the chief operating officer of micron, he's the president of micron technology. and he has been there a long time. he joined the company back in 1984. he has risen through the ranks. so if mark dirken is promoted on a full-time basis as ceo, he's clearly somebody who knows the company, herb, inside and out. he's been there a long, long time. nearly 30 years. we don't know if he is going to be elevated to the ceo position, but he's been there a long time. he's the current president, current chief operating officer. so micron with a solid leadership community. i believe jon fortt -- jon, you there? >> i'll just note that the company announced a couple weeks ago that mark dirken would be retiring at the end of august. >> there you go. >> we don't know why that is exactly. i'm trying to look at this release quickly and see if they noted a reason. i don't believe they did. they said he is retiring and not leaving for another position. we'll have to see if he can be convinced to stay under the circumstances. but, you know, there is a bit uncertainty about what the comp

the deal totals $600 million and has micron supplying flash memory chips to intel. demand for those chips is growing as they're used in thumb drives, smartphones and even replacing hard drives in some laptops. micron was the hottest tech stock in the s&p 500 with its almost 4% gain. volume almost tripled. shares are at their highest price since june. analysts say the deal gives micron more capacity to make chips with higher profit margins. market sentiment may have been helped out by a drop in oil prices. crude oil fell about $2 per barrel, settling at $106.50. oil began this month just below $100 and is up 7% since february 1. we have a technical look at the oil rally under the blogs tab on our web site, www.nbr.com, and the analysis calls for prices to continue climb. for-profit education stocks were under significant pressure today. career education fell almost 19%. it saw fewer new students sign up last quarter, contributing to worries about growth. apollo group shed 16%. apollo cut its forecast for new students, pointing to an improving job market and more comp

. >> susie: a tragic day at micron technology. the company's c.e.o., steve appleton, was killed in the crash of an experimental plane in boise, idaho, this morning. he was 51 years old and an avid pilot. appleton was elected chairman and c.e.o. of the memory chip maker in 1994. just last week, micron's second in command, president mark durcan, announced plans to retire at the end of august. no word yet from the micron board if those plans will change. >> tom: just how much of a haircut holders of greek debt will be forced to take is still up in the air. a deal was expected earlier this week. negotiations will continue over the weekend over how much bondholders could lose. the current deal on the table has private investors taking a loss of more than 70% on their greek bonds. greece could default next month unless it cuts its debt by 100 billion euros. today's jobs report is further evidence the economy is building strength, and investors are starting to notice, according to our friday "market monitor." marshall front is the chairm

trading in micron stocks has been halted on wall street. he was 51. >>> a hiring surge in january pushed the unemployment rate back to its lowest level in three years. according to the labor department, employers added 243,000 jobs last month. that dropped the unemployment rate down to 8.3%, and that's the lowest it's been since february of 2009. it was also the fifth straight month that the rate has fallen, and this is the first time that has happened since late 1994. >>> the unemployment rate is just a little above what it was when obama took office in 2008. even with the gains the job market faces a long way back to full health. this morning the president said there are still far too many americans who need a job or need a job that pays better than the one they have now. >> the economy is growing stronger. recovery is speeding up. we've got to do everything in our power to keep it going. >> there's still 12.8 million people out of work, the fewest since the recession ended almost three years ago. >>> more good economic news. according to

how about micron technologies? a very sad day. we're up almost p% year to date on the s&p 500. >> the nasdaq was up 8%. now we're attacking another 3%. technology is hot, huh? >> new highs right on the nasdaq. far, far short about where we were ten years ago. >> you having a super bowl party? >> invite me, will you? >> all right. see you later. thank you. have a good weekend. let's take a closer look at the market milestones. >> a stricter fiscal discipline plan. the us and jeremy in the month of january and the three manufacturing super powers drove gains helping the markets close with gains. that's where we close on wednesday. it was today's data. the rate dropping to a three year low. that helped the dow close at its highest level in 3 and a half years. >> it was technology. strong gains field from the likes of kwal come and the smaller thing called facebook. the nasdaq closed up 11.5%. a quick stat. the most we have actually seen since last year's valentine's day. how about that. >> how about that? and we're approaching valent

reminder we are waiting for news from micron halted.here might be a three-way tie-up with one of their rivals in taiwan and japan. some denials there but still waiting to see what comes through. up next, football and the markets. our annual super bowl financial quiz. >> and since this is "power lunch," as we head to the break, check out some staggering foot stats. this is how much we're going to eat on super bowl sunday. more than 4 million pizza pies, 100 million pounds of chicken wings, 43 million pounds of t tortilla chips, and 7 million pounds of guacamole. that's just tyler. o glad to get. just to be able to wake up in the morning on your own. that's a big accomplishment to me. i don't know how much money i need. but i know that whatever i have that's what i'm going to live within. ♪ ♪ >>> the countdown to the super bowl rematch between the pats and the giants is on, of course. but before they battle it out on the field, our darren rovell catches up with players in indianapolis to see whether they know their current events as well

micron is the last u.s. maker of dynamic random access memory chips. while the overall energy sector cooled a little bit today we did see some buying in a giant oil driller and a master limited partnership were hot. driller trans-ocean rallied 5%. it reported a loss last quarter related to the 2010 gulf of mexico oil spill, indicating a possible settlement in the case. cheniere energy partners, the master limited partnership focused on liquefied natural gas jumped to a new 52 week high up 12%. private equity firm blackstone is investing $2 billion to help the firm build a liquefied nat gas plant in louisiana. a lot of the commodity market focus has been on energy lately, but today soybeans took the lead. "beans in the teens" is the old saying at the chicago board of trade and we're there for the first time since last fall. beans jumped above $13 a bushel today for the first time in five months. the markets thinks the south american harvest will be disappointing, while global demand for beans continues growing. and that's tonight's market focus. >> susi

. >> micron technology ceo killed in a plane crashn.he death means for the bay area chip maker. >>> and a couple pleads guilty to a 20 million-dollar mortgage fraud scheme that we first told you about in 2008. what they say their daughter says turned her into a victim. ♪ [ male announcer ] no one just hands you the title, most advanced technology in its class. it needs to be earned. earned with smartbeam head lamps. earned with vented temperature control seats. earned with an 8.4-inch touch screen. and if you're driving one, you know what it means to earn something. ♪ . >>> we are inside a bank of america where struggling homeowners demanning relief. the reason they say it's obvious only the beginning. > >> the ceo of a chip maker dies in a plane crash. the mark left by steve applton. >> complete bay area news coverage starts right now. this is ktvu channel 2news at six. >> good evening. >> silicon valley is in shock after a pioneer was killed in a plane crash earlier today. robert honda is live with the legacy of steve appleton. >> rep

indell to buy chips from micron technology sending the s semiconductor index higher overall. on the downside, dreamworks tumbled in trade after a weak forecast after the bell. cable vision saw its stock slide 10% after reporting an increase in capital last quarter. lending has picked up at u.s. banks with financial institutions posting their biggest quarterly lending increase in four years. finally, tired of hunting around for your keys or your glasses in the morning? no problem for you. this little red and white robot will find them for you. that's right. thanks to a wealth of artificial intelligence and two on-board cameras, the mobile robot can identify objects, guide you to them and even recognize human faces. a little scary for some, perhaps. >>> the bucks slip past the wizards and the nets stun the mavericks. plus the celtics snap a five-game skid in cleveland. your early morning sports headlines are straight ahead. >>> in weather i'll have an update on the major winter storm bringing storms to many areas of the country. your forecast is coming up. you're watching "earl

micron has a sizable facility in san jose.ppleton is a former professional stunt pilot. >>> voters head to the polls for nevada's caucuses. a confident mitt romney expects to win today's contest. his rival, chief rival, of course, is newt gingrich and he's bracing for defeat. this morning, romney plans to go to colorado for a campaign rally before returning to las vegas for a party with supporters at a casino. in a sign that he doesn't expect to win, gingrich plans a simple statement instead of the event after the voting is closed. >>> mass protests are set for today in san francisco and across the country to demand no war in iran. more than 60 groups will take part in this and they are also calling for no u.s. israeli aggression against iran. they will rally at noon and a march will follow through downtown san francisco. >>> still more ahead on "today in the bay." coming up, help for struggling home owners. where you can get a free financial help workshop from a counselor. talk to a counselor and possibly lower your rate. >>>

the deal calls for micron to supply chips to intel. move, take a look as shanghai listed sina corporation, their twitter service, weibo, will boost the second half. and priceline delivering an upbeat q1 guidance. the stock outperforming in today's trading session. >>> time is the biggest ally when it comes to retirement savings. if you're part of a growing population that needs to catch up, postponing your retirement by just three years may be the easiway to go. sharon epperson takes a deep dive on the ways to catch up. i'm listening, sharon. >> all right, sue. the h.r. consulting firm towers watson did a survey and found that 39% of workers plan to delay retirement. now, the findings in this survey mirrored what we found when we talked to a roundtable of financial experts. that is, for those delaying retirement, they plan to work an extra three years. >> if you have a job. i think part of this we need to recognize, for the boomer today that's 55 or over, they're not receiving any income appreciation whatsoever. b, they're at serious r

the ceo of san jose-based micron has died in a small crash. the semi conductor company said steve appleton was killed when his single-engine plane went down at the boise airport this morning. he was the only one on board. it is not clear what caused this crash. he was a professional stunt plane pilot. he was 51. >>> a major women's health organization has made an about- face on a funding decision that has drawn criticism. the susan g. komen for the cure foundation said today it will restore funding to planned parenthood. anne makovec on why komen says it's reversed its decision. she joins us here in san francisco. anne. >> reporter: that is after the controversy went viral over the last three days. the national chapter of the komen foundation sent out a strong statement this morning. >> we want to apologize to the american public for recent decisions that cast doubt upon our commitment to our mission of saving women's lives. those words from the founder of the susan g. komen foundation. >> our initial reaction is wow. this is terrific. >> repo

a tragic day for memory chip maker micron technology. c.e.o. steve appleton died in a small plane crash in idaho. monday, after losing the most jobs during the recession, more men are getting jobs. for more financial news, tune in to "nightly business report" weeknights on this public television station.

sent a statement expressing sympathy to the family and saying his passion and energy left a mark on micron the idaho community and the technology industry. >> their company is a manufacturing iconn. a time when everybody is griping about outsourcing he was a hero. he -- really big guy. he will be missed. >> reporter: trading of stock was halted when the death was confirmed. the safety board is investigating the crash. >> a surge in hiring pushed the dow to its highest levels since the crisis started. the dow gained 157 points and the nasdaq gained 46 points. tom joins us with the good news on the job front and the reason california is lagging behind. >> reporter: what a lag it is. here is the problem. let's just take a look. what we have here is the united states blown unemployment rate at 8.3. california is at 11.1. way higher than the national average. that is just numbers. let's look at the number of people we are talking about in the united states, 1.8 million people but look at this. one out of six right here in california. so what is the pulse of the golden state? >> we did see throu

. >>> shares of micron technology leveled after its rival filed for bankruptcy protection.was japan's last maker of dynamic random access memory, or d-ram chips. the bankruptcy puts micron in a stronger position. >>> california is expected to reap $2.5 billion in taxes from the facebook ipo. that's according to the nonpartisan legislative analyst office who says most of that money will come from capital gains tax. >>> finally tonight, socialist presidential candidate francois holland says top earns will be taxed 55% if he is elected. critics say it will spark. >> god bless for that. and 75% tax rates in france. oh my god. frankly, i hope the socialist loses. thank you. jonathan dienst. coming up on "kudlow," more bloodshed in afghanistan today. a suicide bomber kills nine people in a military airport. is it time for the u.s. to get out of afghanistan? four-star general barry mccaffrey joins us with his wisdom. all energy development comes with some risk, but proven technologies allow natural gas producers to supply affordable, cleaner energy, while protecting our environmen

the semiconductor company is based in idaho but has a facility in silicon valley at micron. >>> the economy is making gains against unemployment. new numbers today show the jobless rate nationally fell 208.3%. that is the lowest level in three years. more than 240,000 jobs were added in january. that jobs report helped american markets close at their highest level in years. the dow hit its highest mark since may 2008. the nasdaq saw its best closing in 11 years. >>> president obama pushed for veterans jobs programs while spending the day with firefighters in arlington, virginia. he wants federal help for communities that recruit veterans and connect them with jobs. >>> san jose state lands the biggest grant in university history. and a chance to help nasa advance space missions. it's a $73.3 million grant to work with nasa ames research center in mountain view. during the five-year project, they will be looking for ways to improve the safety and efficiency of air and space travel. >>> people in the east bay are mad. they aren't going to take it anymore. tomorrow, they will protest to demand

chip maker micron technology and also plans to move part of its production in japan to taiwan. the japanese government injected public funds into the company three years ago. that was when its business got worse following the collapse of lehman brothers. the chips are essential for digital equipment. >>> japan's government is gearing up for negotiations with the united states on joining the transpacific partnership free trade agreement. negotiations with tpp members began in january. japan has secured support for 4 out of the 9 countries involved. japan will send officials from ministries and agencies to washington for the u.s. negotiations, which start next tuesday. they'll start preparing for preliminary talks on the conditions for japan's participation in the tpp free trade negotiations. the u.s. government is likely to push for a further opening of japan's agricultural and automobile industries with precise requests. japan will decide whether to join the negotiations after assessing how the tpp will affect domestic markets. discussions will likely be a major focus on the fi

the statement expressing apple ton's family and saying steve's passion and energy left a mark on micron. the idaho community and the technology industry at large. >> k rogers agrees. >> at a time when everybody is talking about out source and he was a hero. he's -- he's going to be missed. >> so early to discuss publicly what will happen next in terms of leadership. the safety board is investigating the crash. robert hon do, ktvu channel 2 news. >>> a mother was sentenced to 10 years probation today in fiery death of three young children and her niece. 25-year-old james was convicted of voluntary manslaughter in the deaths of the four children ranging in age of 1-4-years old. firefighter say that the candle caught on fire in april of 2010. her sister had gone outside leaving the children unattended. >>> she pleaded guilty today. schaeffer was the man convicted of 2009 killing of 9-year-old melody during a drunk driving incident. in return for the guilty plea suzanne received a life in prison without the possibility of parole, but it does spare him the death penalty. >>> today guilty ple

micron technology higher as well by almost 8%. competitive memory filed for bankruptcy, so micron now in a stronger position. and whirlpool also up more than 6.5%. could be getting a bounce off of the good housing data. on the downside, alpha natural resources lower by 4.3%. citi and barclays cut the price target. moody's cut its outlook as well. quicksilver resources down on an 85% drop and fourth kwartder earnings down about 5.2%. and netflix cut to underperform by raymond james. for now let's head to bob pisani on the floor of the new york stock exchange. he's got many more movers to come, bob. >> and our new platform right here on the floor. important thing about today all the major indices are essentially sitting right near multi-year highs. two events happened throughout the day that i think moved stocks. first look around 10:00. that's when the new home sales numbers -- or excuse me january pending home sales numbers, those are contracts not closings, they came out a little better than expected. then right here we saw the g

the chairman of micron technology was killed when the plane he was flying crashed in a boise, idaho airport. he was 51 years old. they are a chip maker in idaho, but have a sizability facility in san jose. they he is a former stunt pilot. >> the superintendent of the district was a subject of a criminal investigation. superintendent tim ham efforty resigned following the revelation at the district attorney's office and has been investigating with handling money and during the time he was at neighboring wood side elementary school district. >> we discovered irregularities and acted to make sure we understood them and upon the advice of legal council handed it over to the district attorney's office. we wanted to be as clear as transparent as we are able to be. >> the office is not saying what if any charges will be filed. >> timing is everything and for one pair of thieves it turned into a gold rush. >> it was suspicious. >> he was right. a firefighter was responding to a call for help ends up recovering his own stolen property. >> see all the players and get their autographs. >> sorry that b

chipmaker micron technology. it also plans to move part of its production at its leading plant in japan to taiwan. the japanese government injected public funds into mill pita five years ago. dram chips are essential for digital equipment. japan's government is gearing up for negotiations with the united states on joining the transpacific partnership free trade agreement. negotiations with january and japan secured support from four of the nine countries involved including vietnam and brunei. japan will send senior officials from other agencies to washington for the u.s. negotiations which start next tuesday. >> they'll start preparing for preliminary talks on the conditions for japan's participation in the tpp free trade negotiations. the u.s. government is likely to push for a further opening on japan's agricultural and automobile industries with precise requests. japan will decide whether to join the negotiations after assessing how the tpp will affect domestic markets. discussions with the u.s. will likely be

. >>> bay area based company micron today named a new ceo.mark durcan was named to lead the company. the announcement is aimed at calming investor worries after long time chairman steve appleton died when his experimental plane crashed. >>> ktvu's patti lee tells us a hospital in san francisco has called off a surgery because of the man's immigration status. >> reporter: jesus navarro slowly dying from kidney failure fears that he will not see his little girl grow up. >> i had my insurance, i had work, i had everything. >> reporter: after 6-1/2 years to the kidney transplant list he made it to the stop, only to find out the surgery would not be possible because of the long term care. $400 since this website went live last thursday. >> he's paid his taxes, he waited his time on the list, he did everything he was supposed to do. >> reporter: advocate donald kagan says ucsf should perform the surgery because it's the right thing to do. but usf says that they do not make a decision on immigration status. but because there's such a shortage of org

the ceo of micron and a professional stunt pilot. he was killed this morning when the e permanental plane crashed in the boys year airport. he was the only one on board, suffering injuries in a crash eight years ago. flags at company headquarters lowered today and trading halted on wall street. >> authorities today released surveillance video of a $3 kblinl gold heist at county court house. two men can be seen in the right of the screen prying open a display case, taking gold nuggets. both suspects wearing gray hoods but investigators describe hem as white men, about 25 years of age and believe burglars entered wednesday morning through an open door and it's a lot. >> the former police commander at the center of a drug scandal is about to tell his story to dr. phil, he was indicted on drug and corruption charges and is now free on $100,000 bail, given permission to travel to los angeles and his attorney tells the times that he mans to appear on the dr. phil show in, the words, urging other cops under stress. >> and tonight and at 6:3

. >> micron is one of the world's leading semi conductor companies.'s based in idaho and has an office in san jose. the company says it's too soon to know what will happen next in terms of leadership. >>> occupy protesters and oakland police are gearing up for saturday's weekly protest and march and there are already threats of violence. ktvu's amber lee is live and some people are calling tomorrow night's assembly a militant action. >> julie, tonight we spoke with several occupy oakland protester here at frank ogawa plaza. they told us they plan to participate in the planned march tomorrow night which will start here. on the occupy oakland website there's a plan to start at 7:00 saturday night. it says quote it is not a march intended for people who are not fully comfortable with diversity of tactics. >> we support the violence and vandalism? >> i'm an that are -- a anarchy so i support solidarity. >> we are monitoring events and putting the necessary measures into play. >> wow. >> reporter: we showed a couple to oakland real estate director, his off

. >> micron is one of the world's leading semi conductor companies.it's based in idaho and has an office in san jose. the company says it's too soon to know what will happen next in terms of leadership. >>> occupy protesters and oakland police are gearing up for saturday's weekly protest and march and there are already threats of violence. ktvu's amber lee is live and some people are calling tomorrow night's assembly a militant action. >> julie, tonight we spoke with several occupy oakland protester here at frank ogawa plaza. they told us they plan to participate in the planned march tomorrow night which will start here. on the occupy oakland website there's a plan to start at 7:00 saturday night. it says quote it is not a march intended for people who are not fully comfortable with diversity of tactics. >> we support the violence and vandalism? >> i'm an that are -- a anarchy so i support solidarity. >> we are monitoring events and putting the necessary measures into play. >> wow. >> reporter: we showed a couple to oakland real estate director, his o

. >> micron chairman and ceo steve appleton died when a plane crashed.was in idaho and at the controls. the national transportation safety board says he was making his second try at taking off when the plane banked, rolled and went down. appleton was a sky diver and raced motorcycles. as you can see from this video he was also a fan of all kinds of extreme sports. and survived crash of another plane back in 2004. the president and coo will take charge until a successor is named. >> today, it's panna sonic. company doubled it's forecast. panna sonic is the latest japanese company to predict weaker earnings and the president is cutting jobs as he tries to trance form focus on solar panels andy chargeable batteries. >> and there were stocked surged amid a much better than expected jobs report. unemployment now at 8.3%. the best in three years. and your bloomberg index high yes, all members closing up more than 1%. net flix is testing out a strategy pro, dusing original programming to lure customers in. lilly hammer produced by a norwegian company and picked

micron upgraded this morning, amd. seagate has been up the most.f that one gives up the ghost, i'm going to give it up. >> "squawk on the street" back in a moment. what if you had thl night-vision goggles, like in a special ops mission? you'd spot movement, gather intelligence with minimal collateral damage. but rather than neutralizing enemies in their sleep, you'd be targeting stocks to trade. well, that's what trade architect's heat maps do. they make you a trading assassin. trade architect. td ameritrade's empowering, web-based trading platform. trade commission-free for 60 days, and we'll throw in up to $600 when you open an account. want to protect the house. for 60 days, right. but... home security systems can be really expensive. so to save money, we actually just adopted a rescue panther. i think i'm goin-... shhh! we find that we don't need to sleep that much. there's an easier way to save. geico. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more. ♪ >>> "squawk on the street" live from the financial capital of the world. opening bell

micron jumped more than 7.5%. this is the world's fourth largest chip maker and may be looking to buy one or more of elpida's manufacturing plants of course at a discount. the creditors of elpida can minimize loss. >>> thanks for joining us on the demise of elpida. nina, the japanese invented the ram technology. as we've seen with other technology they've invented, it's been overtaken by other countries. the taiwanese threw the chip makers out of the water. it's a depressing scene in japan. with the rising yen, that makes it even harder. >> yeah. companies like for instance, sony, liolympus, toyota. in the headlines for all the wrong reasons, the companies that we grew up with as leaders in the world of technology. >>> coming up next, we'll be talking about ancient history, sunken treasure, half a billion dollars worth of it at the bottom of the sea. we'll tell you how it got there and whose pockets it's going into. that's just ahead here on cnn. [ male announcer ] what if you had thermal night-vision goggles, lik

. >> san jose based semi conductor company micron named a new chief executive, 51-year- old mark durkin, to now lead the company. just last week he announced he would retire in august. the quick move is intended to calm worries after steve appleton died when his plane crashed in idaho on friday. >> at least 30 people including five women and children were killed in new violence knead syria. the blood shed after a deadly day yesterday whereas many as 200 were killed in the city of holmes. during a visit to bulgaria the secretary of state blasted russia and china who locked a vote calling for the leader of syria to step down. >> what happened yesterday at the united nations was a travesty. those countries that refused to support the arab league plan bear full responsibility for protecting the brutal regime. >> reporter: according to the united nations more than 5400 people have died since last march when rebels started rising up. there is a fear that the turmoil could turn into a all out civil war. >> the growing outrage and frustration with yesterday's veto decision could be seen today i

micron is up 9%. netflix, some traders love it, some hate it. up more than 3%.bullish today. >> thanks so much. rick santelli in chicago. over to you, rick. >> we've had a lot of false starts today. we had weak day in the form of durables in housing, very strong data in the form of confidence in richmond fed. throw in the wild headline that came out arndt 10:00 eastern regarding the referendum vote in ireland, the ten-year had a lot of volatility. we were below 19 # 0, now in the low price of the day, a little above 19 # 3, up one basis point on the day. how does this stack up with our foreign ten-year notes. you can see our chart going back to the beginning of the month. one point hovering at the lowest yield since the first couple of days in february. very similar pattern to the gilt, ten-year uk, as it hofrs around the 2% level. today it actually dipped a bit below it. remember the ltro tomorrow, try to think this way, there's a lot of talk that if it's big, it's going to hold some negatives. it's a lot like some of the programs in the u.s. maybe they work, b

fidelity national big dividend, micron and netflix up. >> do they have lime-ade at sonic? >> their desserts are fantastic. >> good stuff. i know where the shactmans are going tone. >> happy valentine's day. >> treasury partners on the rise especially after the eu announcement but the january retail sales numbers didn't help the mood. rick santelli has details tchlt. >> before we go to the long where you can see the buying, something strange happened after the january fed meeting, look at august 1st start day on two year note yield, rising ever since, i know it's on the south side of operation twist but about ready to break out of the long term rain, pay close attention. if we look at what is going on in other parts of the curve, i think a ten year note, two week charts especially important, bill said we were looking at higher price, indeed you can see that yields have fallen, more than one week and one day low yield should we close here around s1.92, we held at 2.08. a two day shart says it all, we are on our way to 133, we're under 1.31 is some of that kicking the can is