. >> susie: good evening, everyone. i'm susie gharib. tom is off tonight. the white house knocks down house speaker john boehner's back-up plan to avoid the fiscal cliff. we'll have details on his "plan b." we get an insider's perspective on those talks from roger altman. he was a key adviser in the clinton administration and now, as head of investment firm evercore, he's plugged in to corporate america and wall street. and are apple's hot-selling products cooling off? is the competition winning over even apple's loyal fans? that and more tonight on "n.b.r." john boehner is pushing for his "plan b." this is the latest twist in those crucial fiscal cliff negotiations. the house speaker offered a back-up plan today to avoid falling off the cliff. he promised to bring a bill to the house floor this week that would raise income tax rates for people earning more than $1 million a year and no new spending cuts, for now. the white house immediately rejected it. darren gersh reports. >> reporter: house speaker john boehner says the president is asking for about hal

. >> susie: good evening everyone. i'm susie gharib. fiscal cliff talks at the white house end with nal, but president obama says he's still hopeful and says "we've got to get this done." gold prices pulled back today on worries about the fiscal cliff, will the metal shine in 2013? then cuba, tonight's "market monitor" sees big opportunity on the tiny island when the embargo's lifted. thomas herzfeld, of thomas herzfled advisors joins us. that and more tonight on "n.b.r."! president obama says he's "modestly optimistic" a fiscal deal can be reached in time. he said he's instructed senator harry reid and senator mitch mcconnell to come up with a plan that can pass in congress. his brief comments a short while ago came after a white house meeting today with congressional leaders that ended with no deal. ahead of that, investors lost hope lawmakers can come together in the time remaining. in the last few minutes of trading, stocks sold off. the dow tumbled 158 points, the nasdaq lost 25, and the s&p fell over 15 points. here's darren gersh

: i'm susie gharib.ud the c.e.o. of manufacturer johnson controls says business is looking good for 2013, but going over the fiscal cliff could change that. >> tom: and the u.s. treasury speeds up plans to sell its stake in general motors. is the automaker ready to stand alone? >> susie: that and more tonight on "n.b.r."! >> tom: unr the threat of ar white house veto, the u.s. house of representatives is expected to vote tomorrow on the republican plan-b to avoid the fiscal cliff. house speaker john boehner thinks the house will okay the package, trying to turn the heat up on president obama to steer clear of automatic tax hikes and government spending cuts due to take affect in 12 days. still, as darren gersh reports, there are some signs the two sides are narrowing their differences. >> reporter: house republicans say they're still working on plan a: a big agreement with the president to cut spending and raise revenues, but they were pushing plan b today-- a tax hike for those making more than a million dollars. >>

>> susie, you're right. there will be some fiscal drag, some contraction, as spending cuts occur, as taxes go up somewhat, and as certain tax cuts, like the payroll tax cut, expires. but i think there is going to be a big boost to confidence, and i think there is going to be a broad clearing of the air as this issue is resolved. and there has been so much hesitation on the part of employers and businesses on investing and on hiring, i think that's going to be wiped away. and the result -- the net result is going to be an improved growth rate in 2013, and especially big growth rates in 2014 and 2015. >> susie: roger, we have less than a minute and i want to ask you this important question because i think it is true that the uncertainty issue will be gone, but, you know, a lot of the c.e.o.s that i talked to, and i'm sure you hear this a lot, too, from the c.e.o.s you talk with is they're really concerned about growth. all they hear from washington is about tax hikes and spending cuts. how come nobody is talki

. >> susie: good evening everyone. i'm susie gharib. fiscal cliff talks at the white house end with no deal, but president obama says he's still hopeful and says "we've got to get this done." gold prices pulled back today on worries about the fiscal cliff, will the metal shine in 2013? then cuba, tonight's "market monitor" sees big opportunity on the tiny island when the embargo's lifted. thomas herzfeld, of thomas herzfled advisors joins us. that and more tonight on "n.b.r."! president obama says he's "modestly optimistic" a fiscal deal can be reached in time. he said he's instructed senator harry reid and senator mitch mcconnell to come up with a plan that can pass in congress. his brief comments a short while ago came after a white house meeting today with congressional leaders that ended with no deal. ahead of that, investors lost hope lawmakers can come together in the time remaining. in the last few minutes of trading, stocks sold off. the dow tumbled 158 points, the nasdaq lost 25, and the s&p fell over 15 points. here's darren g

and you, too, susie. >> susie: tom, we're coming to the close of 12-12-12. and i hope it's been a good day for you. thanks for watching, everyone. join us online at www.nbr.com and back here tomorrow night. captioning sponsored by wpbt captioned by media access group at wgbh access.wgbh.org >> join us anytime at nbr.com. there, you'll find full episodes of the program, complete show transcripts and all the market stats. also follows us on our facebook page at bizrpt. and on twitter @bizrpt. >> your brain is involved in everything you do, yet few girls or women, ever think about their brains. i'll show you five ways to unleash the power of the female brain and the amen clinic's method for radically improving it. it works so well for our patients, i know it can help you too. [music] >> the information in this program will also help boost your energy, mood and focus and it will help you look and feel younger and more beautiful, no

i've been surprised, susie, that people continue to buy automobiles. but my fear is that could change dramatically. >> susie: steve, to what extent are the ups and downs impacting your business day to day. >> i think people are holding back on making captain investments. i see that particularly in the building side. from my standpoint, i continue to invest around the world. i'll invest to make sure i'm buying the strategies we laid up for the next three years. the question is what it will do, depending on what the outcome is, how is it going to alter my strategies if the out come is different than i thought. >> susie: higher taxes is going to be a part of any deal. >> right. >> susie: are you open to higher taxes? how does it impact your business? >> i'm open to it. but i'm concerned and i don't want to be uncompetitive. i've got to make sure whatever tax structure works, i'm more concerned about how it impacts my ability to do business around the world. am i disadvantaged against other nations or benefit from other nations' tax structures. >> susie: y

. >> susie: good evening, everyone. i'm susie gharib. tom is off tonight. president obama tells republicans and democrats they have ten days to work out a fiscal cliff deal. and he says it's doable. tonight's market monitor guest is not scared off by cliff worries. he's buying stocks, saying the markets will do well in the new year. he's richard steinberg of steinberg global asset management. and warren buffett, the oracle of omaha has plenty to say on taxes and the fiscal cliff: we talk with his long-time friend and "fortune" magazine journalist carol loomis. that and more tonight on "n.b.r." some straight talk from president obama tonight about the fiscal cliff. speaking to reporters from the white house he said he's ready and willing to get a comprehensive package done, but it's up to republicans and democrats to make it happen. >> nobody gets 100% of what they want. everybody has to give a little. >> susie: the president also proposed a smaller package that prevents taxes for 98% of americans from going up and for unemployment insurance to be extended.

. >> susie: you know thanks for that report. i am just wondering from all of the reporting you have done, do you think we are better off with a bad deal than no deal at all? >> you know susie when peopletal they are talking about a bad deal in political terms. frankly it's republicans that are most worried about the bad deal they have most leverage. the president has the most leverage. they are worried about a bad deal. any deal that gets us past the fiscal cliff is going to be seen as a good deal. >> susie: it seems like we are further apart than last week when president obama gave the last minute pep talk to get the talks going. do we have to reach some point of pain in washington, d.c. that people get mos motivated to geta deal. how does it work in washington? >> i wish i knew.it seems that n ratcratcheting up the pain. i was surprised. i thought enough after the election would be sorted out and the fiscal cliff would be a painful enough deadline they would come together. but it seems like the pain will come when we get to th

. >> susie: good evening, everyone. i'm susie gharib. a surprising pledge from the federal reserve today. it will keep interest rates super low until unemployment drops to 6.5%. >> tom: good evening,. i'm tom hudson. the central bank also will continue buying billions of dollars of government bonds in its effort to keep interest rates low. pimco c.e.o. mohamed el-erian will join us. >> susie: and the legal marijuana business-- two states okaying it for recreational use. we talk with one company profiting from medical marijuana products. >> tom: that and more tonight on "n.b.r." >> susie: an historic move today by the federal reserve. fed chairman ben bernanke and other policy makers said they will keep their key interest rate near zero until the unemployment rate falls below 6.5% or inflation rises to 2.5%. now, this is the first time the fed has set a clear economic target for how long interest rates will stay at record lows. the surprise decision means the central bank will continue stimuting the economy by buying bonds. darren gersh e

. >> susie: good evening everyone. i'm susie gharib. the unemployment rate drops to a four year low as u.s. businesses add 146,000 jobs in november. we look behind the numbers. >> tom: i'm tom hudson. we meet the c.e.o.'s of three small businesses hiring right now. what they do and why they're looking for help. >> susie: and house speaker boehner accuses president obama of wasting another week in the fiscal cliff negotiations. >> tom: that and more tonight on "n.b.r."! >> susie: the job market is proving to be surprisingly resilient. american employers hired 146,000 workers in november, much more than expected. and the unemployment rate fell to 7.7%, the lowest level since december of 2008. as erika miller reports, that wasn't the only surprise in today's report. >> reporter: almost no one on wall street saw this good news coming. there was every reason to think hiring would be weak last month. after all, many parts of the east coast are still recovering from devastation caused by superstorm sandy. >> i think the most likely explanation

. >> susie: i'm susie gharib. a coalition of the nation's top c.e.o.s is feeling pessimistic about getting a fiscal cliff deal. the group's leader joins us, maya macguinneas. >> tom: and luxury fashion meets the mass market. who wins with target's pairing with neiman marcus? >> susie: that and more tonight on nbr! >> tom: there wasn't much obvious ground given today between president obama and congressional republicans in the effort to avoid the fiscal cliff in january. president obama repeated his pledge he's open to new ideas, but is holding firm on his call for higher taxes on top income earners, something missing from the g.o.p. plan. with just three weeks left, the two sides are still at odds with their opening offers. with time ticking away to reach a deal before tax cuts expire and spending cuts hit, president obama today said he's still optimistic a deal will be done and he's willing to compromise, but negotiations just aren't there yet. >> it's going to require what i talked about in the campaign, which i

. >> susie: good evening. i'm susie gharib. 32 days and counting and still no deal to avoid the fiscal cliff, as the president and republicans continue with verbal jabs about each others plans. >> tom: i'm tom hudson. businesses aren't waiting for a deal, they're rewarding shareholds with special dividends ahead of higher taxes in 2013. >> susie: investors sour on yum brands, after the parent of k.f.c. and pizza hut says sales are slowing in china. >> tom: that and more tonight on "n.b.r." >> susie: the fiscal cliff talks are going nowhere. that's the word from john boehner today. the house speaker characterized the negotiations to avoid huge tax increases and spending cuts at a stalemate. the race to solve the fiscal cliff triggered another round of dramatic sound bites from republicans and president obama. darren gersh has the latest. >> reporter: the president is still pushing to wrap up a deal on the fiscal cliff before christmas and just in case anyone missed that point, he visited a toy factory to urge c

. >> susie: good evening, everyone. i'm susie gharib. citigroup announces major layoffs, cutting 11,000 jobs. is this a sign of things to come in corporate america? >> tom: i'm tom hudson. president obama tries to win over top business leaders, warning republicans are holding the global economy hostage over the fiscal cliff. >> susie: and apple shares get of the most widely owned stocks sees heavy trading. >> tom: that and more tonight on "n.b.r." >> susie: big job cuts today at one of the nation's biggest banks. citigroup announced it's slashing 4% of its staff; that works out to 11,000 jobs worldwide. the cuts will save the bank more than $1 billion a year in expenses. but they won't be cheap, resulting in a billion-dollar charge against fourth-quarter earnings. is this gloomy news from citi the beginning of other companies doing the same? suzanne pratt reports. >> reporter: 11,000 jobs are a lot of layoffs, even for a bank as huge as citi. and there could be more. that's because the monster firm is still struggling to recover from the

. >> susie: good evening, everyone. i'm susie gharib. tom will be along a little later in the program. last-minute christmas shoppers filled the stores today, but will it be enough to push retailers into the green this holiday season? the clock is ticking to the fiscal cliff deadline, but with those talks on hold, so is the santa claus rally on wall street. and they're a rare breed in corporate america. we look at why so few c.e.o.'s are women. that and more, tonight on nbr. >> susie: not a very merry day of trading on wall street today. it was a holiday shortened session, and the investors and traders working on this half- day were playing it safe, especially with the fiscal cliff talks on holiday break as well. when the closing bell rang at 1:00 eastern time, the dow was down 51 points, the nasdaq lost eight, and the s&p was off 3 points. so while wall street worked half a day, washington was on vacation. lawmakers are increasingly pessimistic about a big agreement-- or any agreement-- being reached before the year ends. darren gersh h

. >> susie: that and more tonight on nbr! >> tom: an agreement to ease the fiscal cliff may not be wrapped up and waiting under your tree for christmas. senate majority leader harry reid said today it would be hard to get an agreement finished by the holiday, blaming the delay on republicans. not surprisingly, republicans say the president hasn't gotten serious about the talks. plenty of outside groups are offering up suggestions. and as darren gersh reports, they include warren buffett and some other big names in finance. >> reporter: there was some public movement in the fiscal cliff standoff today. instead of holding dueling press conferences, republicans and democrats traded barbs on the house floor. >> where are the president's spending cuts? the longer the white house slow- walks this process, the closer our economy gets to the fiscal cliff. >> reporter: behind the scenes, progress is being made, but democrats are still arguing they've given ground in previous budget battles. that's one reason they are holding firm on h

and you, too, tom. >> tom: good night, susie.we'll see you online at www.nbr.com and back here tomorrow night. captioning sponsored by wpbt captioned by media access group at wgbh access.wgbh.org >> join us anytime at nbr.com. there, you'll find full episodes of the program, complete show transcripts and all the market stats. also follows us on our facebook page at bizrpt. and on twitter @bizrpt. captioning sponsored by macneil/lehrer productions >> woodruff: citigroup-- one of the nation's largest banks-- will lay off more than 11,000 employees. good evening, i'm judy woodruff. >> ifill: and i'm gwen ifill. on the "newshour" tonight, we get the latest on today's announcement-- a move by the company to cut costs, increase profits an

. >> susie: good evening everyone, and happy new year. i'm susie gharib. with just hours to go a deal emerges to avert the fiscal cliff, but can congress pass the measure in time? president obama says they can, we've got the latest from washington, on what could happen before the new year's day deadline. and wall street ends the year with a rally and healthy gains. s&p strategist sam stovall joins us with where he sees stocks headed in 2013. that and more tonight on "n.b.r."! washington lawmakers are getting close to a fiscal cliff deal, but they might not get it done before the midnight deadline tonight. the senate could vote in time, but it's possible the house will wait until tuesday. that means the u.s. could go over the fiscal cliff. on wall street today, investors bought up stocks on high hopes of deal, after president obama said this afternoon a deal is "in sight," and positive comments from republican leaders in the senate. here's how e major averagesr closed on this last trading day of 2012. the dow surged 166 points, the nasdaq jumped about 60, a

. >> susie: good evening. i'm susie gharib. just 28 days to go before the fiscal cliff deadline, today house republicans sent the president a counter-offer, calling for big cuts to entitlement spending, and no new taxes on the wealthy. >> tom: i'm tom hudson. auto sales speed up in november, with buyers taking advantage of ultra-cheap financing to ditch their old cars. >> susie: ford takes the wraps off a new lincoln, taking the brand back to its heritage, but will a re-branding help rev-up sales, we ask ford c.e.o. alan mulally. >> tom: that and more tonight on "n.b.r."! after a weekend of trading accusations over the lack of progress on avoiding the fiscal cliff, both sides now have put their opening offers on the table. last week, it was treasury secretary timothy geithner meeting with top republicans. this afternoon, house speaker john boehner sketched out the g.o.p. proposal in a letter to the white house, and the proposal borrows suggestions from the president's own debt reduction commission, whose plan was ignored last y

rich, great to see you. >> great to see you, susie. >> susie: before away get into your outlook i want to ask you you what president obama said about the fiscal cliff. how do you think that will play out in the markets on monday? it is a short trading day but how do you think the investors will receive the comment? >> it received them well today. i think towards the end of the day with only a 1% sell-off in the market after a really tough overnight news from republicanes, i think he's going to putw together a little mini deal that at least investors will know that we can kick the can down the road to the first of the year, and then fight the bigger battle in january. >> susie: this doesn't change your forecast? you're calling for 10% growth on the major averages. can we really do that with all this fiscal cliff stuff hanging over us? yes, i think once we get passed washington-- i have my no shave december beard going like i did last year guys have noticed. >> that's to insurance we have a good economy and good market. we're below the street of 110 and a 15 multiple, we could see 1550 o

. >> susie: good evening everyone. i'm susie gharib. with just 15 days to go, the president and house speaker boehner, meet again for negotiations on the fiscal cliff. with new taxes for millionaires now on the table, are the talks reaching a new level? >> tom: i'm tom hudson. what happens to stock prices if we go over the cliff, what could higher taxes and government spending cuts mean for your portfolio? >> susie: and sprint agrees to pay just over $2 billion to buy the rest of cellular technology company clearwire it doesn't already own. >> tom: that and more tonight on "n.b.r."! >> susie: president obama and house speaker boehner met for new negotiations today. after the 45 minute meeting, the white house said "more needs to be done," and boehner's camp said the president is receptive to the new concessions. they include, dropping opposition to the president's demand for higher taxes on the wealthiest americans and an automatic extension of the federal debt limit. it was the third face-to-face meeting between the president and boehn

get those questions into us. >> susie: absolutely. >> susie: that's "nightly business report" for friday, november 30. we want to remind you this is the time of year your public television station seeks your support. >> tom: on behalf of your public television station, thank you for your support. good night, everyone. we'll see you online at nbr.com and back here monday night. captioning sponsored by wpbt captioned by media access group at wgbh access.wgbh.org >>> the debate over same-sex marriage in california reaches the final legal twist as the u.s. supreme court considers whether to take on proposition 8. the first three strikes prisoners are released after the passing of prop 36. the great bay

. >> susie: ford takes the wraps off a new lincoln, taking the brand back to its heritage, but will a re-branding help rev-up sales, we ask ford c.e.o. alan mulally. >> tom: that and more tonight on "n.b.r."! after a weekend of trading accusations over the lack of progress on avoiding the fiscal cliff, both sides now have put their opening offers on the table. last week, it was treasury secretary timothy geithner meeting with top republicans. this afternoon, house speaker john boehner sketched out the g.o.p. proposal in a letter to the white house, and the proposal borrows suggestions from the president's own debt reduction commission, whose plan was ignored last year. the republican letter offered $900 billion in spending cuts from program reforms to medicare and social security. the g.o.p. plan would raise $800 billion in revenues by closing loop-holes and reforming the tax code, but stops short of specifics. noticeably missing: the higher taxes on high-wage earners which president obama has insisted on. the white house responded, saying "the g.o.p. proposal does not meet the test o

>> it could be quite bad, susie. i don't think it's if we get into january and we haven't settled this but if house makers haven't nailed this down by early february, i think stock investors, bond investors will start to get very very nervous, start selling, risky businesses pull back and by the end of february when we start approaching the ceiling for the debt limit, i think we'll be back in recession. it will be a fairly severe recession. so policy makers have a few weeks but not much more than that. they have to get this together. >> susie: some people are saying that today's jobs report is very encouraging and that you can look at this as a way that maybe the economy can handle some stuff belt tightening because things are looking a little bit better. how do you think the various parties, republican and democrats will handle this jobs report in their fiscal cliff negotiations? >> well, you know, you're right. some folks look at this and say the economy's strong enough. it should be able to digest big tax increase

and that's tonight's market focus. >> susie: our word on the street tonight: dividends. investors who shy away from dividend-paying stocks next year because of higher taxes will miss some of the best income sources of 2013. so says david peltier, portfolio manager at thestreet.com. you know, dave, most people do live dividend paying stocks, but they're very worried about tim my indications of higher taxs all around, whether it's on capital gains or income taxes, so they are staying a way from dividend paying stocks. make a case of why they should buyçó them. there are a lot of choices, even now. what should investors be looking for, are there any themes in choosing the best dividend paying stocks? you have three stocks that you're going to recommend to us, the first one on the list is boeing. tell us why you like this one, even though the stock has been so-so this year. johnson and johnson on the new york stock exchange also on your buy list. tell us what attracts to you this one. david, you gave us the name of a little known company that is on your list, tell us what it