Economics & Oil Have Stocks Sliding In The Right Direction
The True Stars of The 527 Ads
Road To The White House-Oregon & Tax Cuts
"Money File"-To Buy Bonds Or Not To Buy Bonds
The Last Word: Athens Gets An Olympic Sized Reality Check
Paul Kangas' Stocks In The News
Market Stats

SUSIE GHARIB: Oil prices fell below $44 and Wall Street gushed. The Dow rose 83 points to its highest level in six weeks and the NASDAQ gained 23 points. Investors turned bullish after oil prices tumbled 4 percent, hoping that prices have stabilized. Meanwhile, two economic reports sent mixed signals on the economy. Here's Scott Gurvey with a look at what all these developments mean.

SCOTT GURVEY, NIGHTLY BUSINESS REPORT CORRESPONDENT: A sharp decline in oil futures triggered the big gain for stocks today. The move came in reaction to reports that oil and gas inventories are higher than expected. The Energy Department reported that crude inventories are well above levels of one and two years ago. Gasoline supplies rose for the week ending August 20th, according to the American Petroleum Institute. Most analysts expected to see a decline. Higher energy prices had been blamed for a decline in consumer spending, so today's reports raised hopes for a better back- to-school shopping season. But while the news on the energy front was bullish, the news from other economic fronts was not. The Commerce Department reported that durable goods orders were up 1.7 percent in July, but virtually all of the increase was due to the sale of civilian aircraft. That indicates weakness in the other parts of the factory sector, although some see bright spots in the inventory part of the report.

DREW MATUS, SENIOR MARKET ECONOMIST, LEHMAN BROTHERS: With the exception of aircraft, the economy remained in a soft spot in July. However, it tells us that looking forward, because of what happened with unfilled inventories, unfilled shipments, inventories, that the future looks better than June and July looked.

GURVEY: Also today it was reported that the sale of new homes unexpectedly fell by 6.4 percent in July. There was also a big downward revision to the sales report for June. New home sales have now declined for two months in a row, indicating a slowdown from a torrid rate of growth.

KEVIN LOGAN, ECONOMIST, DRESDNER KLEINWORT WASSERSTEIN: Mortgage interest rates are still quite low. The average 30-year mortgage rate is still close to about 6 percent. So it's likely that home sales will maintain this high level. But growing even more from here seems less likely. That's perhaps the information we saw in the July report with that steep decline.

GURVEY: In spite of today's economic reports, Fed watchers say they still expect the central bank raise interest rates when it meets next on September 21. Scott Gurvey, NIGHTLY BUSINESS REPORT, New York.

Nightly Business Report transcripts are available on-line post broadcast. The program is transcribed by eMediaMillWorks. Updates may be posted at a later date. The views of our guests and commentators are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Community Television Foundation of South Florida, Inc. Nightly Business Report, or WPBT. Information presented on Nightly Business Report is not and should not be considered as investment advice. Copyright (c) 2004 Community Television Foundation of South Florida, Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Terms of use.

08/25/04: The True Stars of The 527 Ads

PAUL KANGAS: A top lawyer in President Bush's reelection campaign quit that post today. Benjamin Ginsberg stepped down after disclosing he provided legal advice to a group questioning Democrat John Kerry's record in Vietnam. That group, Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, is what's known as a 527 group. As Stephanie Woods reports, it and similar soft-money groups are taking center stage in this election season.

STEPHANIE WOODS, NIGHTLY BUSINESS REPORT CORRESPONDENT: These ads are paid for by the Progress for America Voter Fund, a group of wealthy Bush supporters. The fund is what's called a 527, named for the IRS code under which they are formed. 527s have catapulted onto the political stage since the campaign finance law was enacted two years ago. For example, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce is behind the newly formed November fund that plans to attack Democratic vice president nominee John Edwards on liability reform. Fund co-chair Bill Brock says Republicans need to counter spending by Democrats.

BILL BROCK, CO-CHAIR, THE NOVEMBER FUND: We've got to respond, but we're not going to respond in the same way. We're not going to play that game. We're going to have ads that discuss the issue on its merits. We're going to talk about its effect on business, on workers, on men, women, families, and then hopefully we'll elect some people that will vote to change things next year.

WOODS: 527 groups will spend more than $200 million in this election. Much of the funding has come from wealthy individuals. Financier George Soros alone has donated more than $12 million to liberal 527s. By focusing on issues, 527s can avoid limits on fundraising. Supporters of campaign finance reform want the Federal Election Commission to enforce those restrictions on 527s that aim to elect one party.

TREVOR POTTER, CAMPAIGN LEGAL FUND: They ought to be using only hard money -- no corporate money, no labor money and only $5,000 from an individual. But so far the Federal Election Commission has not been enforcing the law and has been allowing these groups to use unlimited contributions from any source for these political ads.

WOODS: But the Federal Election Commission has signaled it won't make changes before this election. Still, some analysts say the influence of 527s may be overstated.

NORMAN ORNSTEIN. POLITICAL ANALYST, AMERICAN ENTERPRISE INSTITUTE: At some point along the way, each side is going to have at least as many headaches from their own allies in these 527 groups, because they are stepping on or contradicting the messages they want to get out, as they will feel relief at the extra assistance that will be provided.

WOODS: The cloud of 527s may be unique to this election. The courts or the Federal Election Commission could crack down on how the groups raise and spend money before the elections in 2006. Stephanie Woods, NIGHTLY BUSINESS REPORT, Washington.

Nightly Business Report transcripts are available on-line post broadcast. The program is transcribed by eMediaMillWorks. Updates may be posted at a later date. The views of our guests and commentators are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Community Television Foundation of South Florida, Inc. Nightly Business Report, or WPBT. Information presented on Nightly Business Report is not and should not be considered as investment advice. Copyright (c) 2004 Community Television Foundation of South Florida, Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Terms of use.

08/25/04: Road To The White House-Oregon & Tax Cuts

SUSIE GHARIB: For months, President Bush has been traveling the country talking about one issue: how his tax cuts have helped the economy. Taxes are one issue where George Bush and John Kerry have their deepest differences. So how is the tax cut issue playing out? Will it change votes? As we continue or coverage of the road to the White House, Darren Gersh gets some answers in the battleground state of Oregon.

DARREN GERSH, NIGHTLY BUSINESS REPORT CORRESPONDENT: Most businesses in Oregon are small businesses like Integrated Data Concepts. In this quiet neighborhood, Portland business owner Dave Lister develops custom software to help retailers track sales. A self-described business activist, Lister also keeps close track of his tax bills, which is one key reason why, despite his reservations on foreign policy and the deficit, Lister says he'll be voting for the president in November. The Bush tax cuts, he says, have been especially important to small business.

DAVE LISTER, CO-FOUNDER, INTEGRATED DATA CONCEPTS: Thanks to the Bush tax cut, we were pretty much in a break- even situation, a lot of us.

GERSH: Break-even because Lister says the Federal tax cuts offset his rising state and local tax bills. Last year voters in Multnomah County approved a temporary county income tax. But the first tax bills came due this spring, taking many voters here by surprise. Now Lister is working on a ballot initiative to repeal that tax hike.

LISTER: So all the households in Multnomah County received bills on April 15th of $300, $400, $500, pulling $115 million roughly directly out of the economy.

GERSH: A tax backlash has been gathering strength here in Oregon for at least the last two years. In the last statewide election, voters soundly rejected tax increases, which is why Oregon may be a key test for how the president's anti-tax message plays in a battleground state. Polls show taxes are an important issue for the one in five voters in Oregon who call themselves independents. The problem for the president, says tax activist Russ Walker, is most of those independents lean Democratic.

RUSS WALKER, DIR., OREGON CITIZENS FOR A SOUND ECONOMY: They also, at least for the last couple of years, don't like the idea of raising taxes. They're afraid of it. Now, whether or not they link that directly to jobs creation is another question and whether or not the president can convince them that they should support him, a Republican and he can do a better job of creating jobs is really the ultimate question.

GERSH: The Kerry campaign argues the president will have a tough time making the connection between tax cuts and growth. Last year, Oregon had the highest unemployment rate in the nation.

PAIGE RICHARDSON, OREGON DIRECTOR, KERRY-EDWARDS 2004: Folks are really feeling squeezed, and so they are ready to make a change. The Bush administration, the current administration, had four years to get this done and have not.

GERSH: Still, the tax issue is a powerful one here. Tom Kelly owns a remodeling business and is supporting the Kerry campaign. But even he says the Bush tax cut is helping the local economy in the short run, although Kelly says he's concerned about deficits down the road.

TOM KELLY. PRES., NEIL KELLY DESIGNERS/REMODELERS: I'm not one who believes that that was when we have an out-of-balance spending, when we're cutting taxes dramatically and not controlling spending. I think long term the tax cuts are going to do more damage than they are going to do help for our economy.

GERSH: Pollster Tim Hibbitts thinks the real problem for the president in Oregon is that issues like tax cuts are likely to be swamped by voter concern over Iraq and America's role in the world.

TIM HIBBITTS, POLLSTER, DAVIS, HIBBITTS & MIDGHALL: They're simply saying, we've got so much on the plate; I can't think about these other things right now.

GERSH: But the Bush campaign wants to remind Oregon voters that tax cuts have helped create 22,000 jobs here since last year. And the campaign sees ballot initiatives opposing tax increases as a sign that many Oregon voters have had enough.

MOLLY BORDONARO, NW REGIONAL CHAIR, BUSH-CHENEY '04: I believe it will make a difference. Senator Kerry has pledged to raise taxes; President Bush has cut taxes three times. And for Oregonians, who are very strong anti-tax voters, that will make a difference on Election Day.

GERSH: The question is how much of a difference? In 2000, George Bush lost Oregon by less than 7,000 votes. Darren Gersh, NIGHTLY BUSINESS REPORT, Portland.

Nightly Business Report transcripts are available on-line post broadcast. The program is transcribed by eMediaMillWorks. Updates may be posted at a later date. The views of our guests and commentators are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Community Television Foundation of South Florida, Inc. Nightly Business Report, or WPBT. Information presented on Nightly Business Report is not and should not be considered as investment advice. Copyright (c) 2004 Community Television Foundation of South Florida, Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Terms of use.

08/25/04: "Money File"-To Buy Bonds Or Not To Buy Bonds

SUSIE GHARIB: In the "money file" tonight, it's a question every investor faces: should I buy bonds? But while the question may be simple, the answer isn't. Here's Harriet Johnson Brackey, personal finance columnist for the "Miami Herald."

HARRIET JOHNSON BRACKEY, PERSONAL FINANCE COLUMNIST, THE MIAMI HERALD: This summer, bonds are the roller coasters of the investment world. They offer plenty of unexpected ups and downs. One of the rules of the bond market is supposed to be that when interest rates go up, bonds go down. But by mid-August, as rates were rising, bond mutual funds were actually up. As a group, they're ahead of stocks. Another rule is: when rates rise, investors should stay short. Long-term bonds will suffer the most. But if you'd put your money into the shortest-term bond funds at the start of this year, you'd be way behind long-term corporate bond funds by now. What's up? Well, the Fed did raise rates-- short-term rates-- and those bonds have suffered; they're down. But other bonds haven't gone the same way. Investors don't see too much inflation ahead, and the economy's growth is slowing. That's been good for long-term bonds. This summer, the conventional wisdom didn't work. With bonds, it pays off, I think, to not try to be too smart. If you stick to a mix of short to intermediate-term bonds, you'll make more than in the money markets and you'll have some protection, no matter what rates do. After all, bonds are supposed to take the volatility out of your portfolio, not add to it. For ups and downs, roller coasters are much more fun. I'm Harriet Johnson Brackey.

Nightly Business Report transcripts are available on-line post broadcast. The program is transcribed by eMediaMillWorks. Updates may be posted at a later date. The views of our guests and commentators are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Community Television Foundation of South Florida, Inc. Nightly Business Report, or WPBT. Information presented on Nightly Business Report is not and should not be considered as investment advice. Copyright (c) 2004 Community Television Foundation of South Florida, Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Terms of use.

08/25/04: The Last Word: Athens Gets An Olympic Sized Reality Check

SUSIE GHARIB: While the Olympics in Athens seem to be a ringing success for NBC television, the games are turning out to be the economic equivalent of a ringing cash register for Greece. Reuters is reporting that new estimates out today say the total cost of hosting the Olympics will come close to $10 billion euros. That's just over $12 billion, U.S. and more than double the original target. The cost of security and higher-than-expected construction costs are the two biggest factors jacking up the price tag. As you know, Paul, construction ran behind schedule and there was a last-minute push to get things done before the games started and that's what's behind that big bill.

KANGAS: Well, it looks like they're finishing well in the gold.

GHARIB: Yes, they are.

Nightly Business Report transcripts are available on-line post broadcast. The program is transcribed by eMediaMillWorks. Updates may be posted at a later date. The views of our guests and commentators are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Community Television Foundation of South Florida, Inc. Nightly Business Report, or WPBT. Information presented on Nightly Business Report is not and should not be considered as investment advice. Copyright (c) 2004 Community Television Foundation of South Florida, Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Terms of use.

08/25/04: "'Paul Kangas' Stocks In The News

PAUL KANGAS: The day started on the downside on Wall Street, as crude prices initially headed higher on those declining inventories. That drop in new home sales also helped send the Dow off about 20 points and the NASDAQ down five points at the outset. But stocks rallied when investors focused on steady gasoline inventories. So as oil futures fell this afternoon, stocks staged a nice rally. The Dow Industrial Average closed up 83 points at 10,181.74. The NASDAQ Composite was up 23.83, ending at 1860.72. Standard & Poor's 500 Index was up 8 3/4 points closing at 1104.96. In the bond market, the 10-year note rose 3/32 to 99 28/32, putting the yield at 4.27 percent.

Now let's take a look at the rest of our stocks in the news tonight.

Most active issue on the New York exchange, trading 14.5 million shares, Lucent Technologies (LU) moving up a dime.

General Electric (GE) a $0.16 gainer.

Pfizer (PFE) rose $0.38.

Texas Instruments (TXN) $0.34 rise.

Qwest Communications (Q) fifth in big board volume, was up a nickel a share.

Then the Gap (GPS) down $0.40. Merrill Lynch downgraded it from "buy" to "neutral" on concerns that a sales slowdown in recent months may continue into the fall season.

J.P. Morgan Chase (JPM) up $0.85.

Corning (GLW) down $0.21.

NorTel Networks (NT) rose $0.06, tenth in volume.

Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) $0.42 rise.

H&R Block (HRB) fell $2.78. The company in with a first quarter loss of $0.26 a share. The Street was expecting a loss, but only about a nickel and that's versus earnings of $0.03 last year. Revenues dropped 2.6 percent in the period. The company cited lower mortgage related income along with expansion costs for the lower situation.

CONSOL Energy (CNX) down $2.95. The company cut its previous third quarter estimate of earnings of $0.05 to $0.10, down to a loss of $0.30 to $0.40 because of a production shortfall.

Sabre Holdings (TSG), the airline reservation firm, down $1.84. As we told you yesterday, Northwest Air is going to levy fees on tickets booked on the company's system. Now analysts fear other airlines might follow Northwest's lead.

Williams-Sonoma (WSM), the housewares company up $3.14. Second quarter earnings, $0.23, well above last year's $0.15 and $0.04 better than the Street estimate. Revenues up a respectable 19 percent and the company boosted its full year guidance.

Banknorth Group (BNK) up $3.18. Toronto Dominion Bank said it's in the final stages of talks to take a controlling interest in this firm in a deal worth about $3.5 billion.

Nucor Corporation (NUE), the steel maker, $0.91 loss, traded as low as $78.21 today after Goldman Sachs downgraded it from "outperform" to just "in line" purely on a valuation basis. Goldman Sachs feels the stock is a bit expensive at this level.

Harrah's Entertainment (HET) moved up $1.40 after KeyBanc brokerage upgraded it from "buy" to "aggressive buy."

And then Pope & Talbot (POP) in the pulp and lumber business, was downgraded by Deutsche Bank Securities from "buy" to just a "hold" rating.

Hughes Supply (HUG) down $3.49. The construction materials company said second quarter earnings were $1.27, well above $0.80 last year, but it sees third quarter earnings dropping to $0.98 to $1.03. The company also says growth in some of its sectors may have peaked out in the second quarter.

NASDAQ's most active, Microsoft (MSFT) moved up $0.31.

Followed by Intel (INTC), $0.28 rise.

eBay (EBAY) doing well, up $1.79.

Cisco Systems (CSCO) $0.35 gain there.

Applied Materials (AMAT) up $0.33, fifth in dollar volume.

Google (GOOG) on the rise again, up $1.13 today to $106 even.

Yahoo! (YHOO) $0.96 rise.

And then Research In Motion (RIMM) gained $1.12.

Broadcom (BRCM) moving up $0.85.

And QUALCOMM (QCOM) was up $0.38, a lot of gainers in that active list.

Ditech Communications (DITC) up $2.68. Company in with first quarter earnings of $0.30 a share versus a loss of $0.32 last year and the First Albany brokerage repeated a "strong buy" on Ditech.

ADE Corporation (ADEX), a $3.26 rise. This company supplies chip inspection systems and first quarter earnings $0.35, up from $0.13 last year and it says second quarter earnings will be better than first quarter likely.

TESSCO Technologies (TESS) down $2.17. The Baird brokerage lowered its fourth quarter revenue forecast and earnings on concern about a possible loss of its contract with T Mobile.

And SeaChange International (SEAC) down $1.42. After the close yesterday, the company said third quarter earnings would be about the same as the second quarter, which came in at $0.12 a share.

And those are the stocks in the news tonight.

Nightly Business Report transcripts are available on-line post broadcast. The program is transcribed by eMediaMillWorks. Updates may be posted at a later date. The views of our guests and commentators are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Community Television Foundation of South Florida, Inc. Nightly Business Report, or WPBT. Information presented on Nightly Business Report is not and should not be considered as investment advice. Copyright (c) 2004 Community Television Foundation of South Florida, Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Terms of use.

08/25/04: Market Stats

				      NET    PERCENT
                         CLOSE     CHANGE     CHANGE



DOW CLOSE             10181.74     +83.11       + .8
HIGH                                        10199.21
LOW                                         10068.11

NASDAQ COMP.           1860.72     +23.83       +1.3
HIGH                                         1861.79
LOW                                          1830.30

VOLUME                                       1,192.1
PREVIOUS                                     1,093.0
UP VOLUME                                      879.5
DOWN VOLUME                                    297.8

DOW TRANSPORTS         3114.00     +11.83       + .4
DOW UTILITIES           286.67       +.93       + .3
CLOSING TICK                                    +712

S&P 500                1104.96      +8.77       + .8
S&P 100                 539.57      +4.59       + .9
MIDCAP 400              575.93      +5.27       + .9
REUTERS/CRB             272.05      -2.22       - .8

NYSE COMPOSITE         6431.79     +49.28       + .8
VALUE LINE              350.33      +2.87       + .8
RUSSELL 2000            550.14      +5.13       + .9
DJW 5000              10723.69     +85.32       + .8

U.S. TREASURIES
5-YEAR NOTE 3.625%
July 15,2009         100  7/32      unch.     + 3.46

10-YEAR NOTE 4.75%
May 15,2014           99 28/32      +3/32     + 4.27

30-YEAR NOTE 5.375%
Feb. 15, 2031        104 24/32      +9/32     + 5.05

LEHMAN BROS.
LONG BOND INDEX        1731.54      +2.92


DOW CLOSE             10181.74     +83.11       + .8
ADVANCES                                        2334
DECLINES                                         999
NEW HIGHS                                        105
NEW LOWS                                          16

                                      NET    PERCENT
NYSE MOST ACTIVES    4PM CLOSE     CHANGE     CHANGE
LU    Lucent Tech         3.17       +.10       +3.3
GE    GE                 32.79       +.16        +.5
PFE   Pfizer             31.91       +.38       +1.2
TXN   Texas Instrument   20.03       +.34       +1.7
Q     Qwest Comms Intl    2.75       +.05       +1.9
GPS   Gap Inc            19.52       -.40       -2.0
JPM   JPMorgan Chase     39.44       +.85       +2.2
GLW   Corning Inc        10.26       -.21       -2.0
NT    Nortel Networks     4.01       +.06       +1.5
HPQ   Hewlett-Packard    18.10       +.42       +2.4

NASDAQ CLOSE           1860.72    + 23.83      + 1.3
VOLUME                                       1,320.9
PREVIOUS                                     1,310.5
ADVANCES                                        2059
DECLINES                                         989

NASDAQ ACTIVES
MSFT  Microsoft          27.55       +.31       +1.1
INTC  Intel              21.95       +.28       +1.3
EBAY  eBay               85.66      +1.79       +2.1
CSCO  Cisco Systems      19.32       +.35       +1.9
AMAT  Applied Matl       16.26       +.33       +2.1
GOOG  Google            106.00      +1.13       +1.1
YHOO  Yahoo!             29.37       +.96       +3.4
RIMM  Rsch In Motion     63.37      +1.12       +1.8
BRCM  Broadcom Corp      29.81       +.85       +2.9
QCOM  Qualcomm           38.32       +.38       +1.0

AMEX CLOSE             1217.33     + 3.60       + .3

INDEX SHARES
DIA   DIAMONDS TRUST    101.88       +.68        +.7
QQQ   NASDAQ 100         34.57       +.49       +1.4
SPY   S&P DEP.RECEIPTS  111.04       +.69        +.6

STOCKS IN THE NEWS

HRB   H & R Block        48.45      -2.78       -5.4
CNX   CONSOL Energy      30.34      -2.95       -8.9
TSG   Sabre Holdings     22.43      -1.84       -7.6
WSM   Williams Sonoma    34.64      +3.14      +10.0
BNK   Banknorth Group    34.88      +3.18      +10.0
NUE   Nucor Corp         79.92       -.91       -1.1
HET   Harrahs Entertain  46.75      +1.40       +3.1
POP   Pope & Talbot      19.32      -1.07       -5.3
HUG   Hughes Supply      58.21      -3.49       -5.7
DITC  Ditech Comms       20.93      +2.68      +14.7
ADEX  ADE Corp           18.71      +3.26      +21.1
TESS  Tessco Tech        11.28      -2.17      -16.1
SEAC  SeaChange Intl     15.96      -1.42       -8.2