follow me on twitter and don't forget to like my personal page at facebook.com/real trish regan so again i'll see you tonight at 7:00 p.m. and with howie this weekend at 11 a.m. on fnc, in the meanwhile ashley webster is in for liz. ashley: trish regan you're in demand no doubt. thank you very much it's a good thing. markets let's get to that off of the highs at this moment following a busy week of earnings as the dow and s&p 500 look for their third straight weekly wins looking rather flat at this hour but things go up to a rocky start this morning one day after the president signed an executive order to help re train american workers the president startling wall street with the comments in a broadcast interview and several tweets on fiscal policy, the fed and trade saying a strong dollar is a disadvantage and openly hoping the fed will stop raising interest rates. edward lawrence will have the very latest from the white house , but where does the fossil

fuel friendly president stand when it comes to jobs in the green energy field? we'll be asking the ceo of live bridge corporation how his nuclear energy business can being seed in the trump economy. it is a fox business exclusive and the lines between big tech and traditional media being blurred by the moment. there's the likes of netflix, facebook, twitter, google and amazon well they aim to disrupt old school broadcast and cable networks our panel of top tech of media experts will be walking us through the future of stream ing video and media consolidation. plus, the next targets in donald trump's trade war with china, an update on the deadly storms in the midwest and charlie gasparino will break it on ge's disappointing quarterly report. we are now less than an hour to the closing bell i'm ashley webster in for liz claman today let's begin the countdown.

ashley: we begin with breaking news president trump expected to depart the white house in this hour. he's going to spend the weekend, well why not, at trump national golf club in bed minster, new jersey of course we'll keep a close eye on this if he stops to talk to the cameras which the president likes to do we of course will bring that to you live. let's check in on those markets though it's a nail biter on wall street as stocks are fighting to stay in the green with less than an hour until the closing bell, the dow, the s&p and the nasdac all either at or slightly below or slightly above the water line where we began at 9:30 this morning. microsoft though a clear winner today, currently the best performing stock in the dow hitting an all-time high, stuart varney is laughing i can hear it from here. the tech giant blasting past the $800 valuation after reporting revenue that topped analyst estimates for a fifth straight quarter earnings also coming in above estimates investors also

though cheering strong growth in microsoft's cloud business, putting shares on track for the 26th record close of 2018. quite a story for microsoft. now, turning to the stock that's falling today. ge is currently one of the worst performers in the s&p 500 after the industrial giant reported a 30% drop in the second quarter profit from last year driven mostly by weakness in its power division. straight ahead, we've got charlie gasparino here will give us the very latest scoop on ge's turnaround efforts. the stock though down more than 4% today and state street hitting over a one-year low after the u.s. custodian bank announced a deal to perfect investment firm charles river development for $2.6 billion in cash, but the stock is tanking on the news after state street said it plans to suspend its $950 million share buyback program to finance the deal. shareholders don't like that. now, to the news out of the

white house. president trump not backing down in fact doubling down on his rebuke of the federal reserve. the president in a broadcast interview earlier saying " tightening monetary policy hurts all that we have done" adding that he is not thrilled with raising borrowing costs as the economy improves. this of course as the fed has two more rate hikes scheduled for this year at least that's what we expect, but as the president butts heads with the fed the president is also continuing to faceoff with the e u, while the commerce department weighs the pros and cons of imposing tariffs on automobiles. just another busy busy day, is it not fox business edward lawrence is standing by at the white house with the latest on these developing stories, edward reporter: yeah, ashley this is just called friday at the white house. yeah the president not afraid to shy away from any fight not even with his own federal reserve. now his own office of management and budget director backed up the president saying that the fed does move too fast on

interest rates. >> most presidents have fought it, there's nothing non-factual or inaccurate about the statement of the president is not happy. look i'm not happy a lot of supply side economists are extraordinarily frustrated that the fed which is a demand-driven alabama a says will always pump the brakes just when things start to get good. >> and the president again not afraid to fight everyone at the same time and that shows in tariffs he's trying to level the playing field globally. there might be a breakthrough on that front. the new mexican administration signaled they are willing to make concessions to get a nafta deal. in fact they believe that the mexicans will come half way on some of the items that the americans would like to see. now the canadians on that front say they would meet anywhere any time to talk about nafta. though an agreement there could bypass anything the administration does on a proposed 25% or up to 25% tariff on imported automobiles and auto parts.

the president of the commerce department holding a public hearing yesterday on that front. they received 2,300 comments in addition to the information they got from that public hearing. now the commerce department has to create a report based on this by february 17th and any time before that. after that report is done, then the president could go forward with those 25% tariffs on automobiles and automobile parts , coming into the united states. now, all of this as the commerce department has a new list of exemptions they put out for the steel and aluminum tariffs. they're talking steel specifically. they have received 25,000 companies asking for exemptions in steel, 197 have been granted. 394 have been denied, as far as aluminum goes, about 3,000 exemptions have been asked for or questioned on aluminum, 68 have been granted and 27 have been denied and the president believes that he stays the course and says in the short term we may feel hardship, but in the long term the president

leaves this is the way to level the trade playing field. ashley: edward lawrence just another friday but a busy one. thank you very much. well auto is not the only thing on president trump's radar also touting american farmers saying on twitter "farmers have been on a downward trend for 15 years. the price of soybeans has fallen 50% since five years before the election. a big reason is bad, well terrible trade deals with other countries. they put up massive tariffs and barriers. canada charges 275% on dairy. farmers will win." but here is the thing, folks. ironically the soybean market is the only asset class that's being materially hurt so far by the trade dispute. goldman sachs crunched the numbers and found the trump tweets typically don't mean much to traders in generals in general but soybean futures on the other hand have taken a beating since the tariffs were found announced back on march 1. okay to the floor show we go.

guys this may be the case now but if the trade dispute escalates will it finally have an impact on stocks and which areas of the market would feel the most pain? that's the question let's go to tim anderson at the new york stock exchange. tim what strikes me more than anything, every day we seem to have these headlines, sometimes it brings the market down but it's almost becoming immune to all of this because i feel like the markets believe this is ultimately going to get resolved what say you? >> ashley we started the day with the headline that trump was just about to put tariffs on another $500 billion of chinese imports. the market is totally unphased by it. now that notwithstanding there's no doubt that automobiles and everything automobile-related is at the epicenter right now of attempts to renegotiate nafta and our renegotiation of trade deals with the eu. the president of the eu is going to be in washington next week.

i am sure that front and center the conversations going to be focused on tariff deal for automobiles going in both directions across the pond. ashley: it's interesting isn't it? let me get to chris robinson at the cme to talk about soybeans, the price of soybeans down 50% according to goldman sachs. is that where we're seeing real pain right now? i know the steel operators, the steel importers are feeling some pain but the farmers of the midwest are they the ones bearing the brunt right now? >> well i have to predicate this. five years ago, we were in 2012 we had a huge drought so that's one reason prices are so high on soybeans. we started this year at $10.60 and dropped to $8.25 in the last six weeks that's once people realized those tariffs are really going to kick in so we seen the flush, we lost 22% of the value of 4 billion-bushel crop so if that's going to continue, we could continue to go lower. the interesting thing is on the

announcement today we actually finished higher on the day so the markets kind of adjusted for this and so the soybean farmers have definitely gotten hurt as have corn producers. we have a 14 billion-bushel corn crop, we lost $1 a bushel so you add that up the american farmer lost $20 billion worth of value in the last six weeks, so i think that that is something that it only affects the narrow part of the population, right? but we'll see what happens moving forward. ashley: right phil flynn also at the cme. we like to talk oil, i thought oil was coming down as more produce producers were picking up the slack from the sanctioned iranian oil but now we're back above $70. >> we sure are and today with the oil market a lot had to do with the expiration of the contract because right now there's not a lot of oil to deliver that's how tight this market is. cushing, oklahoma supplies are at the lowest level we've seen

probably in over 20 years and that really drove that market up but getting back to the grains too the other thing you have to blame on the grain market is this dollar. we talk about the trump tweets and the trade war killing the price of gains. a lot of it has to do with a very strong dollar which president trump came out against , and part of it is really the farmers being very good at growing crops. they're growing an incredible crop and at the end of the day, i don't care trade war or no trade war, people are going to eiten china, trust me. u.s. exports surged last week on the lower grain prices so it's not all about the trade war. there are other factors at play. ashley: very good point we're already out of time, tillerson, phil and chris as always gentlemen thank you very much we appreciate it. >> thank you. ashley: let's check the dow 30 map for you big blue, ibm at the bottom investors taking profits after the company was the biggest gainer yesterday, up a strong second quarter earnings report. there it is, down 2.87.

up next president trump asking businesses to take a pledge to retrain workers. some companies simply just can't find qualified applicants. well we'll talk to the ceo of a nuclear power company about how he plans to fill positions as his company, well lights up the future you could say. "countdown" is coming right back ♪ a hotel can make or break a trip. and at expedia, we don't think you should be rushed into booking one. that's why we created expedia's add-on advantage. now after booking your flight, you unlock discounts on select hotels right until the day you leave. ♪ add-on advantage. discounted hotel rates when you add on to your trip. only when you book with expedia.

[music playing] (ceo) haven't been playing golf this year, i am sorry about that. (vo) progress is in the pursuit. audi will cover your first month's lease payment on select models during summer of audi sales event.

our phones are more than two, just phones.k up. they are pocket sized personal trainers... last minute gift finders... siri: destination ahead. and discoverers of new places. it's the internet in your hand. that's why xfinity mobile can be included with xfinity internet. which could save you hunreds of dollars a year. plus get $150 when you bring in your own phone. its a new kind of network designed to save you money. click, call or visit a store today. it's a high-tech revolution in sleep. the new sleep number 360 smart bed. it intelligently senses your movement and automatically adjusts on each side to keep you both comfortable. and snoring? how smart is that? smarter sleep. to help you lose your dad bod, train for that marathon, and wake up with the patience of a saint. the new sleep number 360 smart bed, from $999. smarter sleep will change your life.

ashley: at this time yesterday, president trump signed an executive order aimed to help americans fill more than 6.5 million open jobs in the united states. ceos and industry leaders from more than 15 companies and associations took part in that event and signed this pledge on your screen, to help educate and train u.s. workers to fill those vacant positions and there are plenty of them, millions. as the president and his daughter ivanka rollout the jobs new initiative the president also continues to push the u.s. energy dominance. one sector that certainly needs more qualified workers is nuclear energy and our next guest is the ceo of light bridge a leading developer of next generation nuclear fuel technology we welcome in seth grey in a fox business exclusive seth thank you so much for being here. we'll get into how the industry is doing but what about this job

applicant shortage are you really seeing this in the nuclear energy sector? >> we are, for many skilled positions the president pointed out yesterday there are 6 million jobs that can't be filled in the country because of lack of correct skills and in the nuclear power industry we're racing to fill some jobs the university programs but we're seeing administration really step up now and private-public partnerships helping with training including following yesterday's announcement but department of energy in particular is really leading the way on supporting companies that are training and employing millennials, bringing them along from specialized welders in nuclear power to scientists and engineers and just throughout the industry the position that we need. ashley: you hear so often these students get out of college with a huge student debt hanging around their neck getting no jobs the two don't seem to jive so what you're telling me is people aren't going to school for the right professions? >> well i think look one place i disagree with the president is on climate change and it's a

real driver for our industry and our company and what we're see ing in the pool from abroad for american exports in the nuclear power industry is to help deal with climate change with non-emitting energy and it is an area that we're dealing in china, in india, in other places with industry. ashley: places really reducing their carbon emissions. yes and also just choking air pollution and massive power for the cities. ashley: well we know the president has been very supportive of fossil fuel industry and he's also said he's supportive of the nuclear energy sector but has he done anything tangible in that direction? >> absolutely. the administration is really leading the world right now and what's different with fossil fuels is we're really talking about commodities and yes technology can help with commodities like hydro fracking to change the market but in nuclear power we're dealing with very advanced technology,

supported by the administration that will help american industry dominate here and around the world. the president has put out through the department of energy these funding opportunity announcements, several companies have already been awarded, light bridge will be applying this year, and the administration more than really any other government in the world is putting funding support behind new advanced nuclear energy technologies that will bring this industry forward. ashley: now nuclear power from what i understand accounts for this is according to the brain room here at fox accounts for about 20% of total electricity generated in the u.s.. is that right? so a fifth? >> that's right. ashley: is that heading higher, do you see that moving higher and how quickly? >> well its held steady at 20% for years, which means there's been an increase in nuclear power each year as our energy use has grown each year and nuclear has kept pace and mostly that kept pace by increasing the

energy output of the existing plants and we've kind of tapped out how to do that and one thing the light bridge technology will be able to do will be to increase that more and get a lot more power out of the existing plants. ashley: so is the biggest question around nuclear technology of safety? it always comes to a question how safe is this and there has been nuclear power has been around a long time. how safe is the generation of nuclear power? >> well in the united states it's the safest industry we have nobody has died in the history of this industry from radiation from a nuclear plant. not a worker, not a member of the public, not anybody. now we're always striving to make it safer and with our new neck localing we're looking to make it over a thousand degrees cooler and have dramatic safety advantages, no nuclear weapons useable materials. ashley: seth grey thank you for coming in today, we appreciate it. >> thank you, ashley. ashley: let's take a quick look

at the big board the dow desperately fighting to stay above the waterline. it's just down eight points essentially flat at 25, 056 can we come back before the closing bell. that's the question. okay the maker of vans, north face and lee jeans among the leaders on the dow 30 today, vf corp. which is raising its full year forecast and beating estimates in the second quarter after soaring sales of its skate board sneaker brands, vans 35% sales hike that led vfc to a new record high up at $93 up more than 4.5%. coming up next mick ed weather in the midwest destroying property and taking the lives of more than a dozen in a tragic boating accident. we'll have the very latest update on that and our fox business brief is straight ahead on "countdown." of nowhere. you do, too, but not in time. hey, no big deal. you've got a good record

and liberty mutual won't hold a grudge by raising your rates over one mistake. you hear that, karen? liberty mutual doesn't hold grudges... how mature of them. for drivers with accident forgiveness liberty mutual won't raise their rates because of their first accident. liberty mutual insurance. ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty ♪

the nation's largest senior-living referral service. for the past five years, i've spoken with hundreds of families and visited senior-care communities around the country. and i've got to tell you, today's senior-living communities are better than ever. these days, there are amazing amenities, like movie theaters, exercise rooms and swimming pools, public cafes, bars, and bistros,

even pet-care services. and nobody understands your options like the advisers at a place for mom. these are local, expert advisers that will partner with you to find the perfect place and determine the right level of care, whether that's just a helping hand or full-time memory care. best of all, it's a free service. there is never any cost to you. senior living has never been better, and there's never been an easier way to get great advice. call today. a place for mom -- you know your family, we know senior living. together we'll make the right choice. welcome to holiday inn! thank you! ♪ ♪ wait, i have something for you! every stay is a special stay at holiday inn. save up to 15% when you book early at hollidayinn.com

ashley: some wicked weather pummeling the midwest just look at the video an unexpected

outbreak of as many as 27 tornadoes ripping through iowa yesterday flattening buildings and tearing down power lines in three cities. multiple injuries were reported but thankfully no deaths. the situation though much different in branson, missouri where severe thunderstorms accompanied by winds of over 60 miles per hour overturned a duck boat on table rock lake late yesterday. 17 people are now confirmed dead , seven others injured there were 31 people on that boat when it capsized. more severe weather expected in the midwest moving into the southeast so keeping an eye on the skies again today. turning to the markets as we say the dow, the s&p and the nasdac all fighting to get into the positive the dow off 16 points, s&p down about three points and the nasdac also off about a ten th of a percent. let's go to nicole petallides on the floor of the new york stock exchange with today's fox business brief and nicole, sketchers stumbling hard at this

hour right? nicole: absolutely, ashley we'll have to take a lack at this one the athletic schoemaker hitting a new multi-year low in trading after missing the analyst expectations on earnings and issuing a weak forecast that fell way below the street estimates the shares of sketcher s right now 2,640 down about 21%. luxury retailer burberry lighting up investors with a shocking report that it literally burned through almost $38 million of unwanted products last year in the name of protecting its brand from counterfeiters. confirming it has destroyed $115 million in unsold clothing and beauty products in the last five years so the biggest names in tech teaming up, google, facebook, microsoft and twitter announcing a new initiative called the data transfer product can had aims to make it easier for users to move data between the four platforms directly without having to download and re upload it and the four

tech clients let's take a look mixed, microsoft and facebook are both at highs up next, content wars pushing media into mega merger fever but which sector is in the pink that and much moral coming up on " countdown." keep it here. running a small business is demanding. and that's why small business owners need more. like internet that's up to the challenge. the gig-speed network from comcast business gives you more. with speeds up to 20 times faster than the average. that means powering more devices, more video conferencing, and more downloads in seconds, not minutes. get fast internet and add phone and tv for only $34.90 more per month. comcast is building america's largest gig-speed network to give small businesses more. call 1-800-501-6000 today. metastatic breast cancer is relentless, but i'm relentless too. mbc doesn't take a day off, and neither will i.

and i treat my mbc with new everyday verzenio- the only one of its kind that can be taken every day. in fact, verzenio is a cdk4 & 6 inhibitor for postmenopausal women with hr+, her2- mbc, approved, with hormonal therapy, as an everyday treatment for a relentless disease. verzenio + an ai is proven to help women have significantly more time without disease progression, and more than half of women saw their tumors shrink vs an ai. diarrhea is common, may be severe, and may cause dehydration or infection. before taking verzenio, tell your doctor if you have fever, chills, or other signs of infection. verzenio may cause low white blood cell counts, which may cause serious infection that can lead to death. serious liver problems can occur. symptoms may include tiredness, loss of appetite, stomach pain, and bleeding or bruising more easily than normal. blood clots that can lead to death have also occurred. talk to your doctor right away if you notice pain or swelling in your arms or legs, shortness of breath, chest pain or rapid breathing or heart rate. tell your doctor if you are pregnant, breastfeeding,

or plan to become pregnant. common side effects include nausea, infections, low red and white blood cells and platelets, decreased appetite, headache, abdominal pain, tiredness, vomiting, and hair thinning or loss. i'm relentless. and my doctor and i choose to treat my mbc with verzenio. be relentless. ask your doctor about everyday verzenio.

yes or no?gin.. do you want the same tools and seamless experience across web and tablet? do you want $4.95 commissions for stocks, $0.50 options contracts? $1.50 futures contracts? what about a dedicated service team of trading specialists? did you say yes? good, then it's time for power e*trade. the platform, price and service that gives you the edge you need. looks like we have a couple seconds left. let's do some card twirling twirling cards e*trade. the original place to invest online.

ashley: general electric reporting better-than-expected earnings today on a very downwardly revised good day but despite the success as you can see ge shares failing reverse, i don't know why i'm laughing it's not funny down $0.62. charlie gasparino? will you let me at least introduce you, i mean, what's next? charlie: well, ge did try to put

lipstick on the pig today i think the cfo has been on the tape talking about how everything but the power business is doing great. ashley: what else can they do? charlie: this is still a company in trouble. here is the thing. we destroyed cnbc on this story a couple months ago when we said that ge was considering because these continued profit and cash flow, they were considering cutting the dividend even more. the next day or two days later, david faber came out and said they have no plans to cut the dividend. about two weeks after that the ceo, john flannery came out and said they are going to adjust the dividend, as we said and the real question i think now, going forward, is how much they're going to cut the dividend and here is the -- ashley: so where is the good news in any of this? charlie: the good news is they're getting it down to a core of profitable business. bad news is they still have a

cash flow problem and unfunded liability in their pension. remember ge used to be a much bigger company. they're still big but much bigger with hundreds of thousands of ex-employees -- ashley: ge capital. charlie: on top of that too they still have that overhang so you have cash flow problems, you have the, you need to sort of grow the businesses. they think they're getting it down to a core where it can grow but before it gets there, you need money and i think the only way you can get money is through cutting the dividend more and i think that's what this shows that a lot the reason why people blowing out the stock today even despite the positive spin, the company is cutting on is that this dividend is going to be cut maybe dramatically. now here is the real question. if you eliminate it -- ashley: altogether. charlie: certain politician managers can't buy it and there is a theory they cut it to a penny. just to say they saw the

dividends that was something along those lines and i think that's the real issue here because it looks like the street is saying this thing is going to be cut dramatically and listen, it's a sad commentary on one of the great american companies. ashley: we still have investors that come on our shows and say i'm getting in at $13 because to your point once they get down to the core they are profitable and there is a way back. charlie: but you still have that unfunded liability and that's what everybody is looking at and listen if it's a $9 stock because it it's growth because it could go to 13 and that's when you start buying but it's still at 13 and flannery has a plan. he's not a stupid man. the one thing i will say is that he's a lifer of ge and there's almost a cult-like personality among these guys about keeping the core ge together and you wonder why when maybe he should be like selling off all the unit s just disbanding the whole thing right now into separate companies which was on the table at one point.

ashley: fascinating to follow but boy how far has it fallen? charlie: and do you know whose fault it is? i don't believe it's jack's fault. he was there a long time. he built the company up maybe a company that was wrong for the times when jeff immelt ran it but he had a long time, 16 years i believe to figure it out. ashley: leave it there charlie great to have you back from italy. i thought you'd open up a new bureau over there. charlie: yeah, i mean, by the way they're not big fans of trump. some are and some aren't. everything involves trump. ashley: there's good food and i know you're a good fan so charlie thank you very much. appreciate it. well next week, wall street is readying itself for a tech earnings juggernaut with a combined market cap of nearly $2.3 trillion, alphabet, facebook and amazon all reporting earnings plus this week we had comcast wow out of the media assets leaving disney as the final suiter.

>> is that a story for us? ashley: that was charlie gasparino. joining us now to discuss all his tech expert, cfra research senior analyst tuna amobi. thank you, gentlemen. tuna let me begin with you. let's be honest the traditional broadcasters, the cable networks , they got to do something because let me tell you these big tech giants are huge media companies and continue to grow, right? >> that's exactly right. i think the so-called fang tech giants are breathing down the traditional media's neck and i think there's really a major shift in the competitive paradigm as a result of this large technology and a company that i think what's happened is that the definition of the competitive landscape has shifted dramatically to companies like disney and viacom and cbs and comcast are now in a

new world order where competition is going to be against the likes of some of the companies that you mentioned, facebook, amazon, netflix, google, et cetera and all these companies by the way are spending astronomical amounts of money, in content so now this is all happening in a time that netflix has disrupted significantly the media landscape the traditional audience is migrating. there's now more emphasis on direct-to-consumer which is really motivating a lot of the m & a deals that you spoke about earlier at the top of the segment. ashley: it's fascinating. lance you cover the tech industry. they've so disrupted everything to tuna's point the media landscape has changed forever when netflix is spending $8 billion a year on original content. it's just absolutely remarkable and they show no signs of slowing down. >> no, none of them do, netflix doesn't, apple is getting into

it. we've heard that wal-mart is interested in it. what they all understand is that the whole business is changing. cord cutters is a real thing. people are sort of moving away from the bundle and going to these services that are providing high quality content and they're getting it wherever they want. they're no longer discerning about oh, i must see it on television. they will watch it on any screen where they can get it so there's this flood of fresh content from all of these tech companies because they realize there was nothing special about the major media companies that allowed them to make these shows. i mean netflix obviously truly proved that. hulu is proving that. youtube is working at it, apple obviously i think this fall we're going to see a lot more contents from them so it is i feel that the tension on the side of the media companies when i see them all scrambling to try and figure it out because everybody who does it will spend billions of dollars, although i

do have to question whether or not wal-mart will spend billions of dollars to make high quality content everyone knows that's the only way to win in this game ashley: that comes in competing with amazon in every front and tuna, someone like amazon is so big and has tent it calls all around the world getting into more and more different types of businesses. do you, are they getting too big is there an anti-trust issue? >> well, i think that the short answer is that i don't see a near term anti-trust issue for amazon but obviously that could depend on the nature of the moves that they make. ashley: because it's not like the consumer is paying more for something so you could make the argument that the consumer is hurting and trying to keep prices low. >> that's a very good point, which kind of differentiates amazon from some of the other consumer-sensitive m & a deals especially cable or media space

but i think if you really think about how the company amazon has evolved i think they're really trying to attack and disrupt industries that has been so comfortable in all ways of doing things so think about some of the recent acquisitions they've made, whole foods or pill pack and i think what's also remarkable is that all of this has happened as a company is investing organically in the u.s. and international markets. part of the reason why we have a buy amazon actually raised our 12-month target price today to 2,000 ahead of their earnings report next week, is because they have just demonstrated this ability to really be effective in that disruption and now, seem s to be turning the corner in terms of generating sustainable profitability. the evaluation not obviously some questions but not as much as netflix for example, so i do

believe that this is a company that's going to be around for a very very long time and is going to continue to disrupt some major industries even yet to come. ashley: i think you're right, tuna. lance let me talk to you. you mentioned wal-mart i want to get into wal-mart because what struck me is we just saw subscriber growth for netflix slowing down in the last earnings report. this is a very crowded field. what's the benefit for wal-mart and we hear it may be $8 a month or slightly under $8 a month for a streaming service when there's so many players in this field. what does wal-mart get out of it >> i think it's about touch points. i guess if you think about sort of a company like amazon that is constantly trying to complete the circle of consumer experience and be wherever a consumer is, like they have amazon prime day one of the top selling items last year was the echo dot. by the way the echo dot is where you can buy something so now they've got more touch points we can buy so wal-mart looks at

what amazon is doing and it's 21st century retailing and they think well how do we do that and make sure that the wal-mart experience goes way beyond the stores, that it is seen holistic ally and seen in all different parts of your life and potentially delivering content on the vudu network they bought maybe it's one way of doing it but they are obviously starting way behind but again i have to emphasize that i do really think that it is all about the disruption that amazon has created in the retail space that is making all of these companies rethink how they reach consumers and understanding that it's not just about selling product. it has to become an actual relationship. ashley: that's a very good point tuna i've got 30 seconds we've seen the fox disney get together at&t time-warner. these mega mergers i think are going to be more and more are going to come to meet the competition from the social media platforms that are really turning into giant media companies, right? >> yes, we do agree with that premise. the overall m & a sentiment

remains largely positive although we are just talking to some of the executives we have a sense there is a little bit more caution now and the overall climate, not the least of which has to do with the justice department's decision to appeal the at&t time-warner merger but also the sinclair tribune deal that's now hanging in the balance been sent to the judicial review so all in all i think there's still a first for more deals with some caution, but economies of scale remain largely one of the major underlying drivers we think and will remain so for the next year ashley: fantastic stuff lance and tuna very informative thank you very men for joining us really appreciate it, thank you. well as we know the changing media landscape always a hot topic and you don't have to wait until monday to see liz claman again. nope she'll be joining howard kurtz on mediabuzz on the fox news channel sunday at 11 a.m.

don't miss it. take a quick look at the big board for you, just about 15 minutes from the closing bell. guess what. i've tried my hardest and i managed to get the dow above into positive territory up about 10 points or 25, 074. well, coming up next president trump's trade dispute hitting close to home, deirdre bolton is here to tell us why apple watches and fit bits could be on the economic battlefront. "countdown" is coming right back my father passed this truck down to me, that's the same thing i want to do with you. it's an emotional thing to watch your child grow up and especially get behind the wheel. i want to keep you know, stacking up the memories and the miles and the years. he's gonna get mine -but i'm gonna get a new one. -oh yeah when it's time for your old chevy truck to become their new chevy truck, there's truck month. get 18% of msrp cash back on all silverado 1500 crew cab lt pickups when you finance with gm financial. that's $9,000 on this silverado. plus, during truck month make no monthly payments for 90 days.

just for a shot. but why go back there when you can stay homefice with neulasta onpro? strong chemo can put you at risk of serious infection. in a key study neulasta reduced the risk of infection from 17% to 1%, a 94% decrease. neulasta onpro is designed to deliver neulasta the day after chemo and is used by most patients today. neulasta is for certain cancer patients receiving strong chemotherapy. do not take neulasta if you're allergic to it or neupogen (filgrastim). an incomplete dose could increase infection risk. ruptured spleen, sometimes fatal as well as serious lung problems allergic reactions, kidney injuries and capillary leak syndrome have occurred. report abdominal or shoulder tip pain, trouble breathing or allergic reactions to your doctor right away. in patients with sickle cell disorders, serious, sometimes fatal crises can occur. the most common side effect is bone and muscle ache. if you'd rather be home, ask your doctor about neulasta onpro. pay no more than $25 per dose with copay card.

ashley: president trump has threatened tariffs on all chinese goods imported by the united states. that, by the way, would total half a trillion dollars. that's a lot. joining us now to talk about it deirdre bolton.

what are we talking about? >> so ashley one of the places these trade tariffs may show up, personal fitness devices is that what we think of first but american consumers may have to pay more for apple watch and fit bit and speakers made by sono s and other companies like it so all of these products are assembled in china one of the reasons but the second reason is these devices are in a category of goods that the u.s. government defines as a data transmission machine and that particular category is on the proposed list of tariffs, so so far mobile phones, a laptop, they've escaped the possibility of import duties but these personal fitness devices, they're a different category. now all three have declined to comment but in its filing earlier this month as you know s onos going public saying the imposition of tariffs and other trade barriers as well as retaliatory trade measures could require us to raise the prices of our products and harm our

sales. experts say these companies have three options, so they can advocate to get it dropped from the list during the public comment period which is coming up in august or they can apply for an exclusion once the tariff s go into effector they can just have try to have their products classified under a different code so not a transmission code on that list. with these new tariffs though they are imposed they won't take effect for at least two months and as we know all industries have time to comment on the products selected so hearings august 20 and 23rd through those dates in d.c. those are the key dates ashley back to you. ashley: wow watches and fitness devices but they could as you say among those apply for an exemption too but they're not in place yet but that's what we could be facing very interesting deirdre bolton thank you very much appreciate it. well the closing bell is going to be ringing in about eight and a half minutes from now. guess what? you can relax this summer according to our countdown closer he's got a summer

investment list for you, that could boost your portfolio. "countdown" is coming right back greatness of an suv? is it to carry cargo... or to carry on a legacy? its show of strength... or its sign of intelligence? in crossing harsh terrain... or breaking new ground? this is the time to get an exceptional offer on the mercedes of your midsummer dreams at the mercedes-benz summer event, going on now. receive up to a $1,250 summer event bonus on select suvs. mercedes-benz. the best or nothing.

that's it. i'm calling kohler about their walk-in bath. nah. not gonna happen. my name is ken. how may i help you? hi, i'm calling about kohler's walk-in bath. excellent! happy to help. huh? hold one moment please... [ finger snaps ] hmm. the kohler walk-in bath features an extra-wide opening

and a low step-in at three inches, which is 25 to 60% lower than some leading competitors. the bath fills and drains quickly, while the heated seat soothes your back, neck and shoulders. kohler is an expert in bathing, so you can count on a deep soaking experience. are you seeing this? the kohler walk-in bath comes with fully adjustable hydrotherapy jets and our exclusive bubblemassage. everything is installed in as little as a day by a kohler-certified installer. and it's made by kohler- america's leading plumbing brand. we need this bath. yes. yes you do. a kohler walk-in bath provides independence with peace of mind. call for a free kohler nightlight toilet seat with consultation, or visit kohlerwalkinbath.com for more info.

ashley: well, just to bring you this president trump, there's marine one he's just landed at joint base andrews where he left the white house and yes, reporters did shout questions at the president as he headed out to the helicopter on the white house lawn but this time, he didn't take any of those questions, got on board and he's actually going to be soon getting on to air force one off to bedminster this weekend at trump national golf course spending the weekend and will have a little r& r or maybe i guess get golf in but that's the picture of the president about to get off marine one crossing the tarmac get on to air force one and off to new jersey for the weekend. all right well its been a big week for financial earnings and the sector certainly delivering with jpmorgan leading the way

let's get down to the new york stock exchange where nicole petallides has some of the weeks biggest winners and losers. nicole: oh, yeah let's check it out be interesting to see if anybody shouts to the president about two more rate hikes i know he's not happy with that idea. here is a look right now you can see we are slightly to the downside but financials have led the way jpmorgan, goldman sachs have been the best performers on the dow jones industrial average for this week and in the thick of earnings season where we expected about 20.5% growth for year-over-year broadly it's actually 23% so we've come in really nicely you can see for the week how the financials have clearly outperformed and we've seen other winners not appearing bank of america and wells fargo so you've got to say hooray for the banks and microsoft and facebook all-time highs today ashley? ashley: yes we indeed have nicole thank you very much. well as the dog days of summer approach, i think we're already in them. our next guest says you should relax and take advantage of

season and buy beaten up asset classes portfolio wealth advisors please and cio lemons on joins us so which of the asset classes has been beaten up the most, lee? >> well what i really like is i love emerging markets that have done really pretty well at the beginning of the year, they're down almost 15% from the january highs. i think you can buy them right now. a lot of what's happened with that asset class is that the dollar has strengthened all. we have a lot of problems in china. if there is not a trade war. some analyst talking about big debt. emerging market index, china is small part of it. second is what we call the ifa index, that is the trader link bow, all the rich countries not including the u.s. japan, australia, canada. that is down 10% on a lot of trade concerns.

we have this ideaglobal growth can't be synced anymore if we have tariffs. we've been talking about the banks are in, simply overlooked ashley, with the "fang" stocks. they're expanding loan book, making something called profits. then that's where you will find your action. ashley: funny what you want to say about big tech that is where the money has been going for years now. people said that made the whole thing unbalanced. so few stocks are pulling so many along with them. what's your thought on that? is it, is there something underlying not as healthy as we think? >> i think so. you know, i've seen this before. i've been doing this over 20 years. this reminds a lot of 1999. 1999 actually, you know, ashley, that was a great year. nasdaq doubled that year. but remember here's the first thing, that fang acronym, it is

getting more letters in it, right? then we're getting the bat part of it. netflix, insert names, we'll start growing internationally, that is where we have huge growth, doesn't that remind us of cisco systems 20 years ago, every child in india will be on the internet. reminds me of tower records, we'll sell the snot out of south america or coca-cola everybody on the planet will drink five coax a day. if you have a noisy market like we do now, we have a ink a, we're not higher than the january highs. we certainly haven't gone lower than the february lows, you let the people put the money into the "fang" stocks. good luck to you. ashley: where the growth is. >> i want to buy something with actual earnings. ashley: great stuff as always. lee munson. thank you so much. stocks ending the session as you

can see just slightly lower. [closing bell rings] for the week, the dow, s&p, posting third straight weekly win. that is it for the countdown. now time for "after the bell." melissa: escalating trade tensions but a whimper on wall street. stocks fighting for gains, the dow ending the day a little lower for the day. nobody is afraid of trade tensions. s&p 500 and nasdaq down slightly. i'm melissa francis. david: it's friday. the market gave us a break. thank you for joining us much happy friday to all of you. we have more on the big market movers, here is what else we're covering in a very busy hour. bombshell out of d.c. fox news confirming president trump's long-time lawyer michael cohen secretly recorded a conversation with then candidate trump ahead of the 2016 election whether a payment should be made to a former "playboy" model. we're live at the white house with the very latest.