for example, we have one covering the chevron refinery in richmond, california. since the early 1990's, the foreign-trade zones board has approved over 90 sites. we have now been approached by valero energy corp. to set up a sub-zone so they can take advantage of the foreign-trade zone benefits for that location. james is visiting from houston. he is working with valero and representing valero today. he can answer any questions that you might have pertaining to a resolution. the united states remains dependent on imports of petroleum products, primarily crude oil. foreign-trade zone status will allow them to improve net margins and put them in a better position to retain jobs and compete with imports of petroleum products. the status will also allow the valero refinery to be better positioned to take advantage of exporting products that are produced in that zone in the future. also, it will allow them to better compete with other refineries that are set up. valero currently has eight other refineries in the u.s. set up within a sub-zone status, out of the 15 they

i think the fact that we have some high visibility customers like chevron and valero may help us sell the foreign trade zone benefits to additional users as well. >> are piers 19 and 23 foreign trade zones? >> no. >> so just sub-zoned? >> right. if somebody is looking to set up a sub-zone or a purpose zone , then we can set these up using this new alternative site framework that the board has set up. we have been approached by a company in san bruno, who is importing semiconductorors through san francisco international airport. they are considering applying for a subzone to cover the distribution of the semiconductorors. that could benefit them and provide economic benefit to the area. >> thank you. >> you're welcome. >> in here i didn't see the term as to how far out this resolution would carry in years? >> we will be separately negotiating a sub-zone operate can't agreement with valero. we are anticipating matching it similar to what we have with chevron, which is about a five-year term with opportunities for extending for threes three five-year periods. >> thank you. >> all in favo

at chevron, we're investing millions in solar and biofuel technology to make it work. >> we've got to get on this now. >> right now.

that is interesting because if true, it would mean chevron was violating u.s.sanctions against iran. officials at chevron say no such discussions ever took place. they have not violated any u.s. laws. shep? >> shepard: jonathan hunt live in new york tonight. jonathan, thanks. the feds talking again today about going after assange for releasing secret u.s. documents but nobody is really sure they can do that at all. he's not an american citizen so treason is off the table. now there's talk of charging him in the espionage law but legal experts say, you know, most of them say they just -- that's just not a very good idea. doesn't look like they have much. shannon bream live in washington. shannon, there was a hearing today on the hill about all of this, right? >> there was, and there's a lot of disagreement about exactly what to do but everyone did agree it's time to amend the espionage act of 1917. they're saying in light of the wikileaks situation, a lot of people argue this is a perfect opportunity to beef up penalties under the law for those who would leak cl

. >> final round of the chevron world challenge. tiger woods blew a four-stroke lead. never done that on sunday. woods looked like he was going to win for the first final in 2010. he will make that birdie putt. mcdowell, 20 feet to force sudden death, and he drains it. head to the playoff. back on 18th. mcdowell, another 20-foot birdie. are you kidding me? sinks it again. tiger would miss his 15-footer, and graeme mcdowell wins the chevron world challenge. >> stanford women lose the ncaa sock soccer tight toll north -- title to notre dame. and it could have been florida state that lost to virginia tech yesterday. that would have been fun. >> virginia tech a really good team. >> mike: a tough test for stanford. >> alan: thank you very much. coming up, some are calling "tangled" the best family movie of the season. >> alan: a long-haired damsel in distress took over the box office. it had more than $20 million in ticket sales. this is its second weekend in release. the seven installment in the harry potter sears slipped down in spots. and it was tie between burlesque and

. >>> california now for the chevron world challenge. probably the best tiger woods has looked all year. still not enough. his second approach a few feet from the pin on 18. u.s. open champ graeme mcdowell needed this to force a playoff and he drained it. that was the first playoff hole, oddly enough, 18th hole again, mcdowell similar putt, same results. he sank it and was up a stroke. tiger needed this to keep it going but pushed it wide right. woods blew a four-stroke lead and graeme mcdowell won the chevron world challenge. that's your early look at sports on "early today." i'm fred roggin. >>> hollywood's real-life murder mystery takes yet another odd twist. your early morning entertainment headlines are straight ahead. >>> plus, in the art world, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but what if you can't see it? you're watching "early today." >>> welcome back to "early today." hope you had a wonderful weekend. we had rain in areas of los angeles. picked up about a quarter inch. showers in vegas this morning. today dry. partly cloud

there was some confusion over a chevron gasoline refinery in california. a state agency said it had been shut down, but a local official said it was still running. while we're talking about gasoline, we have to mention general motors. shares hit the gas over wall street excitement about new cars and trucks coming out. a number of different analysts issued opinions and price targets on g.m., ranging from r.b.c. capital's $42 target to morgan stanley's $50 goal. many of the analysts rate the stock a buy ahead of the 2012 malibu and redesigned pick-up trucks and sport utility vehicles. all the talk got g.m. stock moving higher, up to a new high after its november i.p.o. shares added 2% to close over $35. with the surprise drop in consumer confidence, consumer stocks were the worst performing today, but not sears holdings. it's launching its online movie business. the stock rallied more than 2%, breaking out of the trading range it has been in for the past three weeks. this close over $70 is its highest since mid-november. it's new movie download service is ca

oil giant chevron, according to those diplomatic cables, a u.s.ficial had a meeting with the iraqi prime minister in 2009 telling the diplomat that chevron was having conversations about opening up oil fields on the iraq-iran border which is significant because if they were to talk to the iranian authorities about their oil reserves, that would be contravening u.s. sanctions against iran. chevron says it is not guilty of any sort of wrongdoing, no discussions took place, and there are also cables that reveal that the u.s. officials do not believe there is any danger of any sort of uprising in cuba when fidel castro dies. those cables reveal that diplomats believe people there will actually react with certain calmness and that the question, or the problem of refugees coming from cuba to florida could decrease as cubans wait to see what will happen in the wake of castro's death. >>shepard: they have been predicting that for decades. thank you from the newsroom. prison officials in oklahoma are ready to execute a convicted killer with a drug used to

i had a group of men say to me, why can't you bring back chevron. we much perform chevron and western oil interest to chinese ones. at least they try to get to know us. that is to say in what looks like economic policies, we need to say out of particular areas is frequently on the ground much more complicated than it looks at a distance. >> host: good morning, you are on with eliza griswold. >> caller: hi, i wanted to thank the lady between the statement and the christians and muslims, is really between their own kind, muslims against muslims and christians against christians. that's a profound insight that's not recognized. i'd also like to ask her if she knows of any third party that's interested in conflicts between christians and muslims and if she could expound on that. i'd appreciate it. thank you. >> guest: like a third party, like a political party or? >> host: i think he meant generically. anything that you recognize as a third party, corporation, or whatever. >> guest: sure. i will be totally frank. i'm the daughter of a priest. so i grew

. >> reporter: the pain at the pump felt by drivers who stopped in at chevron. >> creeping up. you don't notice it and you look at your bill and it gets higher and higher. >> reporter: how is that effecting you? >> makes you want to drive less. you got a lot of bills to pay, makes you think twice. >> i assume it's standard fair market influences. market is high. gas companies see an opportunity to make more money so they are charging more. when i fill my tank it costs more. >> especially during the holidays we are spending lot on everything, traveling to see family and work, it's hard. >> reporter: the general consensus is, if you drive a car there is nothing you can do but grin and bear it. >>> shuttles are running in place of the cable car. it has been shut down till july. they will upgrade the track and among the changes, electrical and mechanical components and sidewalks and ramps will be repaired. the project expected to cost $16 million. during the shut down muni will provide bus service. >>> well, mike singletary is out but the season isn't over. more reaction on the fir

. >> new this morning, while bay area groups fight chevron, they will highlight million was dollars to charity. they will have several grants. groups that benefitted in the past include the latina center and stride center str and catholic charities. chevron will talk about this year's donations. >> while you were sleeping it has been busy at the fedex hub in oakland. they ever processing packages from the busiest day in company history. christie smith is live to give us a look inside. i'm sure it's very hectic. >> good morning to you. it is very hectic in here and yet they are able to handle it without hiring any extra holiday help. they pick up extra shifts. i want to show you what's going on here. there is a crew over there and they are standing around and they have been earning their keep all morning. this is the busiest day because of the online retailers. this is new video we shot this morning of packages just off an airplane headed to the trucks that will be in your neighborhood. 16 million packages moved which is up 13%. why so busy? fedex said online retailers are taking advant

tying we're miss the 15-footer and graeme mcdowell wins the chevron world challenge. >> stanford and dame, women's soccer championship. henderson crosses and finds the back of the net. 1-0. stanford's 22-game win strike over. falling short for the second straight year. >>> coming up at 6:00. bcs bowl assignments headed out. >> alan: we'll find out. just ahead, the holiday parade that escaped today's rain. we'll tell you about the colorful sell prayingggggggggggg >> alan: coming up at 6:00. san francisco considers a new law that would force city contractors to hire more locals. and foreclosed homes going at bargain basement prices. wait until you hear much people paid at an auction today. join us at 6:00. >>> finally, a colorful and lively holiday parade in san jose drew thousands of spectators. ♪ >> alan: the san jose holiday parade is a local favorite, complete with marching bands and giant floats. a number of civic organizations have been investing a great deal of time customizing their floats, and there was an appearance of cat in the hat and thing 1 and thing 2. the theme of the

that helped oil companies like chevron and mining related companies like caterpillar drive the dow higher. the nasdaq saw an eight-day winning streak end, but apple closed slightly higher, up 53% for the year. >>> one spot on wall street was head hot. mergers and acquisitions. general electric, the current owner of this network, rose after confirming it would buy british oil field services company wellstream holdings for $1.3 billion. dell fell almost 4% after sweetening its cash offer for the network storage company compelant. thermo fisher will acquire dionex for $2.1 billion. keep an eye on yahoo! today. reports say the internet portal will lay off about 600 employees, about 5% of its workforce, as early as today. elsewhere, moody's warned due to the increased debt it would bring on if president barack obama's tax benefits package becomes law, it may cut the united states aaa bond rating. >>> data released monday by the government shows u.s. airlines packaged $473 billion in fees this year. >>> finally, a scientist helped one man recover $2.3 billion he dropped into his factory's shred

supporters of a long term lease, cited chevron's key role in supplying gasoline to southern california and fuel as well as to the nearby l.a. airport. the refinery and offshore operations date back to 1911. >> the small california town, and high school appears to be the hardest hit with loss. buchanan high school in clovis, has had eight former students killed in iraq and afghanistan. the layest on december 2. a marine sergeant who died of a head wound in afghanistan. the heartache has been never ending at buchanan. by comparison, other high schools have lost two former students. altogether, more than 600 soldiers from california have died in both of those wars. >> financial fraud conference brought u.s. attorney general, eric holder to san francisco today. but reporters wanted to talk about the wikileak case. at the san francisco federal bidding. holder gave a no comment. when he was asked about the city of berkeley's proposal to honor bradley manning. he is the army private accused of releasing the sensitive documents. holder pointed out "the new york times" found a responsible way t

chevron and exxon both hit new 52-week highs. this more confident market swatted off down beat numbers. december is consumer confidence unexpectedly fell while the october price of single family homes fell almost double what was expected. home builder beazer fell 4.5% on that news. on the brighter side, new sales data confirmed retailers are poised to show their best holiday season in three years. general motors was up over 2% after analysts from banks underwrote ip initiated coverage with favorable ratings. mankind corp. jumped after its experimental diabetes drug by regulators raised hopes the drug won't be rejected. >>> elsewhere, united, continental and delta confirmed they're raising domestic ticket prices with others expected to follow. allstate sued bank of america, its countrywide lending unit and 17 other defendants for misrepresenting the risks on more than $700 million of mortgage securities it bought from countrywide. >>> and a move sure to increase tensions. china will dramatically cut its exports of rare earth miner

. >>> seven richmond area nonprofits will be getting part of $1 million from oil giant chevron. the money comes from the company's california partnership initiative which invests in education and economic development. some of the money will go toward teaching disadvantage youth, helping the homeless find jobs and creating transitional jobs for north richmond neighborhoods. >>> yahoo is handing out pink slips today. the sunnyvale company is letting workers go. a yahoo representative says the lay offs are part of a strategy to increase revenue. >>> the holiday shopping season is giving the u.s. economy a boost as retailers tailers post better than expected gains. that led the national retail federation to boost it's over all holiday forecast saying the holiday gain will be the largest since 2006. >>> stocks closed higher today on wall street this comes on the heels of the over all positive projection for holiday sales. an announcement that it plans to buy -- >>> 14 people will be inducted into california museum hall of fame tonight including two names especially well known here in

. >> last year, chevron made a lot of money. >> where does it go?> every penny and more went into bringing energy to the world. >> the economy is tough right now, everywhere. >> we pumped $21 million into local economies, into small businesses, communities, equipment, materials. >> that money could make a big difference to a lot of people. >> opportunity can start anywhere and go everywhere. to help revitalize a neighborhood in massachusetts; restore a historic landmark in harlem; fund a local business in chicago; expand green energy initiatives in seattle. because when you're giving, lending and investing in more communities across the country, more opportunities happen. and the william and flora hewlett foundation, working to solve social and environmental problems at home and around the world. and with the ongoing support of these institutions and foundations. and... this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. >> brown: retailers had high hop

at chevron, we're investing millions in solar and biofuel technology to make it work. >> we've got to get on this now. >> right now. >> and by the bill and melinda gates foundation. dedicated to the idea that all people deserve the chance to live a healthy productive life. and with the ongoing support of these institutions and foundations. and... this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. >> brown: there were hints of hope today for americans hunting for jobs or trying to keep the ones they have. government figures showed first- time claims for unemployment benefits hit the lowest level this week in two and a half years. that word came as the stock market neared the end of a year of strong gains. the dow jones industrial average lost 15 points today to close at 11,569. but it's up 14% for the year. the nasdaq fell nearly four points to close under 2,663 today. but for the year, it's up 16%. for a look at what's behind the market's recovery this year, even as the rest of the econo

>> all the food, all the toys out here donated by the community and some big players like chevron, b.p. oil and wal-mart. and, again, if you are not registered, don't come out here. if you are registered, lucky you. live in richmond, terry mcsweeney, abc 7 news. >> terry, thanks very much. >> folks getting into the christmas spirit but what about that big forecast. >> yeah, looks like we have some dry weather. let's take a look at our ever-drying sky over san francisco. light rain being reported in santa rosa. talk about the next two days and how it will be dry and when the rain returns this weekend. >> mike, thank you. >> and a record-breaking performance by a women's basketball team that even has the president sending his congratulations. >> and the lindsay lohan drama continues. new accusations that say the actress got rough during rehab. ♪ >>> the university of connecticut women's basketball team has now set a new record winning 89 games in a row. the record is monumental and caught president obama's attention. the team's coach got a congratulatory phone call. >> we owe you a littl

chevron. and with the ongoing support of these institutions and foundations. and...s program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. >> lehrer: the president stepped up the pressure on disgruntled democrats today to get behind the tax cut deal he struck with republicans. he insisted again he has not forgotten his principles or his base. >> lehrer: the event was a meeting with the president of poland, but mr. obama's focus quickly turned back to defending the tax deal. >> i think it's worth noting that the majority of economists have upwardly revised their forecasts for economic growth, and noted that, as a consequence of this agreement, we could expect to see more job growth in 2011 and 2012 than they originally anticipated. and i just think it's very important for congress to examine the agreement, look at the facts, have a thorough debate, but get this done. the american people are watching, and they're expecting action on our parts. >> lehrer: the action the president

. >> chevron works with the smartest people at leading universities and tech companies. >> and yet, it's really basic. >> it's paying off everyday. >> this is the engine that connects abundant grain from the american heartland to haran's best selling whole wheat, while keeping 60 billion pounds of carbon out of thetmosphere everyear. bnsf, the engine that connects us. bank of america-- committed to helping the nation's economic recovery. that's health in numbers. united healthcare. intel. sponsors of tomorrow. and by the alfred p. sloan foundation. supporting science, technology, and improved economic performance and financial literacy in the 21st century. and with the ongoing support of these institutions and foundations. and... this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. >> lehrer: the president's push to pass the tax cut deal ran into a roadblock today, at least temporarily. house democrats balked at bringing up the bill in its current form. after a voice vote behind closed doors,

. >> chevron. investing in renewables, strengthening communities and creating jobs. >> and by united health care. online at health in numbers dot-com. and the william and flora hewlett foundation, working to solve social and environmental problems at home and around the world. and with the ongoing support of these institutions and foundations. and... this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. >> ifill: the president moved a big step closer to a major foreign policy victory today. a 67-28 procedural vote in the senate cleared the way to ratify a treaty with russia to cut nuclear arsenals. the vote to cut off debate on the strategic arms reduction treaty came this afternoon after a week of arguments pro and con. >> the yeahs are 67. the nays are 28. three fifths of the senators duly chosen and sworn having voted in the affirmative, the motion is agreed to. >> ifill: the victory set the stage for

. >> chevron bnsf railway. >> and by the bill and melinda gates foundation. dedicated to the idea that all people deserve the chance to live a healthy, productive life. and with the ongoing support of these institutions and foundations. and... this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. >> ifill: the countdown to christmas was on today in washington, as the senate labored to finish work on a challenging wish list. topping the agenda: a nuclear arms treaty with russia. the white house was supposed to have been quiet for the holidays by now. instead president obama's family left for their hawaiian vacation without him. and he remained behind to try to get the new start treaty passed. >> look, obviously the president and the vice president continue to communicate with senators in order to ensure that they have the most updated information. >> ifill: white house spokesman robert gibbs predicted the president's telephone lobbying will be successful but the con

chevron. bnsf. and by the alfred p. sloan foundation. supporting science, technology, and improved economic performance and financial literacy in the 21st century. and with the ongoing support of these institutions and foundations. and... this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. captioning sponsored by macneil/lehrer productions captioned by media access group at wgbh access.wgbh.org announcer: find your voice and share it. american greetings-- proud sponsor of "the electric company." - beaches resorts is a proud sponsor of "the electric company," connecting bright ideas and countless outlets for high-energy excitement. from the u.s. department of education's ready to learn grant, and... [victory music plays] - 10 seconds left. down by one. the crowd's on their feet! the only thing standing between keith and the basket

chevron totals $1 million to nonprofit organizations. the groups are the latina center and the strit catholic charities. that's at 10:00 a.m. this morning. >> let's check in with rob. it's going to be a rainy commute. >> already shaping up that way. we have been watching the rain moving into oakland and san leandro and arriving in the last hour or so, what it looks like is somewhat reduced visibility. a hazy looking headlight with light rain and southeast winds at 10 miles per hour. breezy and damp for this morning and a lot of moisture off of the pacific and you get lifting action to it by the mountains or the upper level winds. the coast will ring out quite a few raindrops for areas around the trivalley northward. mid- to upper 50s and winds out of the south at 10 to 20 miles per hour. probably the heaviest around midday into the early evening. coming up in the seven-day forecast, we will catch a break into tomorrow and thursday and friday into the weekend, periods of heavy rain and gusty winds. scott? >> coming up, real fur? fake fur?