse by this economic stimulus package, by not allowing the free market to rein and then it becomes obama's crisis. so in many ways we're fighting out this so-called lessons of the great depression and the way that we're managing the crisis now. i can point to one other thing. i think it's very, very important. you might really what to do about the great depression. >> 2008? >> yeah. really, there's a big question of when all of this started but early on in the obama administrati

traces its roots to a whole series of structural problems in the economy, that had to do with what's, you know, what's happening in the agriculturale global economy, versus a version of, you know, what happened to cause the great depression that says, no, actually it started as kind of a credit crunch, you know, the great contraction as milton friedman put it, and then through a variety of mistakes on the one hand on the part of the federal reserve which mismanaged the crisis from the get-go, and then government so-called interference which prolonged the crisis, is that's what caused the great depression. so that version of the great depression is being replayed right now in arguments that say, well, what happened was government stepped in and bailed things out and then the obama administration made things worse by this economic stimulus package, by not allowing the free market to reign, and, therefore, the crisis becomes obama's crisis, so in many ways we're still finding out the so-called lessons of the great depression in, you know, the way we're managing the crisis now. i point to one other thing that i think is very, very imp

america is the world leader in agriculture exports and that success is not only critically important for our economy and the 16 million whose jobs rely on agriculture but also for our national security. that's why we're so committed to getting this done this year. and this markup is the first step in that process. i want to thank all of our wonderful staff who have worked so hard to get us to this point. i want to thank the department of agriculture for all of their hard work and help as we've gone through the process, and i want to thank every single member of this committee who have brought very important ideas to the table, and worked very hard in good faith to get us to today's markup. and finally, i want if a thank my great partner senator roberts for all of the long hours and hard work we have done together to write a farm bill that makes sense for farmers, ranchers, rural communities and american taxpayers and consumers. this has been a long and winding road with more to come, and i greatly appreciate our partnership. i now would like to recognize senator roberts. >> it is a privilege to be h