. >> tom: good evening. i'm tom hudson. with the fiscal cliff in the rear view mirror, raising the debt ceiling is washington's next big drama. we look at why its so important. >> susie: i'm susie gharib. that drama, could have a new cast member, we're learning the president will nominate jacob lew as his next treasury secretary. >> tom: and with its reputation already on the ropes, a.i.g., the big bailed-out insurer, decides against suing uncle sam. >> susie: that and more tonight on "n.b.r."! >> tom: there could soon be a new signature on the dollar bill, jacob "jack" lew is said to be the president's pick to replace treasury secretary timothy geithner. that nomination is expected tomorrow. should he be confirmed by the senate, one of lew's first challenges will be dealing with the rapidly approaching debt ceiling. darren gersh reports. >> reporter: assuming he wins senate confirmation, jacob "jack" lew will take over a treasury that is rapidly running out of cash. the federal government has already hit the debt ceiling.

. >> tom: good evening. i'm tom hudson. with the fiscal cliff in the rear view mirror, raising the debt ceiling is washington's next big drama. we look at why its so important. >> susie: i'm susie gharib. that drama, could have a new cast member, we're learning the president will nominate jacob lew as his next treasury secretary. >> tom: and with its reputation already on the ropes, a.i.g. the big bailed-out insurer decides against suing uncle sam. >> susie: that and more tonight on "n.b.r."! >> tom: there could soon be a new signature on the dollar bill, jacob "jack" lew is said to be the president's pick to replace treasury secretary timothy geithner. that nomination is expected tomorrow. should he be confirmed by the senate, one of lew's first challenges will be dealing with the rapidly approaching debt ceiling. darren gersh reports. >> reporter: assuming he wins senate confirmation, jacob "jack" lew will take over a treasury that is rapidly running out of cash. the federal government has already hit the debt ceiling. an

. >> tom: good evening, everyone. i'm tom hudson. home prices continue to climb, marking their best gains since the recession began five years ago. >> susie: i'm susie gharib. good evening. amazon shares surge to new heights after hours despite an earnings miss for the online retail giant. >> tom: and ford motor is firing on all cylinders. as strong u.s. sales help offset weakness in europe, we look at what's next for the u.s. auto maker. >> susie: that and more tonight on "n.b.r." >> tom: the u.s. housing market is building an even stronger foundation. so much so that home prices across the nation are rising at their fastest pace in more than six years. the latest data from s&p-case schiller shows prices in 20 u.s. cities in november rose 5.5% from a year ago. it was also the tenth month in a row that prices have increased, the longest stretch of gains since before the financial market started to crumble. suzanne pratt takes a look at whether the housing recovery will continue. >> reporter: mortgage broker gary leib is taking a lot

. >> tom: good evening. i'm tom hudson. apple shares get bruised in extended hours trading after good, but not great quarterly results. >> susie: i'm susie gharib. from the debt fight in washington, to europe's financial struggles, the international monetary fund cuts its global growth outlook. >> tom: struggling to sell $500 handbags, coach wants to be a lifestyle brand, we look at what's troubling the luxury goods maker. >> susie: that and more tonight on "n.b.r."! >> tom: big profits from the biggest public company in the u.s., but not big enough sales for wall street. apple sold almost $600 million a day of devices during the past three months. after the closing bell apple announced it earned $13.81 per share. that's down slightly from a year ago but well above estimates. despite a record $54.5 billion in revenues, that was just shy of expectations. >> reporter: perhaps no single company's earnings are eagerly anticipated nor as singularly important to investors as apple. it is one of the most widely owned stocks by mut

. >> tom: i'm tom hudson. uncle sam wants to make sure you can afford that home loan before you buy. new rules to protect consumers from bad mortgage lenders are on their way. >> susie: and, we look at whether new year's resolutions, to lose weight, can pump up your portfolio. >> tom: that and more tonight on "n.b.r."! >> susie: president obama named today a "low key" washington hand as his new secretary of the treasury. jacob lew is being called a man who combines tough bargaining with deep economic understanding and a commitment to protecting the safety net for the poor and the elderly. some republicans have promised to oppose lew's nomination, but most say they are reserving judgment. darren gersh has more on this pivotal player. >> reporter: the president introduced his pick for treasury secretary as a man who gets tough jobs done. and one of those jobs will be protecting programs the president supports. >> as the son of a polish immigrant, as a man of deep and devout faith, jack knows every number on a pa

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.

tom would beyond outraged. and he would have a right to that pa rental out rage. if and only if he shares this country's outrage with what the blood drenched leaders of the nr are a have done with the president's daughters. so yes, tom, it has come to this. now i'm doing what rosie was careful not to do. i'm questioning your humanity. and you are going to gives an answer one way or the other. your continued silence will tell us your just a man in makeup who plays brave men on tv. your silence will prove who you really are. there is no way out of this now tom, this is your moment you can see this i know you can. this is actually the most important moment in your public life. you've been handed the greatest scene of your life a real scene where no one else can write the words but you. you don't have to disown your philosophy about guns you don't have to change your position or any of the president's proposals but human decency demands that you step forward and at a minimum condemn what your organization has done

. >> tom: good evening. i'm tom hudson. it's one of the worst flu seasons in a decade. how all those sick days could impact a company's bottom line and the economy. >> susie: i'm susie gharib. wells fargo posts better than expected earnings. we review the results and pre- view a wave of big bank earnings coming out next week. >> tom: and boeing's 787 dreamliner undergoes a comprehensive safety review by federal regulators af(oqr severl problems surfaced this week. that and more tonight on "n.b.r." >> tom: if you are sneezing andç feverish tonight, you're not alone. the flu has officially reached epidemic proportions in the united states. the centers for disease control and prevention say more than 7% of deaths last week were caused by pneumonia and the flu. it's expected to be the worst flu season in a decade. but it's not just a public health issue, there's the potential for a real economic impact, costing employers billions of dollars. erika miller reports. >> reporter: hospitals like montefiore medical center in the bronx are reporting big spikes in flu cases. here,

have a great weekend everyone and you, too, tom. >> tom: goodnight, susie. we'll see you online at nbr.com and back here next week. captioning sponsored by wpbt captioned by media access group at wgbh access.wgbh.org >>> right now for the next four years, we're talking about a balanced budget, we're talking about living within our means. this is -- this is new. this is a breakthrough. >> governor jerry brown in the spotlight this week unveiling a new state budget projecting a surplus for the first time in five years. he's also making a dramatic call for federal officials to end their oversight of the california state prison system. >>> the obama administration is pushing for a national gun control legislation. meanwhile, a wave of new regulations has already made its way to the california legislature. including assembly member nancy skinner's bullet bill targeting ammunition sales. >>> and a massive oil tanker sideswipes the bay bridge, alarming environmentalists and prompting a federal investigation into what caused the crash. coming up next.

roslyn, let's pick up on tom's passion. he told me a couple points that are important, that is the consciousness awareness, this growing consciousness around bullying. and it's a question i guess that requires, has bullying gotten worse or have we gotten better to begin to recognize it? >> hard to know. tom and the president refer to as far too often as a rite of passage. we certainly are seeing evidence in ways that i don't recall, the levels of violence, the vitriolic violence, it's not just coming from the back of the school, it's coming at home, social media, you are inundated with it, the effects of it. we also certainly there's been an evolution of what we should tolerate. for me, for example, very early on in the administration i had the privilege of meeting with carl hoover walker's mother. he would have been 11 years old on the day that we were meeting. this was in the spring of 2009. and as she was leaving and she was talking about his death and he was one of the earliest stories that we had heard about a young pe

being treasury secretary over the next couple of years is not going to be an easy job, tom. >> tom: what do we know about lew's background, darren, that could inform us how he may treat the negotiations over the debt ceiling? >> he has been described to me as a pragmatic progressive. he has been around for 25 years in washington, and he has been involved in almost all of the major budget battles. so he is widely respected. he really knows his stuff, and he is seen as a calm but fierce negotiator. >> tom: did he play any role back in august of 2011, the last time we had this debt ceiling de back debac. >> absolutely. there were some republicans who felt that lew got the best of them. he came up with the whole scenario of sequester, which at the time was thought as equal playing. but at the time it came into play, it was seen as more beneficial to democrats. >> tom: does that spell out some already ultra hard bargaining, i suppose, on the part of the republicans, if they think lew got the best of them last time around? >> i have to say my experience has been any one individual in this town

. >> tom: i'm tom hudson. immigration reform takes shape on capitol hill. a bi-partisan framework includes a path to citizenship for the 11 million illegal immigrants in the united states. >> susie: and as u.s. investors, pull out of bonds, and pile into stocks, we talk stocks for the long-run with wharton professor jeremy siegel. >> tom: that and more tonight on "n.b.r."! >> susie: marissa meyer is smiling tonight. yahoo's new c.e.o. delivered strong earnings after the market close, and shares of the web portal surged more than 5%. those results come at a crucial time for meyer who took the top job just six months ago, and wanted to prove to investors she is reviving yahoo. the company posted fourth quarter earnings of $0.32 a share, a nickel more than expected. revenues, came in at $1.2 billion, barely above analyst estimates. >> susie: that news could set te but onadl but on wall street today, stocks struggled. the dow fell 14 points, the nasdaq rose four-and-a-half, the s&p 500 lost almost three points, breaking an eight- session winning streak. >> tom:

. >> tom: i'm tom hudson. immigration reform takes shape on capitol hill. a bi-partisan framework includes a path to citizenship for the 11 million illegal immigrants in the united states. >> susie: and as u.s. investors, pull out of bonds, and pile into stocks, we talk stocks for the long-run with wharton professor jeremy siegel. >> tom: that and more tonight on "n.b.r."! >> susie: marissa meyer is smiling tonight. yahoo's new c.e.o. delivered strong earnings after the market close, and shares of the web portal surged more than 5%. those results come at a crucial time for meyer who took the top job just six months ago, and wanted to prove to investors she is reviving yahoo. the company posted fourth quarter earnings of $0.32 a share, a nickel more than expected. revenues, came in at $1.2 billion, barely above analyst estimates. >> susie: that news could set the tone for trading tomorrow, but on wall street today, stocks struggled. the dow fell 14 points, the nasdaq rose four-and-a-half, the s&p 500 lost almost three points, breaking an eight- session winni

. >> tom: good evening, everyone. i'm tom hudson. home prices continue to climb marking their best gains since the recession began five years ago. >> susie: i'm susie gharib. good evening. amazon shares surge to new heights after hours despite an earnings miss for the online retail giant. >> tom: and ford motor is firing on all cylinders. as strong u.s. sales help offset weakness in europe, we look at what's next for the u.s. auto maker. >> susie: that and more tonight on "n.b.r." >> tom: the u.s. housing market is building an even stronger foundation. so much so that home prices across the nation are rising at their fastest pace in more than six years. the latest data from s&p-case schiller shows prices in 20 u.s. cities in november rose 5.5% from a year ago. it was also the tenth month in a row that prices have increased, the longest stretch of gains since before the financial market started to crumble. suzanne pratt takes a look at whether the housing recovery will continue. >> reporter: mortgage broker gary leib is taking a lot o

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

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. >>> tonight on "spark!" -- buckle up because you're in for a behind-the-scenes glimpse of life in the fast lane with globetrotting members of the world's artistic elite. >> hello, everybody. >> in our first story, local audiences know alonzo king as the creative force behind san francisco'slines contemporary palley. but he's also in demand from coast to coast. >> this month, i've worked with north carolina dance theater. the allin ailey company, the cedar lake ensemble, university of michigan, tisch here in new york. several other places i can't remember. >> then in our secretary story, dana dancer and choreographer fleming flindt was o

. >> tom: good evening, i'm tom hudson. norwegian cruise lines sails to big gains on its first day as a publicly traded company. we talk with c.e.o. kevin sheehan. >> susie: i'm susie gharib. that debut helps get the i.p.o. market off to a strong start for 2013, as the broader market climbs to a five-year high. >> tom: and should companies pay less attention to shareholders? whole foods c.e.o. john mackey joins us. >> susie: that and more tonight on "n.b.r." many american companies are gearing up to go public and investors are warming up to the idea of buying those shares. the success of the initial public offering of norwegian cruise lines on the nasdaq today could kick off a new wave of i.p.o.s. shares of the third largest cruise line operator in the u.s., skyrocketed more than 30%, from its $19 opening price. as erika miller reports, thanks to the bullish run in the stock market it could be full steam ahead for i.p.o.s. >> reporter: although 2012 was not exactly a banner year for initial public offerings, investment bank

. >> tom: good evening, i'm tom hudson. u.s. businesses add 155,000 jobs in december. what's ahead for hiring in 2013? >> susie: i'm susie gharib. better late than never. 11 weeks after hurricane sandy hit the east coast, congress finally signs off on $9 billion in federal aid for storm victims. and the outlook for o.j. florida's orange juice industry has seen some good weather, but a citrus disease threatens to take juice prices higher. >> susie: that and more tonight on "n.b.r." >> tom: steady as she goes, that's the latest word on the s companies kept up a consistent pace of hiring last month. employers added 155,000 new jobs to their payrolls in december. that was slightly less than expected, but close to the amount added in november. the nation's unemployment rate also held sady at 7.8% and the job gains last month were spread throughout the economy. still, there is little optimism hiring will gain much momentum this year. suzanne pratt has the story. >> reporter: 153,000-- that's the average number of jobs the economy created every month of last year. while it's

. >> tom: a full week early. and it announced a record amount of money paid out to card holders in rewards. the card spending continues, and the company has to respond with those rewards. we'll take a look at a.x. p., but let's get started with our "market focus." and stocks higher overall. today with more positive news on the u.s. job market, and encouraging trade data from china. the s&p 500 was in the green for the entire session, ending up 0.8%, just shy of a five year high. trading volume picked up to 726 million shares on the big board. over 1.7 billion shares on the nasdaq. all 10 of the major stock sectors were stronger. the financial sector led the gains, up 1.4%. energy was up 1%. and the telecommunications sector gained 0.8%. after the closing bell, the focus remains on finance. american express released its fourth quarter earnings, announcing them a week earlier than expected. earnings came in three cents per share better than expected. but the firm will cut 5,400 jobs, reducing its employee count by

>> tom: i'm tom hudson. the growing concern over america's ability to pay its i.o.u.s is turning into a debate over the definition of a "debt default." why washington's wrangling could hurt the u.s. economy. >> susie: and from chipotle to dunkin' donuts, did fast food chains meet investors' appetites for big returns? we're talking food stocks. >> tom: that and more tonight on "n.b.r."! >> tom: we begin with banking. two giant financial powerhouses reported big gains in fourth quarter earnings today. j.p. morgan chase booked its third straight year of record profits. and goldman sachs reported fourth quarter earnings that were almost triple the same period a week ago. erika miller reports. >> reporter: before we get to jp morgan's profits, let's talk about the earnings of it's c.e.o., jamie dimon. the board cut his pay in half as punishment for a more than $6 billion loss at j.p. morgan's london trading desk. but dimon will still pocket a $10 million bonus. add on $1.5 million in salary, and his total compens

. >> tom: good evening. i'm tom hudson. wall street starts the new year with a relief rally, the blue chips surge over 300 points, as washington lawmakers reach a tax deal on the fiscal cliff. >> susie: i'm susie gharib. many wall street analysts and economists warned clients about the coming debt battles in washington. we talk with maya macguineas, director of "fix the debt". >> tom: will the deal jump start spending, now that americans know their tax rates? we get the outlook for business and consumer spending. >> susie: that and more tonight on "n.b.r."! >> tom: a small deal to avoid the fiscal cliff brings a big rally to wall street. awaiting president obama's signature tonight is an agreement not to raise taxes on most americans. even though hard decisions on government spending cuts were put off, the deal over tax rates ushered in a 308 point rally for the dow jones industrial average. but as sylvia hall reports, the new session of congress beginning tomorrow faces some big decisions very soon. >> reporter: as america

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 >>> tonight on "spark" -- we meet artists who fuse genres, cultures and modes of expression in ways that are surprising and provocative. in our first story, we'll check out the growing phenomenon of muslim hip-hop. >> home of the brave, land of the free, now this i still got to see. it's not what mainstream muslims really talk about. >> they're realizing that their kids are being influenced by rap music more than anything else, including them. >>> then -- we'll visit the west marin studio of the incomparable sha sha higby, as she creates mesmerizing works of moving sculpture. >> sha sha's work is pretty unique, no one is really doing quite the same thing. ♪ >>> and finally -- worlds collide, with the punk rock orchestra. >> it's like driving a very powerful automobile. you do one little thing and 40 people respond.

. >> tom: good evening, i'm tom hudson. norwegian cruise lines sails to big gains on its first day as a publicly traded company. we talk with c.e.o. kevin sheehan. >> susie: i'm susie gharib. that debut helps get the i.p.o. market off to a strong start for 2013, as the broader market climbs to a five-year high. >> tom: and should companies pay less attention to shareholders? whole foods c.e.o. john mackey joins us. >> susie: that and more tonight on "n.b.r." many american companies are gearing up to go public and investors are warming up to the idea of buying those shares. the success of the initial public offering of norwegian cruise lines on the nasdaq today could kick off a new wave of i.p.o.s. shares of the third largest cruise line operator in the u.s., skyrocketed more than 30%, from its $19 opening price. as erika miller reports, thanks to the bullish run in the stock market it could be full steam ahead for i.p.o.s. >> reporter: although 2012 was not exactly a banner year for initial public offerings, investment bank

. >> tom: good evening. i'm tom hudson. we also meet some smaller all- american businesses surviving and thriving as the global marketplace gets more competitive. >> susie: we have that and more tonight on "n.b.r." >> tom: innovation and competitiveness. these two words attract a lot of attention by investors, business leaders and politicians as the u.s. worries about its status as a global economic leader. america has a long history as the world's leading innovator, but what will it take to remain competitive and remain a beacon of innovation? with the markets closed for the martin luther king, jr., holiday, we bring you this "n.b.r." special edition. tonight, we begin with a look at american innovation today. suzanne pratt has the story. >> reporter: the u.s. has put the world behind the wheel and an iphone in millions of pockets, but we may be losing our competitive edge. some say it's because america's fragile economy is a distraction for corporate america. others point to our inferior infrastructure and sub-par public

. >> tom: good evening, i'm tom hudson. uncle sam wants to block a $20 billion beer deal, why regulators think it's a bad idea for the makers of budweiser and corona to merge. >> susie: i'm susie gharib, stocks were red hot in january. wall street pros say that's a green light for the rest of the year, and are predicting double digit gains. >> tom: and the number of female entrepreneurs are on the rise, meet a couple of women who are getting their products in grocery stores. >> susie: that and more tonight on "n.b.r."! >> tom: a beer battle is brewing. the justice department is suing to block the $20 billion merger between anheuser busch-inbev and mexican brewer modelo. using company documents to bolster their case, justice department lawyers says the deal will lead to higher prices for popular beers like budweiser and corona. anheuser-busch inbev says it is still confident the deal will go through. as darren gersh reports, the fight could be a sign more mergers will face a tougher time in washington. >> reporter: the justi

. >> tom: tonight's "word on the street" is yahoo. nicole urken is a research associate at thestreet.com. she joins us from new york tonight. nicole, let's focus first on the core business, the underlying advertising business. interesting die cot me here, display aad revenue was down, number of ads sold for yahoo! properties was down but the price per ads were higher. do this differential for us. >> the big focus this quarter is on the core business. the honeymoon period is over for new c.e.o. marissa maher, so the business play business like you mentioned values were down. it was a one off event related to the he olim-- related to the olympics so we have to see if that quarterly strength can continues, in the sure right now. >> tom: what about on the search side, yahoo! made its name in the pregoogle days of search and search advertising. that seems to be pointed higher in the last quarter. >> yeah, search is very important. marissa maher has pointed to the fact that they have a lot of gaps to make up relative to the industry leader

. >> tom: good evening. i'm tom hudson. susie is off tonight. the nation's biggest banks move to put the housing crisis behind them, paying billions of dollars to settle claims of foreclosure abuse. with the fiscal cliff drama over for now, investors look to the market's next hurdle: earnings season. coming up: what to expect from corporate america's bottom lines. and we kick off a new series, "n.b.r.u.," our partnership with some of the nation's top universities. tonight: does maximizing shareholder value hurt the economy? that and more tonight on "n.b.r."! the nation's largest banks announced two big settlements today over the housing crisis. 10 of them are settling with federal regulators over allegations they mishandled foreclosures. and in a separate deal, bank of america and government-owned mortgage giant fannie mae settled the score over trillions of dollars worth of bad home loans. in all, the deals cost the banking industry billions of dollars, but as sylvia hall reports, they put to rest some big problems left over from the housing bu

who you rooting for, tom? >> >> tom: the 9ers. how about you? >> susie: no choice. i'm agnostic. >> tom: that is n.b.r. for tuesday night. thanks for joining us. you, too, susie. >> susie: good night, tom. thanks for watching, everyone. 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 >>> tonight on "spark!," it said that everyone has a story to tell. and tonight, we hear from a lucky few who have found ways to tell their stories and audiences to tell them to. first up, the art of extemporaneous storytelling hits the club scene at porch light theater's monthly review. >> and they're like, so what's your name, kid? i go, etienne. he goes, we got to get i was nickname. how about skeeter? >> then it's off to marin as students at tamalpais high school turn oral history into on-stage drama. >> charging to different people really fascinating, when you find that person who has an opinion that's not the norm here. >> oh, i cut that. >> and finally, we'll go backstage with c

. >> tom: good evening. i'm tom hudson. from record high unemployment in europe to political dysfunction here in the u.s., we'll talk about the biggest risks for global investors this year. >> susie: and can the man who rescued sears do it again? chairman eddie lampert tacks on c.e.o. duties at the struggling retailer. >> tom: that and more tonight on "n.b.r." >> susie: alcoa kicked off earnings season with a profit and better than expected revenues. the aluminum giant also said it expects global demand to rise by 7%. that's a slight pick up from last year. after the closing bell, alcoa said it earned six cents a share in the fourth quarter. that was right in line with analyst estimates. revenues came in stronger than expected at nearly $6 billion, but they were down a bit from a year ago. alcoa is the first dow component to report earnings, and the stock rose more than 1.5% in after hours trading. on wall street, worries about earnings season took stocks lower for a second straight session. adding to the dow's losses, a bi