Transcripts For KQEH Nightly Business Report 20150203 : vima

Exactly where january left off. With big swings and tripledigit moves. For much of the day the focus was on energy. The third consecutive day of gains, tacking on 11 in that period its best threeday gain since july of 2012. Some of the late day gain attributed to hopes overseas. The s p rose 25. As for crude, prices near 50 a barrel settling at 49. 57. Brent was also higher. Energy companies rallied alongside those increase in oil prices makesing exxon mobile and chevron the best two stocks in the Dow Jones Industrial average. Exxon mobil was the latest Big Oil Company to report its earnings. The results were sur jackie dangelis has more. Reporter while earnings per share for the Fourth Quarter were above expectations revenues were light. Analysts expressed concern. These results were flattened by legal win that they had regarding venezuela and some additional u. S. Tax giveback neither of which are a true operational earning. Were not considering this to be a defeat for exxon. We think its a slight miss. Reporter fourthquarter earnings dropped 20 from the Previous Year and many in the industry and on wall street are worried over Capital Expenditures in 2015 not just for exxon, but for all the other oil majors as well, some of which have curtailed investment because of plummeting oil prices. None of these companies are showing good reserves for replacement. Were going to see much less spending. And its going to be difficult, i think, to avoid much Higher Oil Price the in the future. Reporter the companys slashing of the Buyback Program raised red flags after chevron said last week it was suspending its Share Buyback for the year. Management tried to stay upbeat saying that the companys balance portfolio uniquely positions it to deliver superior results throughout the commodity price cycle. Traders anticipate more trouble ahead. The markets in some sort of flux right now. It looks like theres a lot of people think we could test 60 first before we go to 30. And thats where maybe all this volatility is coming from. Its not the first time oil prices experienced severe volatility. In 2009 prices dropped from 144 to 33, and that slide did not happen in a straight line. Falling prices may be troubling big oil companies, but consumers arent complaining about the plunge in oil prices. A new report says the cheapest gas prices though may be in the Rearview Mirror for now. Aaa says the average gas price has increased over the last seven days and will keep moving higher at least for a while. The National Average is now 2. 06 a gallon but theres hope whatever increases do occur will be shortlived and slight. Union works at nine of the largest refineries and oil plants went on strike for the second day today, as nearly 4,000 employees looked to change the terms of their contr. Walkouts the largest since 1980 were targeted at plants with a combined 10 of the countrys capacity. Shell is leading negotiations for th. Lets turn to our guest for more on the Energy Sector and outlook. Hes rob fumel, managing director at portis Capital Advisers a 17 billion Energy Investment firm. Rob, i hope i pro noused your last name correctly. Lets get to the point here. Have we seen the shortterm lows for oil prices and hence for gasoline prices and if so why . I think we look at the oil price from a fundamental perspective. The way that we see the oil market evolving is in the first half of 2015 we see supply continuing to grow and demand slowing a little bit because of the refinery maintenance season. We see that as a challenge and overcontinued supply in the oil market for the first half of 2015. That all changes in the second half of 2015 when the summer driving season hits everybody goes on vacation most everybody drives their car more than last year. Demand increases and all the effects of this lower supply as a result of all of the Capital Expenditure cuts youre hearing about in the oil and gas industry take place in the second half of 15, and we become more balanced in the second half which is a benefit to oil prices. It sounds like youre saying there might be less volatility Going Forward after we get past the winter months . Absolutely. So far, weve started to see a little less volatility and actually seen a couple updates in the oil markets recently. We think thats a good thing. Exxon mobil did not announce in i Capital Expenditure cuts today, but they said in the past they intend to spend about 37 billion in this year thats lower than last year. Explain to me just to make sure i understand it correctly why lower Capital Expenditure translates into Higher Oil Prices. Yeah. Great thing to follow is the u. S. Rig count. If you look at where the u. S. Rig count peaks, it was about 1,900 rigs. Weve seen 300 rigs basically idled. You see the rig count decline by 300. That means less capital is spent drilling for new oil and gas every day. Oil and gas naturally declines if you dont drill for new sources of oil and gas. And so as a result of the less spending in the oil and gas industry you see natural declines in oil. So that has an impact on the overall supply of crude oil. Were basically oversupplied right now. Less oil means less oversupplied in the oil markets. How are you positioning your investors in the Energy Sector . Where are you steering them . Yeah the Energy Infrastructure structure is a great place to be. The Energy Infrastructure more of the refined product, crude oil pipeline you typically have less Commodity Price Exposure plus it provides current income and current growth in that income and those that combination of growth and current yield are really a nice place to be for all investors. The other place is in the refining sector. Refiners are likely to benefit from the increased demand for gasoline and diesel that we expect to see as a result of these low oil prices. So refiners is exxon mobil a refiner, is shell a refiner . They certainly refine product. They sure do. Exxon and chevron both have components of refiners. We like to focus on the pure play refiners as well as the oil and gas producers. Thats what i was driving at. Because esks son obviously does that. But theyre a different breed of oil company, quite obviously. Rob, thank you very much. Thank you. With Capital Advisers out in kansas city. Now to the General Motors Compensation Fund which has seen its total number of claims filed climb to 4,100 before yesterdays deadline. The Fund Administrator said the fund has determined 121 claims are eligible including those for the families of 51 people who died from accidents connected to faulty ig nig switches. Feinberg said so far, no eligible claimant has rejected the money offered. Weve had some very irate families. And that goes with the territory. The emotion surrounding these accidents, and the lost loved ones young kids driving their first automobile so the emotion is very very high. But we havent yet had one eligible claimant when we made what i think is a generous offer turn down the money. The program is still reviewing claims submitted by the deadline. The jubs tis department is reportedly investigating a Credit Agency moodys for favorable ratings on deals leading up to the financial crisis. Moody executives and Justice Department officials discussed how the complex securities were rated. Investigation still in its early stages and comes as the doj nears a settlement with standard and poors. Today bank rate. Com is out with a surprising survey that reveals just how much homeowners dont know about their single largest monthly expense. Diana olick reports. Reporter wicked weather may be battering much of the nation today, but there is a more perfect storm going on in the Mortgage Market. Falling Interest Rates and a big drop in the cost of governmentbacked loans. That could mean big savings for borrowers. Unfortunately, onethird of u. S. Borrowers dont even know their Mortgage Rate. What is your Mortgage Rate . Its 2. 7 i think. Its a 15year. Reporter 2. 7 . Youre sure . Its in the high 2s. Reporter what is your Mortgage Rate . 4 . Reporter are you sure . Something like that. Reporter are you sure of the exact rate . No im not sure of the exact rate. Reporter lenders say the process of buying a home is so stressful the borrowers focus on the Monthly Payment and not the rate that gets them to that payment. Its really kind of a traumatic experience to sign all those papers then you go home you probably just toss that pile somewhere, it ends up in a file folder somewhere maybe. And then yeah you dont know where it is. Reporter but given the dynamic changes going on in todays Mortgage Market changes that benefit borrowers, that kind of financial ignorance could be costly. The issue is not so much that they dont know their Mortgage Rate its that they dont know that rates are a whole lot lower right now. Reporter why do you know your Mortgage Rate . Actually because i refinanced about eight years ago so i could pay it off sooner. Reporter knowledge is financial power. As the Mortgage Market heats up again, borrowers who dont use that knowledge could be left out in the cold. Im diana olick in washington. You can read more about the important facts that mortgage holders need to know on our website nbr. Com. Still ahead, president obama presents his vision for the country in the form of a 4 trillion budget. Setting up a debate over americas economic future. The federal Communications Commission is ready now to propose new rules governing the internet. Nos new regulations will be unveiled later this week according to dow jones. The agency intends to change the way both mobile and fixed broadband firms are regulated. Subjecting them to greater regulation on things like pricing and forbidding providers from slowing down or speeding up specific websites in exchange for payments. The president today unveiled a nearly 4 trillion budget. The 2,000page plan includes programs to improve the nations infrastructure and help the middle class. Primarily financed by higher taxes on corporations and the wealthy. And it sets the stage for a big budget fight with republicans. I know there are republicans who disagree with my approach. And ive said this before if they have other ideas for how we can keep america safe grow our economy, while helping middle class families feel some sense of economic security, i welcome their ideas. But their numbers have to add up. More on the proposal from washington. Theres some fighting words out there in this proposal. Does it have a chance . No sue, it doesnt. This is doa on capitol hill. Some budgets to some extent really are. What happens at the beginning of the budget cycle is the president puts out his wish list up to capitol hill. Thats controlled by republicans. Theyre not going to necessarily take everything obama wants. But think of this as the opening valveo in a yearlong negotiation. The president is setting out where he wants things to go. Whom would they hit . A lot of taxes for wealthy, taxes on banks, inheritance, also taxes on corporations including a proposal to Tax Companies earnings that are overseas right now. Initially the teaser rate obama would have at 14 , but then after that it would go up to 19 per year. In the outgoing years. So a couple of new taxes there for corporations and the wealthy. Obama said that he would match those with credit and benefits for people in the middle class and the poor. If you had to be a betting man, ayman, what proposals do you bet would actually gain some traction on the hill . Is there anything in the budget that might work with republicans . The president is proposing more spending for the pentagon. Thats obviously something that republicans like. And i also think that ultimately theyre going to have to do something about the foreign earnings of u. S. Corporations. Somewhere in there is a compromise waiting to happen. Well see whether or not these are the numbers. Probably not. But theyre sitting at a table and theyre proposing some deals here. Well see whether they can get something done this year. Very quickly, does the word sequestration appears . The president would like to get rid of sequestration. Remember that was the deal they had a couple years ago that actually ended up lowering a lot of the deficits. The president here taking credit for a lot of that deficit lowering but saying that was mindless austerity and he wants to move past that by increasing spending in certain areas that he thinks are important. Ayman, thank you as always. Verizon may be nearing an asset sale. According to reports, the Telecom Company is close to selling a package of cell towers and wire line assets for more than 10 billion. It involves different buyers and could be announced this week. Shares up almost 3 to 46. 98. Another report out today about the fate of radio shack, saying the Electronics Retailer is now preparing to shut do. Sprint would take over half of the existing store base. But another bidder could emerge to buy the chain and continue to run it. Shares of radio shack off 14 today. They fell to 24 cents. Sprint fell slightly to 4. 27. Lands end announced changes at the top today, the clothing retailers chief edgar huber will step down in two weeks to be replaced by fredericka marchioni. Shares were up a fraction to 34. 93. Boy, thats a good italian name. Apple planning to sell as much as 6. 5 billion bonds. They plan to sell a combination of bonds and maturities ranging from 5 to 30 years, coming at a time when investors are paying near record premiums for high quality issues. Shares were 1 higher there at apple to 118. 63. Pit any bowes had revenue that missed. 2015 guidance well below what the analysts were expecting. Their earnings forecast was also light. But pitney did unveil a 100 million buyback plan. Investors were not impressed and shares fell 27 . United technology hiked its dividend by nearly 9 . The quarterly payout will now be 64 cents a share and paid to shareholders in march. The yield on that dividend is just about 2 . Arco petroleum posted a big miss on both top and bottom lines. Still the companys loss narrowed when you compare it to last year. Thats when it took a big legal charge. Its oil and gas output increased during the quarter. Shares were volatile in afterhours trading. During the regular session the stock closed up to 82. 77. Stratusis shares way down. The 3d printer maker preliminary estimates missed as did its 2015 forecast. It said operating expenses will also increase. The stock dropped sharply after hours. At the close, the stock was up a fraction to 80. 08. Management and the unions have been blaming each other for intentionally slowing down work at the docks. Whats really going on . Jane wells got exclusive access inside a dispatch hall to try and set the record straight. Reporter its a little after 6 00 a. M. At a union dispatch hall down the street from the nations largest container port complex. Long shormen gather to wait for jobs. Morning, brother. Good morning. Reporter every job is filled. And yet according to one shipping analyst, the Los Angeles Long Beach port complex is suffering the worst congestion in history. For months management and the union have each been blaming the other for intentionally slowing down work here at the docks adding to the congestion. The shipping companies have been saying the union is not offering up enough workers. The union says quite the opposite. The shippers are not asking for enough crews. We thought we might get the right answer to what was really going on inside the union hall. What have you seen change since november . I havent really seen anything change. Reporter turns out a union member who works jointly with the shippers running the dispatch hall blames congestion instead on bigger ships and a lack of well maintained truck trailers. Youre not seeing any intention intentiona slowdown on the operator side or longshoreman side . Im not seeing a slowdown on anybodys part. Reporter we looked at this month compared to a year ago. Hes right. The same jobs are called for and all are being filled. If theres no intentional slowdown could congestion just be due to lack of space and equipment . They say the log numbers do not reflect reality. The final numbers are massaged to give the appearance of equilibrium. However, they have not offered any proof of that. As the war of words continues in public there may be some good news behind closed doors with negotiations. Management reports the issue of fixing broken truck trailers is a real problem on the docks, and may soon be resolved. If thats the case it may be the domino which sets off the final resolution before the ports completely shut down. Jane wells, san pedro, california. Coming up Virtual Reality. The Technology May seem far away from everyday reality, but will the capital money continue to flow into what some are betting will be the next big thing. A federal judge has rejected an nfl concussion settlement for a second time. The leagues proposal of more than 750 million involved 5,000 former players who have sued over head injuries. The judge said the nfl should expand payments for some of those claims especially for families of players who suffered from chronic brain damage diagnosed only after their deaths. Strong outlook out today from the Dow Jones Industrial<\/a> average. Exxon mobil was the latest Big Oil Company<\/a> to report its earnings. The results were sur jackie dangelis has more. Reporter while earnings per share for the Fourth Quarter<\/a> were above expectations revenues were light. Analysts expressed concern. These results were flattened by legal win that they had regarding venezuela and some additional u. S. Tax giveback neither of which are a true operational earning. Were not considering this to be a defeat for exxon. We think its a slight miss. Reporter fourthquarter earnings dropped 20 from the Previous Year<\/a> and many in the industry and on wall street are worried over Capital Expenditures<\/a> in 2015 not just for exxon, but for all the other oil majors as well, some of which have curtailed investment because of plummeting oil prices. None of these companies are showing good reserves for replacement. Were going to see much less spending. And its going to be difficult, i think, to avoid much Higher Oil Price<\/a> the in the future. Reporter the companys slashing of the Buyback Program<\/a> raised red flags after chevron said last week it was suspending its Share Buyback<\/a> for the year. Management tried to stay upbeat saying that the companys balance portfolio uniquely positions it to deliver superior results throughout the commodity price cycle. Traders anticipate more trouble ahead. The markets in some sort of flux right now. It looks like theres a lot of people think we could test 60 first before we go to 30. And thats where maybe all this volatility is coming from. Its not the first time oil prices experienced severe volatility. In 2009 prices dropped from 144 to 33, and that slide did not happen in a straight line. Falling prices may be troubling big oil companies, but consumers arent complaining about the plunge in oil prices. A new report says the cheapest gas prices though may be in the Rearview Mirror<\/a> for now. Aaa says the average gas price has increased over the last seven days and will keep moving higher at least for a while. The National Average<\/a> is now 2. 06 a gallon but theres hope whatever increases do occur will be shortlived and slight. Union works at nine of the largest refineries and oil plants went on strike for the second day today, as nearly 4,000 employees looked to change the terms of their contr. Walkouts the largest since 1980 were targeted at plants with a combined 10 of the countrys capacity. Shell is leading negotiations for th. Lets turn to our guest for more on the Energy Sector<\/a> and outlook. Hes rob fumel, managing director at portis Capital Advisers<\/a> a 17 billion Energy Investment<\/a> firm. Rob, i hope i pro noused your last name correctly. Lets get to the point here. Have we seen the shortterm lows for oil prices and hence for gasoline prices and if so why . I think we look at the oil price from a fundamental perspective. The way that we see the oil market evolving is in the first half of 2015 we see supply continuing to grow and demand slowing a little bit because of the refinery maintenance season. We see that as a challenge and overcontinued supply in the oil market for the first half of 2015. That all changes in the second half of 2015 when the summer driving season hits everybody goes on vacation most everybody drives their car more than last year. Demand increases and all the effects of this lower supply as a result of all of the Capital Expenditure<\/a> cuts youre hearing about in the oil and gas industry take place in the second half of 15, and we become more balanced in the second half which is a benefit to oil prices. It sounds like youre saying there might be less volatility Going Forward<\/a> after we get past the winter months . Absolutely. So far, weve started to see a little less volatility and actually seen a couple updates in the oil markets recently. We think thats a good thing. Exxon mobil did not announce in i Capital Expenditure<\/a> cuts today, but they said in the past they intend to spend about 37 billion in this year thats lower than last year. Explain to me just to make sure i understand it correctly why lower Capital Expenditure<\/a> translates into Higher Oil Price<\/a>s. Yeah. Great thing to follow is the u. S. Rig count. If you look at where the u. S. Rig count peaks, it was about 1,900 rigs. Weve seen 300 rigs basically idled. You see the rig count decline by 300. That means less capital is spent drilling for new oil and gas every day. Oil and gas naturally declines if you dont drill for new sources of oil and gas. And so as a result of the less spending in the oil and gas industry you see natural declines in oil. So that has an impact on the overall supply of crude oil. Were basically oversupplied right now. Less oil means less oversupplied in the oil markets. How are you positioning your investors in the Energy Sector<\/a> . Where are you steering them . Yeah the Energy Infrastructure<\/a> structure is a great place to be. The Energy Infrastructure<\/a> more of the refined product, crude oil pipeline you typically have less Commodity Price Exposure<\/a> plus it provides current income and current growth in that income and those that combination of growth and current yield are really a nice place to be for all investors. The other place is in the refining sector. Refiners are likely to benefit from the increased demand for gasoline and diesel that we expect to see as a result of these low oil prices. So refiners is exxon mobil a refiner, is shell a refiner . They certainly refine product. They sure do. Exxon and chevron both have components of refiners. We like to focus on the pure play refiners as well as the oil and gas producers. Thats what i was driving at. Because esks son obviously does that. But theyre a different breed of oil company, quite obviously. Rob, thank you very much. Thank you. With Capital Advisers<\/a> out in kansas city. Now to the General Motors<\/a> Compensation Fund<\/a> which has seen its total number of claims filed climb to 4,100 before yesterdays deadline. The Fund Administrator<\/a> said the fund has determined 121 claims are eligible including those for the families of 51 people who died from accidents connected to faulty ig nig switches. Feinberg said so far, no eligible claimant has rejected the money offered. Weve had some very irate families. And that goes with the territory. The emotion surrounding these accidents, and the lost loved ones young kids driving their first automobile so the emotion is very very high. But we havent yet had one eligible claimant when we made what i think is a generous offer turn down the money. The program is still reviewing claims submitted by the deadline. The jubs tis department is reportedly investigating a Credit Agency<\/a> moodys for favorable ratings on deals leading up to the financial crisis. Moody executives and Justice Department<\/a> officials discussed how the complex securities were rated. Investigation still in its early stages and comes as the doj nears a settlement with standard and poors. Today bank rate. Com is out with a surprising survey that reveals just how much homeowners dont know about their single largest monthly expense. Diana olick reports. Reporter wicked weather may be battering much of the nation today, but there is a more perfect storm going on in the Mortgage Market<\/a>. Falling Interest Rates<\/a> and a big drop in the cost of governmentbacked loans. That could mean big savings for borrowers. Unfortunately, onethird of u. S. Borrowers dont even know their Mortgage Rate<\/a>. What is your Mortgage Rate<\/a> . Its 2. 7 i think. Its a 15year. Reporter 2. 7 . Youre sure . Its in the high 2s. Reporter what is your Mortgage Rate<\/a> . 4 . Reporter are you sure . Something like that. Reporter are you sure of the exact rate . No im not sure of the exact rate. Reporter lenders say the process of buying a home is so stressful the borrowers focus on the Monthly Payment<\/a> and not the rate that gets them to that payment. Its really kind of a traumatic experience to sign all those papers then you go home you probably just toss that pile somewhere, it ends up in a file folder somewhere maybe. And then yeah you dont know where it is. Reporter but given the dynamic changes going on in todays Mortgage Market<\/a> changes that benefit borrowers, that kind of financial ignorance could be costly. The issue is not so much that they dont know their Mortgage Rate<\/a> its that they dont know that rates are a whole lot lower right now. Reporter why do you know your Mortgage Rate<\/a> . Actually because i refinanced about eight years ago so i could pay it off sooner. Reporter knowledge is financial power. As the Mortgage Market<\/a> heats up again, borrowers who dont use that knowledge could be left out in the cold. Im diana olick in washington. You can read more about the important facts that mortgage holders need to know on our website nbr. Com. Still ahead, president obama presents his vision for the country in the form of a 4 trillion budget. Setting up a debate over americas economic future. The federal Communications Commission<\/a> is ready now to propose new rules governing the internet. Nos new regulations will be unveiled later this week according to dow jones. The agency intends to change the way both mobile and fixed broadband firms are regulated. Subjecting them to greater regulation on things like pricing and forbidding providers from slowing down or speeding up specific websites in exchange for payments. The president today unveiled a nearly 4 trillion budget. The 2,000page plan includes programs to improve the nations infrastructure and help the middle class. Primarily financed by higher taxes on corporations and the wealthy. And it sets the stage for a big budget fight with republicans. I know there are republicans who disagree with my approach. And ive said this before if they have other ideas for how we can keep america safe grow our economy, while helping middle class families feel some sense of economic security, i welcome their ideas. But their numbers have to add up. More on the proposal from washington. Theres some fighting words out there in this proposal. Does it have a chance . No sue, it doesnt. This is doa on capitol hill. Some budgets to some extent really are. What happens at the beginning of the budget cycle is the president puts out his wish list up to capitol hill. Thats controlled by republicans. Theyre not going to necessarily take everything obama wants. But think of this as the opening valveo in a yearlong negotiation. The president is setting out where he wants things to go. Whom would they hit . A lot of taxes for wealthy, taxes on banks, inheritance, also taxes on corporations including a proposal to Tax Companies<\/a> earnings that are overseas right now. Initially the teaser rate obama would have at 14 , but then after that it would go up to 19 per year. In the outgoing years. So a couple of new taxes there for corporations and the wealthy. Obama said that he would match those with credit and benefits for people in the middle class and the poor. If you had to be a betting man, ayman, what proposals do you bet would actually gain some traction on the hill . Is there anything in the budget that might work with republicans . The president is proposing more spending for the pentagon. Thats obviously something that republicans like. And i also think that ultimately theyre going to have to do something about the foreign earnings of u. S. Corporations. Somewhere in there is a compromise waiting to happen. Well see whether or not these are the numbers. Probably not. But theyre sitting at a table and theyre proposing some deals here. Well see whether they can get something done this year. Very quickly, does the word sequestration appears . The president would like to get rid of sequestration. Remember that was the deal they had a couple years ago that actually ended up lowering a lot of the deficits. The president here taking credit for a lot of that deficit lowering but saying that was mindless austerity and he wants to move past that by increasing spending in certain areas that he thinks are important. Ayman, thank you as always. Verizon may be nearing an asset sale. According to reports, the Telecom Company<\/a> is close to selling a package of cell towers and wire line assets for more than 10 billion. It involves different buyers and could be announced this week. Shares up almost 3 to 46. 98. Another report out today about the fate of radio shack, saying the Electronics Retailer<\/a> is now preparing to shut do. Sprint would take over half of the existing store base. But another bidder could emerge to buy the chain and continue to run it. Shares of radio shack off 14 today. They fell to 24 cents. Sprint fell slightly to 4. 27. Lands end announced changes at the top today, the clothing retailers chief edgar huber will step down in two weeks to be replaced by fredericka marchioni. Shares were up a fraction to 34. 93. Boy, thats a good italian name. Apple planning to sell as much as 6. 5 billion bonds. They plan to sell a combination of bonds and maturities ranging from 5 to 30 years, coming at a time when investors are paying near record premiums for high quality issues. Shares were 1 higher there at apple to 118. 63. Pit any bowes had revenue that missed. 2015 guidance well below what the analysts were expecting. Their earnings forecast was also light. But pitney did unveil a 100 million buyback plan. Investors were not impressed and shares fell 27 . United technology hiked its dividend by nearly 9 . The quarterly payout will now be 64 cents a share and paid to shareholders in march. The yield on that dividend is just about 2 . Arco petroleum posted a big miss on both top and bottom lines. Still the companys loss narrowed when you compare it to last year. Thats when it took a big legal charge. Its oil and gas output increased during the quarter. Shares were volatile in afterhours trading. During the regular session the stock closed up to 82. 77. Stratusis shares way down. The 3d printer maker preliminary estimates missed as did its 2015 forecast. It said operating expenses will also increase. The stock dropped sharply after hours. At the close, the stock was up a fraction to 80. 08. Management and the unions have been blaming each other for intentionally slowing down work at the docks. Whats really going on . Jane wells got exclusive access inside a dispatch hall to try and set the record straight. Reporter its a little after 6 00 a. M. At a union dispatch hall down the street from the nations largest container port complex. Long shormen gather to wait for jobs. Morning, brother. Good morning. Reporter every job is filled. And yet according to one shipping analyst, the Los Angeles Long Beach<\/a> port complex is suffering the worst congestion in history. For months management and the union have each been blaming the other for intentionally slowing down work here at the docks adding to the congestion. The shipping companies have been saying the union is not offering up enough workers. The union says quite the opposite. The shippers are not asking for enough crews. We thought we might get the right answer to what was really going on inside the union hall. What have you seen change since november . I havent really seen anything change. Reporter turns out a union member who works jointly with the shippers running the dispatch hall blames congestion instead on bigger ships and a lack of well maintained truck trailers. Youre not seeing any intention intentiona slowdown on the operator side or longshoreman side . Im not seeing a slowdown on anybodys part. Reporter we looked at this month compared to a year ago. Hes right. The same jobs are called for and all are being filled. If theres no intentional slowdown could congestion just be due to lack of space and equipment . They say the log numbers do not reflect reality. The final numbers are massaged to give the appearance of equilibrium. However, they have not offered any proof of that. As the war of words continues in public there may be some good news behind closed doors with negotiations. Management reports the issue of fixing broken truck trailers is a real problem on the docks, and may soon be resolved. If thats the case it may be the domino which sets off the final resolution before the ports completely shut down. Jane wells, san pedro, california. Coming up Virtual Reality<\/a>. The Technology May<\/a> seem far away from everyday reality, but will the capital money continue to flow into what some are betting will be the next big thing. A federal judge has rejected an nfl concussion settlement for a second time. The leagues proposal of more than 750 million involved 5,000 former players who have sued over head injuries. The judge said the nfl should expand payments for some of those claims especially for families of players who suffered from chronic brain damage diagnosed only after their deaths. Strong outlook out today from the Rail Industry<\/a> a sector that is looking to spend more and hire more this year. Freight railroads planned to spend nearly 30 billion to lay track, add engines and create around 15,000 new jobs. This comes as the National Rail<\/a> network has been tested by energy and agriculture deliveries. The air bag problems just got worse. Regulators announced the recall of nearly 2 million vehicles to fix faulty crash sensors that could cause air bags to deploy for no reason. It includes toyota fiat and honda, who had already issued recalls, but the repairs havent stopped the problems. The recalls are not related to those faulty takata air bags but theres an overlap of about 1 million vehicles who are impacted by both issues. And finally tonight, Virtual Reality<\/a>, facebook got into it so did google. Its not just the Big Companies<\/a> that are investing in this new technology. Many startups specialize in it too. The question for them is will big money from Venture Capital<\/a> firms continue to fo josh lipton has the story now from silicon valley. Reporter theres nothing that simulated about the excitement surrounding Virtual Reality<\/a>. Tech giants are moving hard and fast into this technology which allows users to experience totally immerseive 360degree simulated environment. Facebook for example, spent 2 billion last march to buy ouculusvr. Google already shipped 500,000 vr products. Its not just tech titans that are dedicating time and money to this technology. A number of startups are also now specializing in Virtual Reality<\/a> and some Venture Capital<\/a>ists are willing to supp whats inspiring about it is were solving hard problems. Reporter this company for example is providing 100,000 in seed funding to ten startups in exchange for equity in the companies. Rothenberg sees a number of applications in industries ranging from health care to education. Imagine that you would like to go attend virtually a wonderful college class, but youre in a different country from where you want to go. This can make you feel like youre there. Reporter one startup he now supports is called emblematic group, which builds content to the ocular set. The companys founder says the purpose is to bring attention to the civil war in that country. But while rothenberg is excited about Virtual Reality<\/a>, many of his peers are not. In 2014 only 11 companies focused on Virtual Reality<\/a>, received venture funding totaling just 54 million according to the money tree. To put that number in context, Venture Capital<\/a>ists invested nearly 49 billion in total last year so why the lack of enthusiasm from professional investors. Vc say while the startups might boast technology some dont have a significant number of users or viable business plans. Its about show me the money. Virtual reality is now being show me the losses. Until they actually make money, they will not get a lot of support from Venture Capital<\/a>ists. Reporter still, fans of Virtual Reality<\/a> are constant and confident it will rede fine Many Industries<\/a> from gaming to travel. Now all they need is mass adoption. For nightly Business Report<\/a>, im josh lipton in silicon valley. Funky looking gear. To find out more about the Virtual Reality<\/a> technology trend, head to our website nbr. Com. That does it for us on nightly Business Report<\/a> for tonight. Im sue herera. Thanks for watching. And thanks from me as well. We hope to see you right back here tomorrow night. The law the law for the good the law for the ugly detective inspector poole. I take it youre here for me. Very good. What gave us away . Unless youre on some weird stag do. Vincent carter. This is the prisoner leon hamilton. He is officially now in your custody. But ive been given orders to escort you to saintmarie. Thank you, vincent. Mr. Hamilton you understand that, on arrival we will take you directly to saintmarie jail where youll serve the remainder of your sentence. 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