In Mpls., Wells Fargo CEO analyzes slow recovery

The CEO of Wells Fargo Bank says U.S. companies are sitting on about $2 trillion in cash but they're afraid to spend it.

John Stumpf of Wells Fargo spoke at an Economic Club of Minnesota luncheon Tuesday. He said corporate leaders feel there's too much uncertainty about the economy and business climate.

"Investors look for the long term and they're worried about cap and trade and health care and tax and capital gains and all the other things that make them nervous and less sure about the future," Stumpf said.

Stumpf said he's hopeful the banking industry can convince regulators to back off mandating steep cuts in the fees banks charge merchants for debit card transactions.

Stumpf said that if banks lose merchant fee income, consumers will get fewer services and features on debit cards or end up paying fees to use the cards.

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