sharon epperson mentioned that yesterday during our special "power lunch" show.details on that story straight ahead. it's a growing trend in business: do more with less with less energy. hp is helping ups do just that. soon, the world's most intelligent servers, designed by hp, will give ups over twice the performance, using forty percent less energy. multiply that across over a thousand locations, and they'll provide the same benefit to the environment as over 60,000 trees. that's a trend we can all get behind. so i can reach ally bank 24/7, but there ar24/7.branches? i'm sorry, i'm just really reluctant to try new things. really? what's wrong with trying new things? look! mommy's new vacuum! (cat screech) you feel that in your muscles? i do... drink water. it's a long story. well, not having branches let's us give you great rates and service. i'd like that. a new way to bank. a better way to save. ally bank. your money needs an ally. >>> welcome back to "power lunch." i'm dominic chu. shares of aread pharmaceutical are larging after the fda said it was investig

sharon epperson takes a look. >> reporter: the on going debt ceiling debate has many investors concerned about what a government default would mean for their money. >> i'm worried about interest rates for the real estate market and what would happen to my 401 k. >> i'm worried. i'm on social security and it's starting to threaten that, also. >> i have to pay my bills and likewise, the government has to pay their bills. >> reporter: some are even worried about investments like money market mutual funds that are typically considered very safe. money market funds invest in ultra short-term debt including u.s. treasuries and generate more interest than a money market deposit account. that makes these funds attractive to many investors who invested nearly $2.7 trillion in these funds. but if congress fails to reach a deal and the treasury department faces a technical default or worse, runs out of money some fund managers don't want to hold on government debt that can't be repaid. >> they would rather say we don't have any of that, that certain date that may come under question or may have a d

sharon epperson reports. >> reporter: with the fed refl government shutdown, some of the premiere institutions for energy invasion scale dowor shout down completely. but many companies continue to forge ahead with ground-breaking technologies that will help reduce this country's dependence on oil and increase the energy security. corporate executives and policy makers came together at securing america's future energy security to increase awareness and spark action to reduce the nation's dependence on oil. >> energy security is a triple win. it's a win for the customer because our technology reduces the price. it's a win for the climate, and it's a win for security of the nation. politically, economically and from standpoint cost to the customer. >> the fastest and most cost effective way to control the goals and reduce dependence on foreign sources of oil is introduce more efficient engines. >> reporter: they are developing technologies to fine tine engines to increase fuel efficiency while others are developing new engines including a combat engine for the u.s. army. fuel efficiency in cars a

sharon epperson reports. >> reporter: with the fed refl government shutdown, some of the premiere institutions for energy invasion scale down or shout down completely. but many companies continue to forge ahead with ground-breaking technologies that will help reduce this country's dependence on oil and increase the energy security. corporate executives and policy makers came together at securing america's future energy security to increase awareness and spark action to reduce the nation's dependence on oil. >> energy security is a triple win. it's a win for the customer because our technology reduces the price. it's a win for the climate, and it's a win for security of the nation. politically, economically and from standpoint cost to the customer. >> the fastest and most cost effective way to control the goals and reduce dependence on foreign sources of oil is introduce more efficient engines. >> reporter: they are developing technologies to fine tine engines to increase fuel efficiency while others are developing new engines including a combat engine for the u.s. army. fuel efficiency in cars

sharon epperson takes a look. >> reporter: the on going debt ceiling debate has many investors concerned about what a government default would mean for their money. >> i'm worried about interest rates for the real estate market and what would happen to my 401 k. >> i'm worried. i'm on social security and it's starting to threaten that, also. >> i have to pay my bills and likewise, the government has to pay their bills. >> reporter: some are even worried about investments like money market mutual funds that are typically considered very safe. money market funds invest in ultra short-term debt including u.s. treasuries and generate more interest than a money market deposit account. that makes these funds attractive to many investors who invested nearly $2.7 trillion in these funds. but if congress fails to reach a deal and the treasury department faces a technical default or worse, runs out of money some fund managers don't want to hold on government debt that can't be repaid. >> they would rather say we don't have any of that, that certain date that may come under question or may have a d

for "nightly business report", i'm sharon epperson. >> and for more on where to look for a health caren to our website, nbr.com. >>> finally tonight, forbes magazine is out with the world's most powerful people. here are the top three, in third place, the general secretary of china's communest party and in a surprise move barack obama drops to number two from the stop spot and taking his place russian president vladimir putin. recapping facebook's earnings, following an initial pop after hours, the stock reversed direction, one thing the market may focus on, comments on a late-day conference call where the cfo saw a decrease in daily users, specifically among younger teens. >> look at that drop. >> look at that. a short-lived drop in facebook stock. >>> that's "nightly business report" for tonight. i'm susie gharib thanks so much for watching. >> thanks from me, as well. i'm tyler mathisen. have a great evening everybody. see you back here tomorrow night. >>> "nightly business report" has been brought to you by. >> thestreet.com, interactiveç financial multimedia tools for an ever cha

for nightly business report, i'm sharon epperson. >>> and for more information on how to reach your retirementgoals, log onto our website. >>> after 40 years, why is mcdonald's cutting ties with the product that almost every american uses. heinz catsup. >>> an update now on negotiations over insider trading charges between the government and the hedge fund acc capital. a settlement with the firm is expected to be announced as early as this week with the company likely to pay at least a billion in fines and admit guilt related to the charges. that would mean that sac would no longer be able to manage public money. >>> quarterly earnings at burger king were a whopper, earnings soared and came in higher than analysts' estimates, thanks to reducing costs and selling more restaurants to franchise owners. burger king also released its dividend. and they released items like a bacon ice cream sunday and burger with fries already on it. they see sales of the crinkle cuts, shares jumped. >>> and burger king arch-nemesis, one reason that mcdonald's is now making a big change in which catsup it buys, and

i'm sharon epperson with position you want to know about your retirement.uch money do you think you are going to make after age 65? what's your income going to look like? well, the more money you earn now, the more you may feel the pinch in retirement. probably would be better off than a lot of americans bought new study shows that for many higher earners, they actually have less of their income as a percentage of their pre-retirement income when they retire than lower income workers. this is according to the employment benefit research institute. looking at income levels in 10, if you earn six figures before your 65th birthday, you will see it drop. if you are make being $60,000 a year you will basically have the same level of income in retirement. the main reason for the disparity is social security. which mace as lower percentage of your income for higher earners. how can you make sure you can maintain the same level of income in retirement? stewart ritter, certified financial planner at t. roe price what he advices investors to do is make sure they save

thank you very much, sharon epperson. run through the bond sector. u.s. ten-year the yield the lowest level in 12 weeks and european bonds including the german ten year on bets the fed in the u.s. will keep up the bond buying program in the near future. >> the fire season, one of the worst on record, flames are threatening parts of the sydney area. that story coming up. plus, what new jersey's new senator means for wall street and business big and small. why one senator could have a huge impact on washington's attitude on business. that's straight ahead. americans take care of business. they always have. they always will. that's why you take charge of your future. your retirement. ♪ ameriprise advisors can help you like they've helped millions of others. listening, planning, working one on one. to help you retire your way... with confidence. that's what ameriprise financial does. that's what they can do with you. ameriprise financial. more within reach. >>> amazing and terrible video coming from australia a few ours ago. nearly 100 wildfires are burning a

get to sharon epperson with great ideas.u know, mandy, even if there is short-term resolution in washington, many investors are still very concerned about their retirement funds and they have reason to be. according to a new study that has come out this week we could see retirement funds lose as much as 20% in value. we're talking about 401(k)s and iras, about $2.4 trillion as you mentioned. this is the latest report out from the american society of pension professionals and actuaries. they're looking at data from 2011 and that's what they're basing their assumptions on, looking at the fact that s&p 500 dropped 17% back then when the u.s. was downgraded and also when the credit was downgraded an when the debt ceiling negotiations had gone to the 11th hour. it took nearly 7 months for the s&p 500 for stocks to recover after that. and so based on that and as average investors watch the stock market, that's why many of them are panicking. of course, fixed income assets could be impacted as well. so stacy francis, certified fina

let's go now to i believe sharon epperson is with us. are you there?us why -- you're the good news deliverer, which is why we like you. >> i love it. and especially on a day like today. it's good news to say we could see gas prices drop significantly for the national average. in fact, some drivers in south carolina, right now they're paying less than $3 a gallon for gasoline. that's the lowest level we're seeing for statewide prices. across the south, many states, the statewide average is $3.25 or less. and prices are likely to continue to drop. we've already seen a 20 cent drop since the first day of september. and here's why we might see this continue. it's simple supply and demand. gasoline supplies up about 10% from where they were this time a year ago. but consumption is down. what does this mean? prices are likely to continue to slide. how far? aaa says we could see prices down as much as 30 cents by december. so, brian, that will bring the national average pretty close to that $3 a gallon mark. >> good news deliverer, sharon epperson. thank you

for "nightly business report", i'm sharon epperson. >>> two major drug companies get downgraded and that's where we begin market focus. jeffreys cutting mirk. mirk's cost cutting efforts, both stacks down on this up day. merck off less than 1% to $47.29. eli lily $48.88. one analyst says the company's guidance isn't as great as hoped. another analyst downgraded to under perform for market perform. don't lose sight of the fact micron shares soared to 165% this year and fell to $16.84. >>> safe way was the best performing stock despite reporting earnings below estimates. they focused on the supermarket chain's strong revenues and exiting the chicago market, something an active investor has been pushing the company to do. the stock ran up 7% to $33.75. >>> a warning today from silicon graphics slammed it's stock. the earnings could come in below estimates because some of the it projects funded by the government have been put on hold. silicon graphics provides computer services to large-scale data servers and biggest names in tech include facebook and yahoo. shares went to $14.75. >>> solar ci

for "nightly business report", i'm sharon epperson. >>> two major drug companies get downgraded and that's where we begin market focus. jeffreys cutting mirk. mirk's cost cutting efforts, both stacks down on this up day. merck off less than 1% to $47.29. eli lily $48.88. one analyst says the company's guidance isn't as great as hoped. another analyst downgraded to under perform for market perform. don't lose sight of the fact micron shares soared to 165% this year and fell to $16.84. >>> safe way was the best performing stock despite reporting earnings below estimates. they focused on the supermarket chain's strong revenues and exiting the chicago market, something an active investor has been pushing the company to do. the stock ran up 7% to $33.75. >>> a warning today from silicon graphics slammed it's stock. the earnings could come in below estimates because some of the it projects funded by the government have been put on hold. silicon graphics provides computer services to large-scale data servers and biggest names in tech include facebook and yahoo. shares went to $14.75. >>> solar ci

joining me is michael, president of seaborn mortgage corporation along with c nchnbc's sharon epperson and jean chatzky. we're so glad to have you here. tyler is down at the nyse at my usual post, but we switched places today. ty, down to you. >> sue, thank you very much. it's a very interesting day here, not the least because the dow is up so much. the question on everybody's mind right now is really what should investors do with their portfolios? and joining me here at the nyse is our cnbc market analyst, kenny polcari and from los angeles, personal finance columnist liz weston, author of "deal with your debt." welcome to both of you. we're also going to take this program to main street. we have our cnbc cameras at -- yes, yes, the tick tock diner in new jersey. i have been there many a time. they serve a great sunday breakfast. my kind of place, baby. and also out at universal city walk-in los angeles, we'll take your questions throughout this special edition of "power lunch." sue, you haven't lived till you've been there. >> i know, i've been there, and they do a great breakfast. a

i'm sharon epperson at the nynex.ly rising on better than expected u.s. car sales data, that of course as many of these products are used in auto converters. we'll continue to watch what's happening in the oil market as well because the rise that we're seeing week after week in u.s. crude oil inventory certainly putting pressure on oil prices and we are seeing them slightly lower in this session. but we're paying most attention to natural gas because that is the data we'll get out today from the energy department. we're expected to see a rise in natural gas, levels of storage greater than what we normally see. we're looking at natural gas futures under pressure before the number comes out at 10:30 a.m. and, carl, you know i'll bring it to you live. >> absolutely. thank you for that. they're talking 3.15, the national average by the end of the year. that would be the lowest since 2010. that would have an impact on the retail season, which citi says won't be very good today. >> this is terrific news. the year-over-year

i'm sharon epperson.ral gas storage levels. we're looking at natural gas prices down about 5 cents. and 3.50 will be a key psychological level. the department of energy reports supplies rose by 38 billion cubic feet. that was a little bit greater than the range that analysts were expecting. they were looking for an increase in storage between 33 and 37 billion cubic feet. it's still a lower storage injection than we normally see for this time of year or last year or the five-year average so that was expected, but we're also waiting to see what happens with the weather forecast over the next several days into the sext several weeks. we're expecting above average temperatures this week. it's supposed to be 72 degrees in new york city tomorrow. that could also continue to pressure natural gas prices until we see the seasonal heating demand really start to kick in. back to you. >> cnbc's million dollar home franchise, all these towns have a haunted past or ties to a famous horror movie. we sent seven reporter

sharon epperson has more on that. sharon?e in terms of volume and that is what occurred right around 8:45 or so this morning only for ten seconds or so. the cme group says it stopped and immediately went into action and that's when we saw that trading halt. they also say that trades will now stand, though, and we are looking at, of course, trading has resumed and resumed immediately after that brief halt. traders are saying what happened here, well, of course many on the floor somewhat caught off guard it was such a brief amount of time but what they are focusing on as we reported earlier in the week, if there does appear to be some sort of resolution we could see an immediate drop, say 3% to 5% in the price of gold. that came from peter hough at kitco earlier this week. and we have seen gold prices down about 2% or so. but as i reported earlier, traders are also watching the moves in other commodities and we may see gold follow suit with the commodity sector, not necessarily play as a safe haven. it remains to be seen in thi

back to you. >> thanks very much, sharon epperson. here it's a lot about watching ipos.ve david menlo on twitter's new filing. and we'll talk with potbelly's ceo. stay with us. when we made our commitment to the gulf, bp had two big goals: help the gulf recover and learn from what happened so we could be a better, safer energy company. i can tell you - safety is at the heart of everything we do. we've added cutting-edge technology, like a new deepwater well cap and a state-of-the-art monitoring center, where experts watch over all drilling activity twenty-four-seven. and we're sharing what we've learned, so we can all produce energy more safely. our commitment has never been stronger. (announcer) at scottrade, our clto make their money do more.re (ann) to help me plan my next move, i take scottrade's free, in-branch seminars... plus, their live webinars. i use daily market commentary to improve my strategy. and my local scottrade office guides my learning every step of the way. because they know i don't trade like everybody. i trade like me. i'm with scottrade. (announce

sharon epperson tracking the action at the nymex. hi, sharon. >> hi, sue.day at a lift in the gold market up about $2 or so above that 1350 level. key psychological level for gold. and gold has managed to eek out a gain for the week as well. in the last week and a half we've seen gold prices up more than $100. so we'll see if this 1350 level will hold in the week ahead. the fed will have a lot to do with that. back to you. >> all right. thank you so much. washington may be heading for another showdown. this time it's a fight involving rand paul. targeting president obama's nominee for fed chief. janet yellen, we're also getting big news on the obama care glitches this hour so you don't want to miss that. you'll remember those mortgage backed securities, right? one of the main financial products blamed for the financial crash. you won't believe what new housing investment wall street is flogging right now. back in two. [ male announcer ] once, there was a man who found a magic seashell. it told him what was happening on the trading floor in real time. ♪ the

sharon epperson tracking the action for us at the nymex this hour. hi, sharon. >> hello.e are looking at near the close right now, for gold and gold prices right around 1342 an ounce, up nearly $30 here on the day and, of course, we have seen the biggest showing in terms of the highest price for the month of october for gold prices. the rally happened right after that jobs data came out. a lot of folks were caught off guard by that nonfarm payroll number. as the dollar dropped and gold rallied we are continuing to see strength in the gold market. now, traders are looking at key numbers here going forward and that is the 1350 level technically and to see whether or not gold will continue the trajectory we're seeing. others are saying perhaps now we are -- have seen a market bottom at least for the near term. jim over at kiko metal saying it's important to look at key numbers, particularly the 1353 or so technical level the next one to watch. back to you. >> thank you, sharon. >>> let's check in on interest rates because after we got that employment report out this morning

let's get straight to sharon epperson at the nynex. >> traders are watching the eastern track as welld they are looking at the oil and gas installations there. we are looking at prices right now that are definitely supported by the tropical storm and traders are watching to see what kind of impact it will have. already we are seeing some companies shutting production in the area. keep in mind the gulf of mexico accounts for 19% of the u.s. oil production and 6% of natural gas production. we are not seeing as great an impact on natural gas. we are seeing that in -- the oil and gas firms that are in the gulf of mexico, they are down to now about 80% of their average daily output. that's due to tropical storm karen. specifically what are some companies doing? bp has already announced that it is shutting production in its facilities there. in the deep water, bp is the largest producer there. deep water gulf. is shell, chevron and a number of other companies have evacuated nonessential workers as well. so they are watching it very carefully. but right now as you heard, karen weakening and

advice from kenny on stocks, sharon epperson on commodities and jeff kill berg on the bond market.ny you go first. >> i think you have to be -- listen, we've seen it. the market is getting weaker. people are expecting that to happen. i also think we're going to go to the edge and then people will come to their senses and we're not going over the ceiling. if we aren't this is a great opportunity. if we go over there's going to be more pressure on the market, you have to be patient and don't panic. the last thing that investors should do is start running for the doors and throwing everything out. that's the wrong thing to dop. that's typically when the retail investor panics and makes the wrong decision always. >> sit tight. >> sit tight and you should add on on the weakness. once it's done, you knonoknow, will move higher. >> those i talk to on the floor think we're not going to see a default but if it happens and negative for stocks people will want to sell everything and that includes commodities. even though you may think gold may be the safe haven play it hasn't shown that this

sharon epperson has all the details for us. >> hi, tyler.e've seen a little bit of a mixed picture here in the oil market with brent crude a little lower and u.s. oil prices, after hitting a four month low in the previous session and actually even lower earlier this morning, they actually rallied and finished just a little bit higher at the close. keep in mind, though, the inventory story is still a big one for u.s. crude oil. that has been pressuring prices and will likely continue to do so, traders say. the other side of the coin is what has happened, as you said, in the gold market. gold prices rallying today to above the 1350 level. another psychological level traders are watching. many saying there's more of a bullish tone now to the gold market now that it looks like perhaps we'd see a tapering far later than had been thought just a few weeks ago. that may continue to keep some momentum in the gold price. back to you guys. >> all right. thank you so much. gold shining bright today. not only in the market, but also for miner goldcorp. t

sharon epperson has an article on cnbc.com right now that shows most who are 401(k) savers still don'tough to retire on and in part that's because of this so-called lost decade we went through in the stock market between 2000 and 2010 when it vastly underperformed. i know a lot of people were saving and putting money in 401(k)s at that time, expecting to have a lot more money than they do today. so, can you save, you can do what you're told to do but the market has to hold up its end of the bargain. >> if you were investing through that lost decade, you would put in a lot of money at very low prices. as you're accumulating, you can almost say flat out, the lower the market, the better it is for accumulator. you want to have some good timing. you don't want it to be low when you get out and there's no way to control that. but the lost decade in retrospect was a great time for people who kept up their payments. unfortunately, bill, a lot of companies suspended their plans during that lost decade. very counterproductive. >> if you're looking for retirement planning advice, jack, i mean, i

sharon epperson doing some digging into this. what people are doing and why. >> you're going to be surprised. it seems like a lot of money, american workers stash over $300 billion in 401(k) plans every year and that includes employers matching contributions. but it may not be enough because the majority of americans with 401(k) or other employer sponsored retirement accounts are accumulating debt faster than they're saving for retirement. now according to a report from hello wallet money that retirement plan participants spent to pay down debt rose nearly 70% in the past 20 years. and what's really worrisome is the problem is most pronounced for those closest to retirement, 401(k) savers between 50 and 65 years old spend an average of 22% of their income paying down debt in 2010 up from 13% in 1992. and the result of this is that older workers only have about two years of retirement income saved. that's only a slight improvement over the past two decades. but americans are living longer today and they're going to need about 17 y

we go to sharon epperson with more.ady in red. >> reporter: mandy, it is all about the fed and when they will start tapering. a lot of traders are still parsing through the fed's statement from yesterday. we are looking at a continuation of the decline. and part of that is due to some key technical levels. the inability of gold to stay above the 1355 level just a few days ago. and the fact that it already had run up about 100 bucks just in two weeks' time. now we're seeing that momentum back in the gold market. we're also watching what's happening in the oil market. many traders will be following very carefully any development about iran over the next several days as they go into the next round of nuclear talks at the end of this week. and today we're hearing that the obama administration is now pressing for a delay in another round of sanctions against iran, waiting to see what they're going to do next with their nuclear program. back to you. >> sharon, thank you very much. >>> well, forget baba o'reilly. has facebook

. >> sharon epperson, thank you very much for that indeed. we'll check it out.t -- >> what are you shuffling over there? >> very important. when you -- the more you shuffle. >> fake news anchor shuffle here. >> let me just get myself sorted. up next, ship baby ship. the growing rally cry for the u.s. to export more oil and gas. >> plus, inside the billionaire land grab. we'll tell you more about the billionaire land grab. (announcer) at scottrade, our clients trade and invest exactly how they want. with scottrade's online banking, i get one view of my bank and brokerage accounts with one login... to easily move my money when i need to. plus, when i call my local scottrade office, i can talk to someone who knows how i trade. because i don't trade like everybody. i trade like me. i'm with scottrade. (announcer) scottrade-proud to be ranked "best overall client experience." >>> we talked about greece today and made fun of them because they defaulted a year ago. national bank of greece the stock is up 15%, nbg, that is a 70 cent move on a 5.25 stock. lot of optimism

sharon epperson, tracking the action for us at the nymex. hi. >> hi, sue.y don't want to be a bull today. gold prices down more than $40, 1285. looks to be around the closing price today and we're seeing the slide that started this morning, not necessarily completely related to the government shutdown although traders say that is an anti-inflationary move for gold price. add to that the technical momentum after one big seller sold quite a bit in the early morning hours, near the time of the floor opening and that has continued also fitch coming out today saying that 1200 may not be the floor for gold prices going forward. we may see prices go lower in light of the economy and debt ceiling debate. back to you. >> thank you very much, sharon. you know, one sector of the market that's been flying very high this year, pun intended up 40%, ticking higher despite the beginning of a government shutdown. legendary investor bill mason was on "squawk box" this morning speaking about that sector. >> i've heard jim cramer talk about the shutdown a negative for airlines

cnbc's sharon epperson is here with more on that.t is a scare cree situation for some financial advisors because many have been focused on investments and now having to deal with the changing health care landscape. the big concern is many employees are facing the fact that their companies are changing or at least they plan to change their retiree health benefits. a study out this month from towers watson found that employers that sponsor retiree health plan, about 40% plan to discontinue it in 2015 and that is for people who are before the age of 65 retiring or retiring after that age. and as a result, health care planning is becoming more ecertain to determine what your retirement needs will be. how do you find advice? eleanor blaney the consumer advocate at the board of standard said it's important to look for someone who has a 360 degree view of health care options and understands risks and tax consequences. you may want to look for someone who has the cfp designation, certified financial planner designation requires that they hav

sharon epperson at the nymex with that angle. >> when you look at gold, its down about 30 bucks. we've seen a significant selloff that really occurred this morning when we saw a dramatic sell, perhaps one large seller that entered the market. and really forced a lot of other selling that occurred throughout the day. traders are looking at what is happening in washington, watching every headline. as it looks like we're getting closer to a deal, that safe haven trade seems to be evaporating a bit. you add to that we had a trading halt here issued by the cme group issued around 8:40 this morning, and that's when we saw significant drops in prices. oil prices also falling today, due in part with what's happening in washington and what is the impact on energy demand here in the u.s. and also globally looking at international agency saying what supply will look like in 2014. they raised their supply forecast. looking at supply growth coming out of non-opec countries, we haven't seen since the 1970s. something else likely to pressure oil prices. not just in this session but for some tim

i'm sharon epperson at the nymex. gold futures about to close right now. down about $25 from yesterday's close. about 130. of course, that was ahead of the fed statement we got yesterday afternoon. but we've seen gold prices continue to decline in this session. and we're looking at prices here that have seen a really lot of volatility in the past month, rallying 100 bucks, unable to stay above that 1350 level and coming right back down. back to you guys. >> thanks so much, sharon. of course, we'll be watching gold throughout the week. >>> before the break we told you about ten dow stocks that hit multiyear highs this month. 3m, p&g, american express, pfizer and visa. tyler's favorite chart. the other five, dupont, disney, nike, also ge and boeing. boeing actually the biggest winner in the dow this year. up more than 70% to an all-time high. that despite all its dreamliner problems. tyler, quite a run for that stock. >> you know, sometimes you buy a company's shares and you think you know how that company makes money. but sometimes you are wrong. dominic. >

i want to get to sharon epperson and find out what is going on with gold. >> we're looking at profitin gold after gold prices hit a four-week high yesterday and a lot of traders say there wasn't much news to move gold today. so we saw gold basically just about $10 down from where the highs were in the previous session. we are looking at the movement in exchange traded gold funds and there we saw inflows yesterday, the biggest inflows in about two month's time, not a ton of inflows but they were there and we did see at love outflows out of that market. traders watching the demand for physical gold. the wedding season so that is a key determinant. they're keeping their eye on the other precious metal silver, because it has been outperforming gold and something traders are watching. key technical levels they're watching as well, the 23, 25 levels for silver one they say is the one to watch. back to you. >> thank you very much. forget the profit taking for a second because gold trade is on, at least on tv, and that means the guys from discovery channel's "gold rush" are back. this season

sharon epperson at the nymex tracking what has been an up day today. >> that's right, bill.t's absolutely a volatile market here in gold. we're looking at gold prices that have basically recouped all the losses from yesterday, up about $35 or so around 1320 an ounce at the close and a lot of traders say you can make the bullish case, the bearish case on what shutdown and the debate over the debt ceiling will mean for the gold market. we may see volatility for some time. but keep in mind we've seen a big slide in gold this year and bank of america, merrill lynch says the slide is likely to continue, looking for gold prices to be below 1300 an ounce through 2014. back to you. >> sharon, thanks. >>> to the bond market, let's check interest rates because stocks were down this morning and interest rates they were the place where everybody was going into those treasury bills and treasury bonds. rick santelli is tracking the action at the cme. >> you know, let's give it perspective. we did have data out today, whether mortgage bankers or adp an wasn't necessarily good data points.

. >>> gold prices closing and sharon epperson closing in positive territory. >> that's right.little higher for gold prices and perhaps that is some comfort to gold bulls after we saw gold at a three-week low on friday. but keep in mind, a lot of it is just treading water until we figure out what's going to happen in washington. we have seen actually a slide in gold prices so far this month of about 4% or so. as that has happened it has caused some folks to liquidate or redeem their holdings in terms of gold etfs. looking at a decline there as well. we're also watching what's happening in the playedium market, doing well after the positive sales data from china on their vehicle sales. back to you. >> thank you very much. time to analyze with jim, a cnbc contributor. welcome. let's get to it, merck, downgraded from outperform to market perform by bernstein saying the recent announcement of cost cutting does little to bolster the investment case. the stock is up almost 14% this year. do you agree or disagree with this cut? >> you know, i disagree with that call just because the l

sharon epperson track tracking the action at the nymex. >> we are seeing a bit of profit taking heregold market after gold hit that four-week high yesterday, but we're only down about $10 or so from the highs we saw in the previous session. a lot of traders saying this session has been very quiet, really not a lot of volume and what gold traders are watching is what's happening in the oil market and, in fact, we are seeing a bit of a sympathy effect here as we see oil prices at the lowest levels since july. big slide there and crude oil as bob mentioned and that may have something to do with what we're seeing perhaps in gold. again, very low volume and only about a third of the volume in gold is what we're seeing in each one of those key benchmarks for crude oil. back to you. >> thank you very much. time for the power pitch tournament of champions. six start-up founders have 30 seconds to pitch their big ideas to the world and each of the six has already delivered a power pitch on cnbc that got height high marks from a panel of judges on "power lunch." but there can be only one champ

sharon epperson at nichl next for us. >> good morning.ic and political leaders this will have a tremendous fallout and impact, of course, financial markets across the globe. and gold being the safe haven, that's where folks will turn. looking at gold prices steady, up 1% or so for gold, as this stalemate continues. and traders are watching the debt ceiling deadline that is looming, as well as the government shutdown. putting some money there. keep in mind as well, looking at thin markets with many markets closed around the globe. also watching what's happening in the oil market. we are seeing oil prices under pressure and the government shutdown raises a lot of concerns about energy demand as does what will happen if there's an actual default. there's another factor at work as well, and many analysts and traders are talking about, the fact we have so much crude oil here in the united states. that could continue to pressure oil prices even after washington comes to some type of agreement. and so we are watching carefully this $101 barrel l

i'm sharon epperson with breaking news about natural gas.ctober 11, up by 77 billion cubic feet. it is higher than the five-year average and higher than the injection that we saw this time a year ago. we searing as a result national guard gas prices under pressure. we hit a low of $3.61 right when the number came out. although we did see natural gas at a four-month high last week, around $3.85, that was factoring in the colder temperatures this week we're experiencing as fall sets in. milder temperatures are expected for the winter and they're looking ahead that there is plenty of natural gas in storage and we're looking at natural gas prices as week speak that are at a two-week low. >> some relief perhaps in heating prices. the dow is down 111 points after the disappointing jobs report. art cashin joins us now. we're seeing the s&p 500 having one of its best years in a bond market, it tells you the market could have further to go. >> they are having an absolute champagne party in the bond market right now. i constantly make the point that a

sharon epperson at the nynex. >> we're seeing a big jump in the level of crude supplies.of 5 million barrels, much higher than the american petroleum institute reported last night. we're also seeing a big increase in gasoline supplies. we've been telling threw's plenty of supply and not enough demand. once again, we're seeing an increase of 3.5 million barrels in the past week. that was different in terms of direction from what the average analysts were expected. they were looking for a decline in gasoline surprise for the week. we're also looking for a decline here in distillate fuel supplies down 1.7 million barrels. but gasoline definitely the commodity to watch today after our report and we're looking for a selloff in futures. >> the department of energy says they can operate until october 11th in terms of putting out data? >> yes. they can get another report next week but it's uncertain will what will happen after that. >> thanks. straight ahead, three top microsoft shareholders reportedly want bill gates at chairman. and that could be a question of blood flow. ciali