the average mileage for hyundai is a 28.4 miles a gallon. joining us to give insight on how the program is affecting sales, scott adams and vice president of hyundai north american sales and brian is back from the manager. good to have you with us. let me start with you, dave. cash for clunkers. how much of an impact did it have on hyundai? >> it had a big impact. we did just under 9,000 deals that represented about 22% of the total volume. it was a very, very important stimulus for us. >> how was your weekend, brian? >> outstanding. >> that halo effect really came through. what are you seeing, sir? >> about the same thing. it's been something for the toyota business. it's been way more than 60% of our business. especially when we thought we may run out of mone. >> are you confident even though there has been talk from the likes of john mccain that there may be a hold up? >> it's a no brainer. it would be suicide for them not to do it. too many cars and too many customers to satisfy? that wouldn't make sense. the deals that we did this weeke

. >> reporter: it was quiet today at the hyundai dealership in jersey city. when you dig beneath the headline that said consumer spending was up in july, you quickly discover that without the cash for clunkers program, spending was flat. in fact, spending on non-durable goods declined for the month indicating that consumers buying cars cut other spending to keep within their budget. economist julia coronado believes that behavior will continue. >> they're much less willing to spend freely. everything is planned out and carefully executed so i think we are absolutely in a new normal and i don't know how long that will last. but it will definitely be a couple of years as consumers rebuild their savings and sort of adjust to the shock that's hit them. >> reporter: this long term change in buying habits raises concerns the economic recovery will falter once government stimulus programs end. a cash for appliances program is now in the works but the clunkers program has ended and incentives for homebuyers end soon. still, economist michelle meyer believes the priva

. >> she is swapping for a brand new hyundai elantra. >> where trading in the piece of junk trunk -- truck. >> it might be over by monday. >> the first to dealerships opted out of the program. >> they are owed a lot of money from the government. >> some dealers say that the feds were unprepared for the massive response. >> only 16 of the 500 have been paid so far. >> the biggest problem is the backlog of applications. the processing system crashed. apparently, it was from over activity. >> buyers and sellers are said to see cash for clunkers -- are sad to see cash for clunkers and. -- end. tonight, some of the sales people at expected to be working long past their regular closing time. >>> federal reserve chairman ben bernanke says the american economy is on the verge of recovery. bernanke says economic activity in the united states and around the world seems to be leveling out. the prospects for growth in the near term are good. and there are signs the u.s. housing market may be rebounding quicker than expected. home sales climbed more than 7% in july, the fourth straight monthly in

enormous tree came crashing down on to oncoming traffic, smashing this white van in front of the small hyundai. >> we'll remember this for the rest of our lives. but i thought they were goners. >> some residents in maryland are also recovering from the wild weather. in montgomery county, a large ee dtroyed this park. and in frederick county, folks in ijamsville lost more than power when the storm rolled through. >> listening to trees cracking and popping. you can't stop it. >> high winds even leveled an entire barn. >> devastated. it's everything you work for. >> residents here say the damage looks like the work of a possible tornado. >> we've had 60, 70 mile-an-hour winds here. this had to be more than that. >> neighbors will be picking up the pieces for several days and so will residents in faceburg, maryland, who were also caught in mother nature's path. now, ijamsville was one of the hardest hit in our region. we are told it could take a day or two before we know for sure whether a tornado touched down in that area. one neighbor that we spoke with yesterday said the destruction took only 1

g-m, ford, chrysler, along with toyota, honda and hyundai...all have bumped up production in response to demand. coming into this new week of trading the stock market close to 10 month highs lori living in with us at the cme group just a week ago creepers and downdraft in the market and nothing but a buyer since then. real strong move on friday and probably expecting more of the same talk about a short squeeze it was obviously a good housing number and i and exciting about that it's coming up all to the bottom is another story is a situation where you are seen institutional buying coming into the recipes nasdaq in the dow jones traded above the you haven't seen the number in a long time. does it make sense to you from a fundamental expects? emotional force short and i know people are excited when they see a decent housing no. but it's not as good as people think if there are a lot of this press housing and there are a reason people are buying things in 54 and 30¢ on the dollar i get excited when everybody else until then i'm not. if your looking at the index s p five pondered the thin

oh, and hyundai is rehiring, too.n response to increased demand from cash for clunkers, hyundai says it is now able to return about 3,000 of its employees in alabama to full-time schedules after their hours had been cut last fall. so in sum we have tons of new consumer spending as we're trying to get out of a recession. we've got consumers really happy. we've got car dealers with tons of new business, not to mention the scrap yards for the clunkers. we have less pollution, less gas consumption, workers getting rehired at the auto companies. seems like this is working out kind of great. so why are they ending it? why don't they just extend this thing again? joining us now is hans blotter, president of castle products, a family owned automotive supply business that is also booming thanks to the cash for clunkers program. they make a product called the clunker bomb that paralyzes the engines of clunkers turned in under the cash for clunkers program. thank you very much for being here. >> thank you for having me. it's gre

north korea has released a south korean engineer for hyundai. he had been detained since march for allegedly insulting the north's communist leadership. there is no sign of the vessel that has disappeared from the north sea. it is believed it has been hijacked. russia has sent up to five navy ships in the search for the hell out -- in the search for the ship. 300 people are missing in just one taiwan village. latest official figures is growing public anger and there are plans to put more effort into the operation. 4000 troops will join the search team. we now have a report from one of the worst hit areas. >> it is a battle to keep moral high but the search goes on. even more soldiers joined the rescue effort. the water levels are still high and hundreds of people are still stranded. difficult to spot from the air. now troops are out on the ground, more are being found and air lifted to safety. these from one of the worst hit villages. people are being rescued however possible -- ropes, wires reaching into canyons. hear, a newborn baby is brought

the engine cranks out the kind of growth you'd expect from just about anything other than a hyundai. up the road like a champ disguised. that's not to say that it doesn't look good, but some people suffering from brand envy may have trouble making the leap. until they get behind the wheel. >> the fit and finish may not be quite as good as the incontinuity or the nissan 370 z. on the front it will give those a lot more on the road for less money. >> it costs 23 million bucks, but you can own a piece of history. that price tag makes it the most expensive ever for a home in charleston, south carolina. ain't she sweet? the home is northern as the house located in downtown charleston has seven bedrooms and a carriage house and parts of the house dating back to the early 180's there's room for both our families, rick. >> rick: let's move it. that does it for us here in new york. i'm rick folbaum. for jamie colby. what's next. >> jamie: the journal editorial report. don't want to miss it, kee

they recently released th , the e listthe don e dodge jou dodgfojourney fobye by arcadia and the hyundairs. >>> just click on living smart on wusa9.com. >>> we have a pet seat belt. >> you do? >> yeah, for the dog. >> yeah, i think that is actually a good idea. especially if you're driving with them. everyone needs to buckle up. >> when your pet sits in the driver seat, he could see over the steering wheel. that's the biggest obstacle to the dog safety in cars if they could see over the steering wheel. that's not by the way a great transvision from dogs to michael vick -- transition from dogs to michael vick, but he's back. for two and a half years, they have sougt him out in action -- sought him out in action this morning. plus, the skins, they are getting ready for tomorrow to get tom brady and the patriots ready. how about the ravens and the patriots in this preseason? a nice schedule for them. we're back after this. come on in. you're invited to the chevy open house. where getting a w hivecle is easy. because the price on the tag is the price you pay. you'll find low, straightforward

five automakers, ford, g-m, chrysler, toyota and hyundai have all ramped up production at some facilities thanks to demand for some new car models, sparked by the cash for clunkers deal. even though interest in the program may be slowing, these car makers are slowly putting a few people back to work. the jury is still out for other efforts to spark demand. offering an $8-thousand tax credit for first time homebuyers may have helped home sales stabilized this spring and summer, but they remain a fraction of what they were just a few years ago. one more item cash may be king...but watch out for the cocaine. a new study confirms the urban legend....up to 90 percent of paper money in the u-s has traces of cocaine. one researcher from the university of massachusetts says that's almost a 20 percent jump compared to just two years ago. nine dollars. considering what you get... that's a really great price. back to school costs less at walmart. save money. live better. walmart.

while hyundai gained 12%. however, sales for toyota, honda, nissan all fell double- digits. >>> if you like to get around on the train, then amtrak has a deal for you. a ticket between washington, d.c. and new york city is now just $49 and the deal is good until december. amtrak has decided to extend its price cuts on the northeast corridor and its acela service. discounts are up to 25%. >>> there will be a lot of disruptions on metro this weekend. on the red line, there will be no service to the fort totten station. so trains will run between glenmont and takoma and brookland to shady grove. major work done at the pentagon city this weekend and that means the blue line will run in two parts. from largo town center to rosslyn and then king street to franconia-springfield. it also means that yellow line trains will run once every 36 minutes. and on the blue and orange lines, trains will single track between eastern market and stadium armory. so, you can add another 30 minutes to your commute there. >>> you coul

. >> we had a record month last month in sales >> reporter: while sales are soaring, his hyundai dealership is still waiting for the government to pay for the 250 clunkers he's taken in. >> i think it's gonna be all fine, but it's very nerve- racking sitting, waiting for all the funds. >> reporter: $1.2 million worth. to play it safe, he's decided not to kill any engines or shred any cars until the money is safe in hand. >> a delightful catastrophe is the best way to put it, we're excited because we are selling cars, doing a lot of work, but it's been a mess because to some degree it's an element of unknown, it's something new that neither us nor the government really had any idea how to do it. >> reporter: the story is similar at other dealers we spoke with. sheehy auto stores is waiting on nearly $3 million for its 700 clunker deals. the dealership received its first payment from the government on friday for $4,500. a survey last week of virginia dealers found the government processed 9% of trade-in's, rejected 9%, and paid fewer than 3%. and while dealers worry about being paid, they are

honda, toyota and hyundai report increased sales. ford just increased its sales forecast by 500,000 vehicles. >> the demand did take us by surprise. not so much the amount. but how quickly people came to ford. >> reporter: dealers are busy. but many are also waiting for government reimbursements. >> right now, probably only 4% of the approved deals have actually seen checks back from the government. >> reporter: one north carolina dealership is owed more than $22,000 in clunkers checks. >> we do legitimate deals. and we got 130-page rule book. and we followed your rules. and you won't live up to paying us our money. >> reporter: cash for clunkers went through nearly $1 billion in its first week. now, car site edmunds.com says car sales are wayning. down 15% from the peak. vinita back to you. >> emily schmidt in washington this morning. thanks. >>> ford won't put an electric car on the road until next year. but it's already start trying to solve the challenge of keeping it charged. ford is allowing cars to talk to power grids across t

. >> these are the clunkers at fairfax hyundai.that dealership beat july sales expectations by 100 vehicles. >>> still ahead, cracking down on wall street. bonuses. >>> an amateur photographer gets an incredible shot of lightning as he gets knocked down. >>> a preliminary finding a pilot disregarded the weather before his chopper crashed, killing four people. >>> a bear sighting. it startled some workers at a northern virginia day care. >>> coming up in sports, the nationals trade away a key veteran on the team. also, meanwhile, former national milledge working with extra motivation. signed, sealed and delivered. now it's time to see him on the field. >>> a man has died after a shooting in columbia heights in the district tonight. police say the shooting involved a special police officer. it happened just after 9:00 tonight in the 1400 block of girard street. investigators say the armed security guard was on duty when he shot the man in the abdomen. the homicide division is investigating that shooting. >>> a preliminary report into

think there's any company that's benefited as much as general motors has. >> ford, honda, toyota and hyundaiore cars so they, too, can keep up with the demand. analysts do warn overall numbers are still down. recovery is not yet a done deal. >> a blue ribbon panel -- the >> a blue ribbon panel said the shuttle fleet should be retired. it said without an extra $3 billion a year, there's no way nasa can get back to the moon. the findings will officially be released next month. >> in texas at least two people have died after severe weather hit the houston area. one woman inside a kohl's department store suffered a fatal heart attack when a tornado caused the roof to collapse. about a dozen other shoppers were sent to the hospital and one workers was killed by rushing floodwats. >> must have been horrifying to be in that shopping center to see cars flipping over in the parking lot and all of that. here's your wednesday weather: severe thunderstorms across the midwest and flames, hurricane-force winds, hail and there will be heavy rain ipart of florida and along the gulf coast. >> 90 in miami and

. >> reporter: ford, honda, toyota and hyundai announced they plan to make more cars. >> some sign ofabilization to move back up in one of the hardest hit sectors of the u.s. economy. >> reporter: another encouraging sign, a consumer satisfaction company finds gm and ford enjoying some of their biggest gains. still analysts say it's too early to celebrate. >> i wouldn't pop all the champagne corks just yet. >> reporter: the companies will build just over a million cars this year, down almost 40% from last years. analysts say the road to recovery may not be a smooth one. >> it's going to go in fits and starts and we're going to see rocky business before we come out of this downturn because it is so deep and so pervasive. >> reporter: some of the 1,300 workers could be back on the job as early at this week. >> there is a new debate among parents and doctors this morning about the controversial cervical cancer vaccine gardasil. problems include dizziness, headaches and fainting but there were hundreds of serious problems including blood clots and 32 cases where the patient died. >> i fee

. >> reporter: ford, honda, toyota and hyundai have also announced they plan to make more cars. >> some sign of stabilization and move back up in one of the hardest hit sectors of the u.s. economy. >> rorter: another encouraging sign today, a consumer satisfaction survey finds gm and ford enjoying some of their biggest gains. still, analysts say it's too early to celebrate. >> i wouldn't pop all the champagne corks just yet. >> reporter: en with today's increase, the company will build just over a million cars this year. down almost 40% from last year. analysts say the road to recovery may not be a smooth one. >> it's going to go in fits and starts and we're going to see rocky business before we come out of this, because it is so deep, and it's so pervasive. >> reporter: and some of the 1300 workers being reinstated could be back on the job as early this week. others who had been working four days a week are moving to five days a week. and none of those workers were complaining about not having their fridays off. they are welcoming the work. >> all right, sharyn alfonsi reporting on the

. >>> abc 2 news is brought to you by your hyundai dealers in baltimore. >>> now to your money and stocks returned to 2009 highs. ben bernanke saying the economy is nearing a recovery sent the stocks soaring. they gained more than 31, s & p closed up more than 1. t row price among the top performers. local stock closed up 2 1/3%. constellation energy took off to cap the week up more than 4%. and staving off bankruptcy, at least for the time being, sinclair broadcasting ended the day up 32 1/2%. >>> if you are looking to take advantage of the federal cash for clunkers program, in case you haven't heard, you better hurry. the government is letting the air out of this successful plan this coming monday. the program has brought thousands of people back into show rooms nation-wide. as consumers trade in gas- guysling cars for up to $4,500 for extra trade value. it's also sparked a production spike for several of the nation's big three auto makers. they say cash for clunkers has done wonders. >>> absolutely. i would say it is probably 20% of our business is through cash for clunkers so whoever

. >>> and 2 news is brought to you by your baltimore area hyundai dealers. >> there is your forecastomorrow. again, pop-up shower and thunderstorm activity with a high of 89, showers continue into saturday and then things clear up. >>> i know you have been to this party before. haven't you? >> whatever. >> no, i was never there. from food to music and more, tonight a celebration of the best charm city has to offer. and tonight abc 2 news anchor jamie costello is among them for baltimore magazine's best of baltimore party. jamie and could anchor megan kim bell were named best anchors, and best reporter. steve jessie explains why he looks forward to this party every year. i'll just paraphrase. he loved it. >> we got to go. >> right. this is more than my easy button. it's my "save-so-much-on- his-graphing-calculator... look. i made it say, "booger." ...i-can-get-him-a- math-tutor" button. (announcer) staples equals savings on everything for back to school. staples. that was easy. gathering dust, as pollen floats through the air. but with the strength of zyrtec ® , the fastest, 24-hour a

locally antwerpen hyundai is continuing to see new buyers flock to their showroom, looking to trade in their clunkers. the dealership says the program has been a huge draw with 200 cars traded in so far. in the past few hours they have seen an increase in customers hitting right at the end of their sales month. they hope the government keeps the program rung as long as possible. >> praying they keep it us, yes. this is a huge thing for us. it's excellent for consumers. cars are worth 45 one hundred for 4500. they're expecting more customers this weekend. >>> and speaking of cars, an important recall to tell you about tonight from honda. some 440,000 cars are being recalled due to a potentially deadly air bag defect. honda says the air bag inflaters can rupture because of too much air pressure, and that could cause metal fragments to shoot through the air bag and strike passengers. the recall covers certain 2001 and 2002 accords, 2001 civics, and some 2002 and 2003 acura tl sedans. >>> police in aberdeen are asking for your help tonight to figure out who struck and killed a man early th

hyundai has added protection in alabama.m has the biggest share of new car sales, detroit's big three has a little more than 45%, and the three japanese companies have about 36%. jon: all right. thank you. jane: if you drive a midsize sedan, a fender bender could put a big dinner in your wallet. they tested bumpers based on repairs at low-speed crashes, and the mazda 6 was the only car to get an acceptable rating, with repair cost averaging about $871. here is how the top midsize cars feared. all of the costs came in at over a thousand dollars. mitsubishi came in second, followed by honda, sunday, and the ford fusion. jon: watch that video. it is like, "stock, already! flying on both sides of the issue. and are hardball tactics over shadowing policy debates? a look at what is happening next. medicare. it doesn't cover everything. and what it doesn't cover can cost you some money. that's why you should consider... an aarp medicare supplement insurance plan... insured by united healthcare insurance company. it can help cover s

the 2009 honda accord and hyundai sonata and mazda 6 performed better than the 2007 models. >>> if you think you are saving money by not using your credit cards as much, some credit card companies are piling on inactivity fees to boost their income. fifth third bank, for example, is charging a $19 fee to borrowers who haven't used their account in a year. some credit card companies are piling on fees for purchases made outside the country. discover is charging a 2% fee for purchases made abroad. it's best to check with your credit card company to find out what new fees you may be responsible for. ♪ >>> 25cities, one winner and an invisible guitar. tomorrow performers from across the nation will compete in the usair guitar finals here in washington. we take a look at this wild and crazy competition that grows by leaps and bounds. >> reporter: it's one of the most anticipated music tours of the summer. the pageantry. groupies. adoring fans. there's one thing missing. the instrument. >> are we ready to rock? >> reporter: every summer usair guitar pulls competition from across the country.

as for south korea, decent days for hyundai. kia sells up 20%. hyundai, 30% on the year. cash-strapped automaker saying its shares really fell. >> thanks so much. we'll get auto numbers here. it will be a very big week for data with the monthly employment report due out on friday. a lot of folks watching the unemployment number on that. today at 10:00 a.m. new york time, construction data as well. auto sells probably start late in the morning. ford expected to its first gain in two years thanks to the cash for clunkers program which needs a senate vote to be extended. earnings before the bell, we'll be watching insurer lows on consumer products maker clorox and tyson foods. after the close, numbers from pulte homes, chesapeake energy and andarko petroleum. >>> coming up, as we mentioned, it's a very important week in terms of u.s. economic data. on friday, that jobs report for july is due out. before that, manufacturing data today. is the u.s. economy in recovery? announcer: some people buy a car based on the deal they get. others buy the car of their dreams. during the l

but hyundai motor up 3.1%. kia up 1.7%. remember, though, their sales have been performing a lot of they are peers even before this whole cash for clunkers program. now over to aneesh ya in mumbai. >> hey, ageal, thanks for that. it seems to be a quiet day for an interesting and volatile week. we're pretty much on even keel from what we saw at the beginning of the week. 4,500 has not been conquered in trade today. today we have seen auto bounce back in trade and real estate up, as well. net/net, it's been a quiet day of trade. volumes about 5% to 10% lower than what we've seen for the entire week. with that, i'll send things westward to matt. >> all right, aneesh kra. there will be things happening in jackson hole, wyoming. fed chairman ben bernanke will be giving that huge speech there about lessons he's learned from the financial crisis. existing home sales are forecast to rise 2.2% in july to a rate of 5 million homes. that would be a ten-month high. just a few earnings reports there, we're going to get numbers out from

in fact, hyundai's montgomery, alabama plant is back to a five-day work week after being on a four-day week since october, and ford is considering a production increase. the senate considered a handful of amendments. >> the program is good but should be appropriately targeted to americans with modest incomes. >> iowa senator tom harkin wanted income limits. john mccain didn't like adding to the deficit. >> we're spending $3 billion to subsidize car purchases from some of them from automotive companies that we own. >> and new hampshire republican judd gregg protested the use of money intended for energy efficiency. >> this is the ultimate bait and switch. >> but michigan democrat debbie stabenow wasn't buying any of it. >> my colleagues on the other side of the aisle who are constantly bashing the recovery package for not delivering immediate results should be jumping for joy. >> stabenow noted that any of the amendments would force a suspension of the clunkers program since it would mean the senate had passed a different version of the bill than the house and the house has adjourned fo

hyundai hired back me than 3,000 workers. >> the extreme heat is apparently to blame for sickening several high school athletes on maryland's eastern shore. a dozen football players a two coaches at kent island high they fell ill yesterday. the players were around 45 minutes into practice when several players complained of feeling ill, some of them collapsed. nobody was seriously hurt. officials think the illness was heat-related, but they are not ruling out any other causes. police have made an arrest now in the shooting last night in southeast d.c., and the suspect is actually one of the victims. police say two men were shot in the 1300 block of congress place just before 8:00 p.m. they were not seriously hurt, but one of those men is now behind bars. no word yet on what led up to that shooting. families of two of the victims of the virginia tech shooting say the university's counseling center missed critical warning signs. "the washington post" is reporting the families want former counseling director robert miller to admit he failed to properly monitor and trt sung huh cho. records rel

the insurance institute for highway safety rated the mazda 6 as acceptable, the honda accord and hyundai son fatah a marginal rate and the fusion and chevrolet malibu got poor ratings. bad pr just as the american automakers try to rebuild their businesses. >>> more budget cutting coming in the commovirginia governor y million will ha $to be trimmed, perhaps as much as io n.e thsts thstate is rilongwe riwe the re sfothghurtrait time. that's a record. the governor t acntexou amto tr bet ac amount to be cut stguau 19th and then announce specific cuts to state agencies and programs by labor day. >>> jessica doyle is off today but she has left us another big money-saving er os ffifr eremoy coact, ,co utilizing it could save you a lot money. hs a's allow familiesof all ages and incos toto de, vision es pens with pretax dollars. putty g nemoin the account and tapping it when you have expenses makes neur money go 25 farther. for more money-saving tips go to wusa9.com and click on living smart. >>> all right. are you ready for your ahh moment of the morning? take a look. a giant panda gave birth

hyundai hired more than 3,000. >> well, the extreme heat is apparently to blame for sickening several high school athletes on maryland's eastern shore. a fodozen otball players two coachesze coaches at kent island high school were hospitalized after they fell ill yesterday. the players were about 45 minutes into practice when several of the players complained of feeling ill, some of them collapsed. no one was seriously hurt. officials think the illnesses was heat-related, but they're not ruling out other causes. police are investigating a shooting last night in southeast d.c. police say two men were shot in the 1300 block of congress place before 8:00 p.m. they were taken to the hospital. no word on their conditions, and police are now looking for the shooter. on to virginia now, where police are in dumfries and are investigating after a man and woman were found dead inside their home. police found the bodies of a 52-year-old man and 57-year-old woman around 9:00 lasts night in a townhouse. neighbors say the couple lived there foremore than 13 years, but had fallen on hard times and w

toyota, honda, ford focus, toyota and hyundai. what do you make of that? from our statistics people are buying them in equal numbers. even if they don't have a clunker to trade in they're going into the show room. you're going to see real strong sales figures. >> and we can say a government program has worked, can we not? >> absolutely. this worked and it's going to get the economy moving. >> and there was no government takeover at all. >> the benefits aren't just limited to the car companies. let me bring in leo gerard. what's the ripple effect. has it been so positive they should stimulate this? what do you think? >> there's now 2,200 of the auto workers and they're going to bring people back this week. a steal mill reopened in pittsburgh. one of the steel mills reopened. our glass plants are coming back to work to make glass for the automobiles. some of our smaller auto parts plants are getting work out of this. this has been a terrific program. i think the program show been geared to the big three. these tax dollars shouldn't be subs dpiez dooizing for

. >> reporter: part of the reason they opted for a hyundai accent may have something to do with the cashclunker deal. they are buying a new toyota corolla but because their chrysler is heading to the scrap yard it will be one less used car on the market. >> did it go as a cash for clunker. >> it did. >> it is a supply and demand thing. people have been bringing in cars for the cash for clunkers program and it is not available to the marketplace. >> reporter: every vehicle that has writing on the windshield will be taken out and recycled. he said two weeks ago there were only 200 car on the lot and since then another 500. they will all be taken out of circulation. >> it has taken a while to absorb it. i didn't think i was coming home with a new car. >> we do 100 deals in a day normally. half of them have a trade in. now 20% have trade ins. andrew stack, 9 news now and wusa9.com. >>> we say good morning to kim on her favorite day of the week. >> it is but i have been set back with allergies. we talked about this. show you what one of the problems ises is. i will tell you why, look at this

of the top ten, foreign models, top five being the control la, civic, ford focus, toyota camry -- hyundai ee lan tra. >> we're seeing so much paperwork that has to go to washington from dealerships because they have to, you know, clearly show that the vehicle is gone, that it's not going to be recycled. that takes a lot of paperwork. they need to add people before the money can start flowing out of washington. they think by the end of the week the rebate checks will start going out. phil, thanks very much. as part of our future, automotively speaking, electric cars are crucial. to make electric car batteries it could fuel another commodity boom. they haven't quite figured out how to use some of these batteries perfectly in cars. we still have some issues on the explosivety side but it's going to be a crucial component. ceo, good to have you with us sir. it's amazing, we started this discussion a few weeks ago. you don't need a lot of lithium to make a battery, but you do need lithium to make a battery? >> that is correct. good to be here, thank you for inviting me. you do require lithium

hyundai's alabama montgomery plant is back on a five day workweek. four days since october. they love the clunkers program in michigan. >> this is a program that's been working. consumers believe it's working. small business people believe it's working. people who make steel and aluminum and advertises and everyone who is involved in the larger economic impact of the auto industry believes that it is working. and that's why we need to pass this. >> majority leader harry reid is confident they will pass the bill. reject all the amendments. so far the senators have said no to four. three more to go. shepard? shepard: wendell goler live at the white house. thanks. the housing crisis now and a dire prediction. almost half of all americans with mortgages, almost half will eventually owe more on their loans than their homes are worth. deutsche bank estimates now it will happen by the start of the year 2011. that's 25 million american homeowners under water on their loans. 48% of all families with mortgages, imagine that being under water. makes it a lot more difficult for borrower

south korea, the hyundai employee says only that is he happy to be returned safely authorities in pyongyangd him up for n. march for denouncing the regime. they remained at war because they did not sign a peace treaty to end the korean conflict in the 1950s. the release comes on the heels of former president's bill clinton's trip to north korea to free two u.s. journalists who had been taken captive by the inningens. taiwan, pressure is building on the government to speed up rescue efforts from last weekend's devastate typhoon. the military sending thousands more troops to help in the hard hit areas. hundreds of people still stranded by the storm damage. more than 100 people confirmed dead. israel, these folks are keeping watch for a mermaid. for real. the town of kiryat is offering a million dollars for proof. a city hall spokesman says several people claim they have seen a mermaid off the beach but no one has offered a picture. united kingdom. the first asian lions born at the london zoo in a decade making their first public outing. the cubs almost two and a half months old. the zoo logic

they are the toyota corolla, honda civic, ford focus, the lone american car there, toyota camry, hyundaiit doesn't mean these aren't american car companies that these carmakers are the losers, right? what is in it for the u.s.? >> well, actually, a lot of of the cars, about 80% of the toyota, for example shlg these days have a good chance of being made or put together, parts of it put together in the u.s. it's not necessarily true that the u.s. workers are losing in this case. there is sort of a win-win. it is bringing workers back in some cases, and it will take a little bit to even out to see how long this will be sustainable. that's the big question going forward. >> yeah. heads up with the washington post. dana, thanks so much. >> thanks for having me. >>> a malaysian woman is asking her severe punishment for drinking beer being made public. the woman who was set to be kaned next week is asking the flogging take place out in the open. it's usually done in a closed prison, but she says she wants to be seen in public to bring attention to this harsh treatment. she was caught drinking b

honda, toyota and hyundai report increased sales.ford just increased its sales forecast by 500,000 vehicles. >> the demand did take us by surprise. not so much the amount but how quickly people came to ford. >> reporter: dealers are busy but many are also waiting for government reimbursement. >> right now probably only 4% of the approved deals have actually seen checks back from the government. >> reporter: one north carolina dealership is owed more than $22,000 in clunkers checks. >> we did legitimate deals and we got 136-page rulebook and we followed your rules and you won't live up to paying us our money. >> reporter: "cash for clunkers" went through nearly $1 billion in its first week. but car web site edmonds.com says the number of buyers are waning. down 15% from the program's peak. emily schmidt, abc news, washington. >>> how long do you expect to live? hopefully it's until 10:00 at least because we have a lot of good stuff so tell you about. we're living longer these days but are you keeping yourself in tip top shape? >>> doc

you look at the hyundai genesis, the buick lacrosse. go look at the buick lacrosse it's beautiful.us, they have new cars coming out, they're more fuel efficient than the ones they do have. people will get in the show rooms and see the new cars they haven't seen before. >> we always love your advice. thank you so much for you. lou ann hammond, good to see you. >>> new this morning, president obama talking about the economic stimulus. and he says the report released this week shows it's working. >> in the last few months, the economy has done measurably better than expected. and many economists suggest that part of this progress is directly attributable to the recovery act. this and the other difficult but important steps that we take over the last six months have helped put the breaks on this recession. >> but an nbc news/"wall street journal" poll shows americans are becoming less satisfied with the president's handling of the economy. 49% of americans approve of the job the president's doing. but that is a six-point drop from his 55% approval on this issue back in april. i'm joine

and rick desilva is the owner of liberty hyundai and liberty sub rue in new jersey.e, rick. you know, you go from feast to famine as they say. but give us your perspective on this. a lot of other bad things certainly that you could be dealing with. >> yeah, we look at it as good stress actually is what we look at that problem. but, yeah, we are running out of cars. there's been a lot of activity on the showroom floor. that settled down a little bit coming into today. but up to this point, it's been pretty brisk. we've had a lot of activity. >> certainly when we saw from the numbers the early numbers showed most people were interested in buying foreign made cars for fuel efficiency reasons. but that were you at all caught off guard? what do you do? do you give someone an iou? how do you handle it? >> we kept up with the pace. but it hasn't only been international name plates. the domestic dealers also have been very successful in bringing people in. they have a lot of cars, too, that fall within the parameters of the program. so consequentli, they have been selling a

terms of clunker sales, it got the most percentage of sales, 19.4%, followed by gm, ford, honda and hyundai. larry, the transportation secretary called cash for clunkers wildly successful. and i think most people in the auto industry would agree. again, 690,000 clunkers taken off the road. larry? >> phil, it was the only kainsian program i've ever supported in my life. phil lebeau, thank you ever so much. i'm waiting for cash for refrigerators. anyway, in addition to the strong new home sales report that diana discussed, durable goods reported their biggest gain in two years, boosted by a surge in aircraft orders. so where are we in the economic recovery story? let's bring in stu hoffman, chief economist, pnc financial, and steve rijuto, at mizuho securities, and diana olick is with us. stu hoffman, is the recovery story now coming in faster and stronger thanl folks would have expected? >> in some cases, it is, larry. a little stronger. but it's only one month. i would read it as, you know, we -- this is a clear sign the recession is over. this t-rex of a recession we had is over. we're beg

joins chrysler, ford, toyota, honda and hyundai in announcing production increases related to the clunkersincentives. how a marriage proposal has one state legislator in trouble with the police and trying to make it safe to votent in afghanistan next. fancy feast appetizers. simple high quality ingredients like wild alaskan salmon white meat chicken, or seabass and shrimp in a delicate broth prepared without by-products or fillers. new fancy feast appetizers. celebrate the moment. bret: a roadside bomb in eastern afghanistan killed two american troops and wounded three others today. a taliban suicide bomber hit a nato convoy just outside the afghan capital of kabul killing eight people n kabul, two mortar rounds struck near the presidential palace. correspondent greg palkot reports on the growing danger as the country's elections go nearer. >> high alert on the streets of kabul with presidential elections just two days ago taliban efforts to blow up that vote revving up. a suicide car bomb blast on the outskirts of kabul was one of several recent incidents. rockets hit the grounds of the p

97, seattle just 68 up there. 86 for sent a louis, 88 omaha, 89 in fargo, 90 from new york and a hyundai from dallas. that's what the kids say. >> oh! >> 90-year-old marty had been locally blind for a couple years but now he's seeing clearly again. marty collapsed after having a disy spell a faux days ago, when doctors sent him home from the ca, hfs vision was supposed to only get worse. >> mafty says he's looking for a night clirl. but she didn't meet the age requirement. doesn't want any spring chicken. frjts no. >> ♪ gone are the dark clouds that had my blind ♪ >> marine experts in south florida are trying to find out why a mother whale swam toward shallow waters with her calf and died. >> the coordinator for the national marine fishery services says the calf would not have surprised. >> very sad story. >> as president obama hosts a town hall meeting in new hampshire today, he could be separating trial accept raeting a -- as kate snow discovereds it centers around miscommunication. >> >> the accusations are inflammatory. >> 00 picher told his program the final solution. i wonder what'

and 5, the hyundai elan that. take it away, guys. brian: those are the new cars.s we did make top five on the clunker list. broinel brian if you are a dlunker on you are on ever to this list. the clunkers that have been turned in and crushed. ford explorer, 4 yield drive. number two f-150. two wheel drive it's a ford. jip grand cherokee, back to the explorer the two wheel dive now. the dodge cir van is nun 5 frm unless, you are a fus salesperson thunderstorm at this point who runs a hyundai. >> got new japanese cars on the road. still american companies have seen a big boone here it may be a brief one but toyota the big winner here. 41% japanese 38% to the big three. this they step saw inspection of dollars. gretchen: what kind of drop off is going to happen now? dave: you have consumers are going to be paying more money for cars in the short-term. so inver toreshas dleard out the. >> un. brian: a lot of people going to buy them anyway if i buy them now i get $4,500. we essentially get people to pay foreign cars and crush measure cars. >> a long that that says kid

however, the key is the hyundais, the hondas and stuff like that, those are the cars that are selling. so, good job, you're selling -- congress, you're selling a lot of foreign cars. gretchen: are you surprised that was the outcome? not to mention the paperwork you have to go through just for one of these transactions. the directions for each dealer, 136 pages. talk about saving the environment. are you kidding me? peter: i understand the global economy, bunt i would have thought somebody would have come up with the idea that it would be a greater buyout for american cars. didn't happen. steve: take a look at the cover of the "the new york post" today. "silence is goldman" that particular esteemed firm in wall street reported a $2.3 billion second quarter profit. they have made a speedy recovery from the global meltdown. and, of course, there have been a number of -- they've gotten kind of a p.r. black eye. take a look at that. ever since the meltdown, they've gone up, up and away. how is that possible? well, now the boss there is saying, hey, let's not look like we're doing really we

we are buying lots of kias and hyundais. bill: how the world turns.hey are assuming or they're hoping that the government comes through with the reimbursement check. some of these dealerships are on the hook for $500,000. are they going to get the money? >> the dealers are confident that the senate will extend the program with an additional $2 billion. if it does not go through, i would not be at all surprised that the obama administration will say, we will give you it on an emergency basis. somehow or other, they could because the $2 billion will come either from the stimulus program -- it could come from the tarp program. it is supposed to come from the stimulus program. i am an american taxpayer. bill: thank you. have a question that you want answered? there's an empty chair to my left. megyn: we are getting a lot of e-mail. this one is from pat in washington. she says, when i reach 65, i will not be talking to any government person about this issue. if anyone tries to make me, they will only have one chance and they better make it count. thank you

hyundai motor with the biggest gains up nearly 12% on the month of july. on that note, back to the u.s. bertha, good morning. >> good morning, adam. here in the u.s., we have a couple of key data points on tap. we'll get personal income and spending figures at 8:30 a.m. income is expected to have dropped by 1.2%. spending is expected to increase by 0.3%. the core pce is estimated to come in at 0.2%. then at 10:00, we're going to get the national association of realtors june pending home sales index expected to have risk by 0.5%. the senate banking committee is holding a hearing around 9:30 a.m. new york time. sheila bair, dan squaw rill low are expected to testify. on the earnings front, we'll get numbers from cvs caremark, dr horton and marvell entertainment, the guys that put together spider-man and x-men. after the bell we'll hear from kraft foods and electronic arts. coming up, the s&p closing above 1,000 for the first time since last november. >>> it's about half past the hour. here are the top business stories from around the world. in the u.s., tim