Numbers for july auto sales. Some under pressure today. Well bring you those numbers as soon as they cross the tape, kelly. Also, coming up from atlanta, over the next two hours, ceo of home depot, initiated that stock with a buy and shares at an alltime high and the cfo of u. P. S. And delta with that stock going the other way, dropping on the back of weak passenger revenue numbers out this morning and an exclusive interview with Dennis Lockhart. A lot to get to over the next couple of hours but lets start with the markets and Closing Bell Exchange today, we have jeff reeves, steve grasso sitting next to me at post nine and Rick Santelli checks in from chicago. Steve, so we mentioned seven consecutive declines for the dow and finally, this is the first meaningless selloff. Whats going on here . I feel like everyone so focused on the fed and so focused on a bunch of other things, earnings, obviously, for the right reasons. But now, you looked at the italian banks, those were in full focus this morning. Japan, whether it was a lackluster Stimulus Program that they were working on. You would think they have it down to a science by now, right . So, and i think the big catalyst is oil. I think oil falling off the table today was a little bit shocking to the overall market. You have nigeria back online and libya and canada coming back online. Theres a lot of things to support the supply glut and spooked the market. Jeff reeves, we are seeing the yields globally moving higher especially in japan and could be a number of reasons why thats happening but do you think it persists and see things drift up more than so far the small move . Short term maybe a little but, you know, i think its difficult to believe anything happens to force the Interest Rate environment higher in the western world or in japan any time in the near future. It is just not where Monetary Policy is headed and big demand for the safe haven assets and continue to see yields under pressure long term. Maybe a little bit of a rise in short term but i dont anticipate anything to go much of anywhere. What do you think, rick . Earlier today art cashin called it a global reassessment of Interest Rates seeing the yields rise and we have come back in the 10year. What do you see going on here . I think, unfortunately, i have to agree with jeff on this one. Listen. Everybody was on side of the ship. What we learned from the first chapter of the relative value trade was when europe rates dropping we were glued at the hip. Well, the japanese rates moved up 23 basis points in a matter of several trading sessions from minus 30 in the 10year to around minus 06, 07 where it is now. Everybody on the ship front learning. They lernled it from the ecb and made a lot of money doing it but retribution was swift and fast and i think conventional wisdom fell in on the weight of itself and what we experienced today in the last couple of days. But as jeff pointed out just because didnt add to the stimulus, didnt lower Interest Rates doesnt mean they have seen the light even though we all wish they would with regard to negative rates. But theres a lot of talk and we continue to see the markets influence by some of the bigger thinkers. I would point out that the drop in equities also put a little bid back in the treasury market. Boon yields still havent gone, what . One settlement positive down to three decimal points about two weeks ago so its been five weeks since a real close in positive territory. We need to monitor that and lets not forget you get a lot of volatility in treasures with supplies and everybodys reading the text, for second day of august, we have a boat load of aggressive supply yesterday alone was 23 billion with a b. You know, steve, what are you listening for with all of this going on speaking to dennis l k lockhart in just a bit . It is odd to me because we were so focused, myopic on the fed and now moving away from the fed, realizing that they cant or wont raise rates and maybe its a longer, you know, a time horizon for it. I think if you really look at the market, the market good friend of mine derek says flat is the new down. We are not down 1 and the marketplace and everyone feels like everyones throwing the market out of bed. I think you have to look at the dividend plays. People are going to be looking at utilities, staples and everything that they thought they were throwing out because of m a probably going to gobble up. Goldfish, we adapt to whatever size tub were in right now an its been a pretty small one here, jeff. Do you we make much of a small move right now, you know, its been go with the cyclicals that seem to be coming back or go with the yielding stocks, defensive plays. Where do you find opportunities in the market right now . Yeah, right now i agree with the notion that technology has a little bit more upside. Im personally not buying utilities with a forward earnings multiple of 20. Theres a couple i would. Facebook is far and away one of the best companies to own right now and be realistic about what people get in this market. Mckenzie said for 20 years investors temper expectations. We wont see 9 , 10 annual returns. We are not. So i think this kind of churn we see maybe it is a little bit of that whole mentality that flat is the new down and everyones upset or wrapped around the axle in the short term. Things are not necessarily doom and gloom with 5 to 7 instead of 7 to 10 a year and feels like it should be more. We want it to be more and take the opportunities where you can find them. Im not saying its facebook or some of the other Technologies Companies going to give you a doubler but you got to take what the market gives you in situations like this and you can do worse than 12 a year. I was just going do say if you go back to the crisis, people thought theres a new permanently lower plateau for the u. S. Stock market and continues to rally and defie expectations or calls for its death and thats true for a lot of individual companies, too. Doesnt seem like theres really any change today relative to already the dramatic environments we have been through, right . Yeah. I agree with that. I think thats the important thing to remember. Im not saying the world is perfect out there. We have a complex Global Economy and the kind of two steps forward, one step back, this is the story we have seen since 2009 and taking a step back, a lot of times people jump on it, really upset. 1. 2 gdp growth and then, you know, jobs come roaring back. Gdp improves a little bit. Jeff, jeff, jeff central bankers are giving you equity return and it has a price. Okay . And the price is productivitpro the bad regulation. Theres no way to make 1. 2 look good. Period. It isnt good. Just because its better than everybody else it isnt good and the problem is investors arent going to get used to 1. 2 growth and theyre going to show that at the ballot box. Its just a smaller Goldfish Bowl i was talking about. Kel kelly . They have gotten used to it and flooded so many people into the equity markets and thats why the equity markets will not crack. And to jeffs point, 20 times on utilities, maybe thats not the right multiple to look at but a multiple expansion and the fed mushed everyone into the same boat. Thats right. They left only one tunnel open and it was to your exchange, buddy. Thats right. I have an easy pass. Whats the alternative, though . None. Should the fed just raise rates 200 basis points . Why do the fed that certainly could help. That would do the trick. You would see everybody jumping into the Housing Market because they dont think rates go up in anybodys lifetime. Yes, exactly, thats exactly what they should did. You dont think it makes people conserve capital more . This is supposed to get people old people. All that capital theyve preserved. Their savings financed the experiment. We did your method. Its a failed policy. We have already done your way so whats the alternative . We have to go at this point, guys. Alternative is do something new. Raise rarts. Everybody get together for lunch. Id love to see this conversation continue here but we cant right now. It will be free probably. Yes. There are free lunches out there somewhere. Moving on, president obama going after donald trump today one day after the billionaire investor Warren Buffett challenged trump to release the tax returns. John harwood has the latest developments of the campaign trail today. John . Bill, Donald Trumps been in some significant fights lately, maybe not as intense as the one you were just presiding over a moment ago but hes been in an argument with khan the gold star parent, an argument with Warren Buffett challenging him to return the tax returns. Today, the president of the United States jumped in. Heres what he had to say about Donald Trumps fitness to serve as president. I think the republican nominee is unfit to serve as president. I said so last week. And he keeps on proving it. There has to come a point at which you say, somebody who makes those kinds of statements doesnt have the judgment, the temperament, the understanding to occupy the most powerful position in the world. Now, donald trump fired back in an interview just a few moments ago on the Great Television broadcasting company. He said that president obama would go down as one of the worst president s in American History and he would take the president s condemnation as a sign of honor. Guys . Thats exactly what i was going to ask, john. I mean, the fact that president obama thinks that donald trump is unfit may only increase trumps appeal to some voter who is like him here. Well, thats possible. But remember, the president of the United States has an Approval Rating of 51 and we have seen in the last few days the polls have turned sharply against donald trump. Dont know if thats going to persist but donald trump has not been winning the argument in recent days. The side president obama is on is making headway in the arguments. All right, john. Thanks. Well see you later. Those polls, we love them. We hate them. We cant live without them. Thats for sure. We have 50 minutes to go in this session today. And, bill, how are the markets looking . Well, as we mentioned, we have been lower today and we are off the lows right now. The dow was down 157 points at the low, down 104 right now the s p down 15. The nasdaq snapping a fiveday winning streak down 43 points right now, kelly. All right. There we go. We have a lineup of heavy hitters coming up for you live from the Metro Atlanta chamber. Top executives of home depot, u. P. S. And dell they airlines speak with us exclusively about the Biggest Challenges facing their company and Dennis Lockhart tells us how many Interest Rates hikes he expects this year and the ceo of Atlanta Falcons, rap star ludicrus and Jermaine Dupri stops by. Thats live coming up on the closing bell. My mom lov giving me advice. She even gives me advice. About my toothpaste and mouthwash. But shes a dentist so. I kind of have to listen. She said jen, go pro with crest prohealth advanced. Advance to healthier gums. And stronger teeth from day one. Using crest toothpaste and mouthwash makes my. Whole mouth feel awesome. And my teeth are stronger too. Crestpro health advanced. Is superior to colgate total. In these 5 areas dentists check. This check up . So good. Go pro with crest prohealth advanced. Moms right. Again welcome back. Story were following right now, biogen shares spiking on the report that merck and allergan may be eyeing the bio tech giant as a takeover target. This as the Big Pharmaceutical Companies continue to search for new avenues of Revenue Growth and biogen is at the peak or at the highest level today, up 10 right now, kelly. Big boon for wall street there, too. Big deal that would be. Home depot with alltime today after a buy on the stock setting a bullish case. Shares at 137. Joining us now in atlanta is home depot chairman and ceo craig minier. Good to see you again. Good to see you. You have a high class problem. Your shares trade at alltime highs and must be encouraging on some level how do you kind of move forward from here able to show people growth in an environment where you have amazon, you know, dramatic changes in the way people are buying homes and how long theyre living in them . Whats the strategy for home depot Going Forward . Well, weve been fortunate in a space customers are willing to spend, clearly. Willing to spend on their homes. The housing environment has been a tail wind for us for about 24 months. And it really revolves around home value appreciation, housing turnover and household formation. All of those have helped our business. Those are three things people are worried about for a while. What does that tell us about millennials or the economy . Whens going on here . Again, i think, you know, overall environment and housing hand been good. When you think about the millennials and where it goes from here, we see some positive signs as it relates to millennials, as well. So, weve done a lot of work and a lot of study about the millennial generation. Theyre now the largest generation. Right . And what we see in everything that we have researched is theyre going to follow previous generations. Its kind of a sixyear delayed process. So if i in the past by now would have already been living in the house in the suburbs now youre saying its just add six years and still going to see the exact same kind of behavior . Pretty much. If you look at whens happened over the past several quarters, about 35 of all new household formation in terms of homes has been coming from the tail end of the millennial group. Bill . 34. Yeah. Craig, Bill Griffeth here at hq. I keep reading about one of the problems of the Housing Market is builders arent building enough new homes right now. Not enough people wanting to buy the firsttime home and people are not selling their home. Theyre kind of hunkering down. That would seem to help your business. I mean, is that a benefit to you guys to have people staying in place rather than wanting to move and fixing up what they have and how long do you expect that to last . Well, bill, i think it is a positive factor. If people arent moving, theyre clearly investing in their homes. Theres about 4. 6 months supply on the market right now which is below the historical norm of about 6 months. I think thats been a factor that has helped with home value appreciation which, you know, that is a project driver. No doubt about it. So we definitely have seen a benefit from that. And home value appreciation is expected to continue for several years. One of the positive things that the Analyst Community cited with home despoe the way you held off competition of amazon and bulked up the ecommerce and changed the store experience a little bit. What changes are we likely to see at home depot in the new retail environment . Well, last time you and i were together here in atlanta, you were in one of our facilities. Our direct fulfillment d. C. S. We have completed that network and so were running with a capability of shipping direct to home with parcel shipment. In 48 hours or less for about 90 of the u. S. Population. Youll see us continue to invest to allow for a seamless experience for the customer whether they start their shopping process online and finish in store or vice versa. We know that the customers blending the new customers. Not just the customer doing things at home and a big part of the push is do it for me category with the pro services that you offer alongside just some of the traditional merchandise. So hows that going to continue to evolve . We have a great opportunity to continue to grow the business with the pro customers. We have an aging population base and more people are choosing either a pro or home depot through our Services Business to have it done for them. So thats an opportunity for growth for us Going Forward. And finally, you know, a lot of people are concerned about growth broadly speaking in this environment. We have an election coming up that plenty of people are uncomfortable. Theres uncertainty in trying to get a read on the consumer is tough so while youre in a category with positive momentum behind it what do you think is going on in terms of at your stores, the kind of confidence people have, the ways in which theyre spending . What can you tell us about the environment out there . Well, if you look at what we have reported in the last several quarters, our strength really is across the store. Its across the store and its across geographies. So we really dont see at this point customers concerned about that. At all . Not at all. Not about politics . Not about the economy . I mean, are things in america doing much better than certainly a lot of the rhetoric would often seem to suggest then . If you look at it, we have steady growth. Not robust growth but steady growth coupled with tail winds of housing. People are willing to invest in our space. And as we look over the business for the past several quarters, we have seen gwth in both large ticket, both in transacti transactions, growth in small ticket, the customers been shopping across the store and really the geography variations havent been that significant. Returning a lot of capital to shareholders, too. We are. Another reason why the stock continues to move higher. Craig, thank you for joining us. You bet. Ceo and chairman of home depot. Sfwhil. All right. Thank you, kelly. 40 minutes left in the trading session here. A down day on wall street. Coming up, more from atlanta, the president of the atlanta fed giving us his exclusive take on how many Interest Rate hikes he is expecting this year. Its more than a lot of people are expecting. Then Outgoing New York City Police co