ben bernanke used testimony did little to reassure the financial markets about the durability of the global economic recovery growth on the one hand he declared there was little probability of the recession returning but on the other his says it's a number of first factors including high unemployment and the weak housing market an important drag on household spending is the slow recovery in the labor market and the attendant uncertainty about job prospects after two years of job losses private payrolls expanded at an average of about one hundred thousand per month during the first half of this year a pace insufficient to reduce the unemployment rate materially the chairman said the central banks to drag to further ease monetary policy if they would come free showed signs of stalling but with interest rates close to zero he has little room to maneuver here in europe there are additional layers of uncertainty in the immediate future there are the results of the e.u. bank stress tests to contend with there's also the prospect that this sovereign debt crisis will come back to haunt the m

let's hear a little more stacy or max ben bernanke he at the end of last week was in front of the senate committee on banking and the headline from that meeting goes federal reserve chairman warns of unusually uncertain outlook for a u.s. and because of this unusually uncertain outcome for the u.s. economy he remains prepared to take further policy actions as needed we don't know what this means it could mean more quantitative easing it could just mean the new fabricated policy to save the economy well yet they say that ben bernanke has no more bullets left in his gun because interest rates are already at you know zero and there's not much really you can do to stimulate on his side of the big financial picture in terms of injecting more liquidity and they've already done quantitative easing as you pointed out the problem is that such as a debt based currency any action going forward is only going to increase the indebtedness this is the insanity this is what einstein warned about doing the same thing over and expecting different results is insane and this is exactly what bernanke is he's

darren gersh picks up the story. >> reporter: no, ben bernanke is not expecting the economy to drop back into recession, but economists euphemistically call a double dip. but he had bad news for those who are out of work. unemployment is coming down more slowly than he and his colleagues had had expected, and will remain well over 7% for 2.5 years. add that to somewhat tighter credit rules and you get this. >> most participants viewed uncertainly about the growth for employment as greater has normal. >> reporter: but some of the uncertainty may be temporary. the home buyer tax credit ended in april, as did most of the economic impact of tax credits for energy-efficient appliances. and the government is now only extending unemployment. but the fed still believes there is enough economic momentum to weather those economic hits. >> their forecast, which they released to us about a month ago, and he reaffirmed today, the g.d.p. numbers at or above 4% in 2011 and 2012. that's not consistent with the market sentiment we have right now, but the fed is sticking to its guns. >> reporter: bernanke

federal reserve, ben bernanke said that the outlook for the america economy is unusually uncertain. saying that it may be necessary to take further action to stimulate the economy. but still expects and continue the moderate growth. >> with financial conditions and much improved since the financial crisis have been less supportive of growth in the recent months. notably the concerns of euro countries to manage their sizeable budget deficits. and spurred with global financial markets in the spring. resulting in lower stock prices in the united states. >> ben bernanke, the british prime minister has denied of sending out mixed messages. during the day david cameron said that forces would not stay beyond 2015, but with the pull-out on the ground. and speaking that there is no contradiction between the two points. we have james landle. >> the sacred ground of the national cemetery in washington, the final resting place for military service people. david cameron came here to meet those and want successes to come home year. >> as we providence districts to afghan control, there will be ab

they extended. >> ben bernanke begins a trip to the capitol hill.will be pressed for plans to deal with the slow down in the economic recovery. as the markets, averages ending higher. investors brushed off the gap in housing starts and focused on the future. new york stock exchange, aim jane king with the bloomberg business report. >> food and drug administration is being urged to revoke its approval of the drug avastin for breast cancer treatment. they failed to delay cancer symptoms and they found significant toxic risks. loesh is the parent company of genentech and they will die decide whether to take the recommendation. >> security guards at an airport found 18 monkeys hidden beneath his clothes. they found the monkeys inside socks tucked that a man's girdle. he purchased the in monkeys in peru. two of monkeys died en route. he hid them in the clothing to protect them from the x rays. he is charged with smuggling endangered animals. >> a 17-year-old boy can call himself a master of the barter system. listen to this. steven ortiz traded from up a

fed chairman ben bernanke's cautious outlook on the u.s. economy is pressuring the nikkei index. the nikkei 225 ended the morning session at 9,215 points, down 63 ticks, or 0.7% from wednesday's close. sources say investors are locking in profits before results from the stress tests on european banks come out friday. bernanke's remarks are also pushing the dollar lower against the yen early thursday. the dollar is currently trading at 86.59-63. the euro is quoted at 110.54-57. and here's a look at the latest long-term interest rates. this is the yield on the benchmark ten-year japanese government bond. in other asian markets hong kong's hang seng opened virtually flat. it's currently down 0.4%. the shanghai key index for major blue chips is up 0.3% as well as the sse composite in shenzhen. >>> we'll be back with more news later. now back to the main news catherine. >> thanks very much, ines. >>> japan's space agency has signed an agreement with the asian development bank to cooperate in minimizing destruction from natural disasters in asia. many asian countries suffer annually fr

meanwhile, federal reserve chairman ben bernanke spooked the marks with the semiannual testimony before the senate banking committee. bernanke said we are seeing, quote, an unusually uncertain economy. he did say though, that he did expect a moderate economy. about bernanke said the federal reserve was prepared to take steps, any steps needed, if the economy did take another leg down. he did not say what those steps would be. chairman bernanke may be concerned about an unusually uncertain economic outlook, but nigh next guest says he feels like the last optimist standing. he isser is me segal, professor of finance at the wharton school and uthor of "stocks for the long run." always great to have you on the program. welcome back. >> thank you very much, maria. >> so the markets have been so mixed these last few weeks, but you think it's a great time for investors. what makes youo so optimistic? >> they're allowed shrm uncertainties, but i look at valuation. i look at earnings and i look at the prices of stocks and right now, first oall, the second-quarter earnings are coming in really ex

and the chairman of the federal reserve, ben bernanke, was quite cautious when describing the state of the economy calling it "unusually uncertain." needless to say, republicans and democrats were not silent about their philosophical differences on how to handle this uncertain economy. >> after years of championing policies that turned a record surplus into a massive deficit, the same people who didn't have any problems spending hundreds of billions of dollars on tax breaks for the wealthiest americans are now saying we shouldn't offer relief to middle class americans. >> for 18 months, we've had a government that believes that change is only possible by passing 2,000 page, trillion dollar monstrosities one after another. americans are still asking the question, where are the jobs? and all president obama has to offer them is more stimulus spending, more debt, higher taxes, and more job-killing regulations. gloria: knows are pretty tough words. so big win for the president this week. the democrats had to fight tooth and nail. had to go it alone. why is extending employment benefits so

economists for ben bernanke you think of the smartest guys in the world to hear that china is much better off than the us right lauren lister filling us in well still to come on tonight's show they've been called lazy and spoiled by members of congress but cannot employ to use their political muscle this november to pay back those lawmakers who have bad mouth them for being out of work i'll discuss it with someone organizing the unemployed to vote and nearly nine years after the nine eleven attacks a huge debate as a rough time in congress over benefits for first responders ask a first responder about the drama unfolding on capitol hill and why the congress needs to provide help to those who continue to suffer. for the. we've got. the biggest issues get one voice face to face with the news makers. you're watching all see live from the russian capital the headline. twenty five people have died and schools have been made homeless so raging wildfires are russia's record breaking heat wave an official state of emergency has been declared in fourteen bridges across the country with around one

in new york, investors listening careful to ben bernanke, beginning two days of testimony about the u.s. economy before a congressional committee. the dow jones is down 1%. on the currency markets, the euro is $1.2767. >>> 1 billion euros over the next five years. that is how much porsche will invest in new plants and products, hoping to make big synergy savings to its close cooperation with volkswagen. they're not yet ready to say the company's plans will mean new jobs, they have promised there will be no job cuts in the next five years. >>> the italian carmaker fiat said it doubled second quarter profit, six under 50 million euros, pointing to higher sales of its truck and tractor units, making up for slower demand on the car markets. the company says its cost-saving measures are also paying off. fiat says its four-year balance remains unchanged, but it hopes to revise its forecast up after the third quarter. >>> the strike's over the skies over french airports have been unusually quiet this wednesday. air traffic controllers staged a one day strike to protest reforms of how european

ben bernanke is expected to down play the possibility that the economy will fall back into recession.>> lindsay lohan in orange? we'll tell you how long she is expected to be behind bars. >>> and some very unusual items associated with elvis up for auction. but ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, look at you. body rested. stress gone. mind sharp. because unisom gave you deep restful sleep all night. morning early birds. unisom. good night. good morning. >>> here's a look from walnut creek. today 80 and plenty of sunshine. 82 in danville and 85 in antioch. at the bay clouds and cooler temperatures. 56 in alameda and 63 degrees in berkeley. coming up, we'll take a look at the next couple of days. i hear warmer weather is on the way. i have your seven-day forecast in a few minutes. >> but it's been very nice out there. >> 5:24 right now. >>> no longer cold pizza from the night before. she is actually having a warm meal this morning. >> if she wakes up in time. i wonder if she is used to waking up for breakfast. >> i think they will rattle her cage. >> lindsay lohan having her breakfast in jail this morni

turns out the head of the fed, ben bernanke, agrees with you. stocks sank wednesday after bernanke told congress he expected very slow progress in the economy. but said the fed would not take any new action to speed things up. that sent wall street much slower yesterday. we talked about this before. we used to think of the economic cycle as these ups and downs. these perfect waves. what we are seeing this time is not the recovery we've seen in the past. there may be sort of a new reality to unemployment and pay and the economy. >> oh, yeah. and it hurts a lot of people. it's scary times. thank you very much. 6:04. the family of a drug suspect who died after police shot him with a taser is suing the city of san jose. officers stopped 38-year-old prince swazer iii because they thought he was involved in drug trafficking. he resisted arrest and swallows cocaine in an attempt to hide it. officers stunned him with a taser and he later died at the hospital. in the civil rights lawsuit, his patients say their son was cooperate with officers' demands be

as fed chair ben bernanke put with the current economic climate is unusually uncertain. capitol spending fatigue on capitol hill, the president is running out of options to give the recovery a boost. that's where i began my interview with treasury myretary tim geithner. thank you for joining us. > good to see you. >> the administration has had a number of successes after big battles. haveulus, health care battletion. you have a big battle coming when it comes to the bush tax tax. f they remain in place, it will tst $3 trillion over ten years. e onceministration has said it wants to keep the ones for people that make under $200,000, individuals and $250,000 for couples. that will cost $2.5 trillion over ten years. unusbernanke, the chairman of ae federal reserve, said that with the economic outlook unusually uncertain, extending the tax cuts would have a working americanct. is that right? >> the president is proposing to leave in place, extend tax cuts that go to more than 95% of esses g americans. to leave in place to businesses es ande new employees and invest. we think

now, you said that ben bernanke said in the short-term we have to support that.len greenspan said the deficit and the size is a real threat to the economy and a bigger threat than even the short-term benefit that would come to the economy. >> greenspan saying not let any of the tax rates stay where they are. >> he is a deficit guy. >> he is letting the tax cuts expire. >> keeping the current tax rates for two years. continue to -- >> let's look at the record here. there have been two times in the past 25 or 30 years when the deficit began to grow. when we have made major progress against the deficit. once was in the middle of the clinton years when the economy was booming. now, it was a dot com bubble but the economy was roaring and we went all the way to surplus which was a remarkable thing and then the economy tip inside recession and then the deficit started to grow again. in the middle of the bush presidency the economy boomed and the deficit despite the war spending which was extraordinary. the deficit came down i think for three consecutive years. we didn't

ben bernanke told investors today the economy is still weak and there's still a lot of uncertainty out there. wall street doesn't like uncertainty and stocks sold off despite the latest earning report from apple showing consumers are at least willing to buy their product by the pound. good news for california's housing market. >>> the number of mortgage default notices fell to a three-year low, default notices in the state are down by 44% from this time last year. by 14% from the beginning of this year. data quick says that as housing prices have climbed higher fewer people have felt the need to walk away from their mortgages. >> another milestone for facebook. 500 million users. the palo alto social networker halfway to a billion, made the announcement today launching facebook stories, an app for members to write about how they use the site. we also got a ton of silicon valley earnings tonight and tom will sort through those at 6:00. >> scott, thank you very much. >>> on to medical news. doctors are changing their view of c-sections after seeing that method of delivery sky rocket duri

on capitol hill ben bernanke kicks off back-to-back meetings for his twice a year economic update. the head of the federal reserve is expected to take a reassuring tone amid worries the slowing recovery could fall into a double-dip recession. >>> in louisiana tens of thousands are ready to rally against a government ban on deepwater drilling in the gulf of mexico. attendees at the rally for economic survival fear the federal moratorium will stunt the gulf region's economic growth. >>> and in washington the first lady michelle obama will honor recipients of the smithsonian's prestigious cooper-hewitt design award. >>> all day long you can stay on top of the very latest developments in those stories and others as they break on msnbc. and tonight be sure to watch brian williams with "nbc nightly news." >>> and, finally, here's a look at what's coming up later this morning on the "today" show. >>> usda official shirley sherrod speaks out about being forced to resign after being accused of racist remarks. >>> and the latest on how lindsay lohan's jail time could change the tarnished sta

ben bernanke testified the economic outlook in his words unusually uncertain.ls fargo, apple, coca-cola, their earnings beat expectations but yahoo disappointed investors. the market will close in a little less than an hour. >>> a short time ago president obama signed a final reform bill into law. big milestone for the white house and a start of a new era on wall street. alexis christoforous shows what it means to you. >> reporter: hundreds showed up to see president obama hut his signature on a new rule book for the financial world. >> this is designed to make sure that everybody follows the same set of rules so firms come pete on price and quality not on tricks and not on traps. >> the law brings the toughest oversight in decades and cracks down on risky trading behavior at the banks in the hopes of avoiding another financial meltdown. it creates a new agency for consumer protection to take the confusion out of financial problems like -- products like mortgages and credit cards. >> it will provide consumers with the information that they need in clear, accura

at a senate hearing, ben bernanke voiced concern about slowing growth. >> the economic outlook remains unusually uncertain. we will continue to carefully assess ongoing financial and economic developments, and we remain prepared to take further policy actions as needed to foster a return to full utilization of our nation's productive potential in a context of price stability. >> sreenivasan: bernanke played down chances the economy will slide back into recession. but he said record low interest rates need to stay in place for an extended period. the mood on wall street turned sour after bernanke spoke. the dow jones industrial average lost 109 points to close at 10,120. the nasdaq fell 35 points to close at 2,187. federal efforts to fight off home foreclosures are not working. that's what a senate committee heard today, from special inspector general neil barofsky. he said foreclosure filings continue unabated, despite programs for lenders to modify the terms of troubled home loans. but barofsky said the u.s. treasury refuses to set clear goals. >> treasury's continued indications that

speaking in an unusually downbeat tone to the senate banking committee yesterday, fed chief ben bernanke talked about continued weakness in a labor market while offering no plans to help stimulate the stagnant economy. stocks tumbled after bernanke's comments despite a number of strong quarterly earnings reports. shares in investment bank morgan stanley rose over 6% after its earnings came in better than expected. another financial, wells fargo, was up after rising loan demand helped lift its earnings higher than expected. apple was up also after posting strong quarterly results, but the company's cautious forecast limited gains. coca-cola gained on better north american soft drink sales from april to june. us airways joined delta and united in posting a big second quarter profit. overall, this quarter has been the airline industry's best in three years. american airlines was the lone loser, blaming high fuel and labor costs. netflix was down after its second quarter brought in less revenue than expected, despite the movie subscription service adding a million customers. keep an eye on q

. >>> and stocks were higher yesterday, before federal reserve chairman ben bernanke spoke at a congressihearinghearing. he warned lawmakers that the country's economic outlook is, quote, unusually uncertain. he said the fed is ready to take action if things get worse. but that nothing is imminent. he also said it would take a significant amount of time to restore the jobs lost during the recession. >>> big oil is teaming up to come up with a rapid response system for future oil spills. exxon mobil, chevron, conoco phillips and shell have donated $1 million to form a company to respond to spills underwater. bp was informed about the venture but has not joined. >>> ford is trying to make the decision to go green a little easier. the automaker plans to sell the hybrid version of the 2011 lincoln mkz for the same price as the gas model. it is the first time any automaker has done that. and it could force others to follow suit. >>> tiger woods has not won a tournament since returning to the golf course. but he is still raking in the big bucks. tiger ranked number one on "sports illustrated's" list o

watching for tomorrow: president obama signs the financial regulatory reform bill; fed chairman ben bernanke gives his semi-annual testimony on the economy before the senate banking committee. also, this man used to work as a construction manager, but he's been unemployed for two years. now, he's being advised to take early retirement. details in tomorrow's "money profile" series. looks like the obama administration's plan to help struggling homeowners seems to be stalling. new data show more people are dropping out of the program than those who are getting help. 91,000 homeowners cancelled their loan modifications last month. only 50,000 got new modifications. dropouts climbed as borrowers missed loan payments or didn't turn in required paperwork. the administration says many of those homeowners are finding help through other means. >> tom: activist investor carl icahn still wants a bigger piece of lionsgate entertainment. today, he lowered his once- hostile takeover bid for the company to $6.50 a share, down from $7, but this time lionsgate is considering the offer. this ends a 10-day truc

and even ben bernanke said in testimony this week, make wait a few weeks to cut on it. when will the economy be strong enough to cut deficits. should we get going on it right now? >> we should get going right now. we should have a plan. that's what this commission is for, to give the president and the congress a plan for cutting the deficit. now, that will be a long-run plan. what are we going to do to reduce the rate of spendi and get more revenues over the next 10 or 15 years. and it should be enacted enacted soon so people know that it is serious. but it doesn't have to derail the recovery. nobody in their right mind, i think, would want the deficit to plunge right now by actions of congress to cut spending drastically, or to raise taxes. >> susie: all right. >> because that would derail the recovery. >> susie: well, this is a subject we'll revisit. i understand your commission is going to make its recommendations in december, and i hope you'll come back and we can talk more about the details of your plan. thank you so much for coming on tonight. >> happy to. >> susi

fed chairman ben bernanke said in his congressional testimony last week the outlook for the u.s. economy is unusually uncertain. >>> tokyo stocks fell on thursday morning as investors locked in gains following wednesday's surge of more than 250 points. but the nikkei 225 at least ended on the dot at 9,700 points, down half a percent. investors took their cue from the u.s. central bank's latest economic assessment, suggesting the american recovery may be losing steam. and the dollar is losing ground against the yen on thursday morning. investors are cautious about the outlook for the u.s. economy. the dollar is now trailing at 87.28-30. the euro is at 113.36-41. market sources say falling u.s. production figures released on wednesday are prompting dollar selling. and here's a look at the latest long-term interest rates. this is the yield on the benchmark ten-year japanese government bond. in other asian markets hong kong's hang seng opened flat. it's now down 0.3%. the shanghai key index for major blue chips is up half a percent. and in shenzhen the sse composite is up 0.3%. >>> j

three people, which is consistent with the position taken by the federal reserve board chairman, ben bernanke, in his testimony to congress this week. >> even as the federal reserve continues prudent planning, we also recognize that the economic outlook remains unusually uncertain. >> despite the hardships, optimism lives on. 70% of americans still believe they will some will some day li american dream. >> question, currently americans are resilient. we bounce back. what explains that resilience in americans, pat? >> john, dreams have always died hard in america and the reason they die hard is because this country has been such a magnificent success for so many hundreds and millions of people. for so many centuries. it really has and americans are resilient people. they are innovative people. they are hard working people. but the problem i think we have now, john, is we are no longer the producers we once were. we are consumers. we used to be a family centered society. we are now a self-centered society. consumerism takes up 70% of everything we produce. we don't save like other countries did

. >>> federal reserve chairman, ben bernanke, will be on the hot seat on capitol hill today. he delivers part of his semiannual report on the economy. despite recent signs of slipping, he is expected to downplay the chances of the economy slipping back into a recession. but bernanke is also expected to tell lawmakers that the fed is ready to take new steps to support the recovery, if necessary. >>> the $700 billion bank bailout is winding down. but a government watchdog says taxpayers are still propping up the financial industry. the report finds federal support for banks has increased 23% in the past year or roughly $700 billion, even though the crisis has passed. the report also slams the administration's housing relief program, saying it has not put a dent in foreclosure filings. >>> and bp is selling assets to help pay for the cleanup in the gulf. the oil giant is raising $7 billion from oil fields, gas plants and other assets. at least part of the money will go toward a $20 billion fund that bp agreed to last month, under pressure from the obama administration. the compa