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The Economy Explained
A million-dollar fossil, and other indicators
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Planet Money

A million-dollar fossil, and other indicators

by , , , ,

Today on the show, we cover this week's top indicators in new work permits for Venezuelan migrants, behind-the-scenes climate meetings and a million-dollar dinosaur skeleton sale.

A million-dollar fossil, and other indicators

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Selling safety in the fight against wildfires
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Planet Money

Selling safety in the fight against wildfires

by , , ,

Wildfires are becoming more frequent and serious due to human-caused climate change. This is prompting a new industry focused on residential wildfire preparedness. Today, we consider the new technology addressing wildfire risk and the cost of protecting yourself.

Selling safety in the fight against wildfires

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"Based on a true story"
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"Based on a true story"

by , ,

When a group of amateur investors rallied around the stock for GameStop back in 2021, the story blew up the internet. News outlets around the world, including us here at Planet Money, rushed in to explain why the stock for this retail video game company was suddenly skyrocketing, at times by as much as 1700% in value, and what that meant for the rest of us.

"Based on a true story"

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The Beigie Awards: Manufacturing takes center stage
Miba Industrial Bearings

Planet Money

The Beigie Awards: Manufacturing takes center stage

by , , ,

The Beigies roll around once again to recognize the regional Federal Reserve Bank with the best Beige Book entry. This edition's winner put a spotlight on a company increasing their efforts to recruit young people for an important piece of the manufacturing puzzle.

The Beigie Awards: Manufacturing takes center stage

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Coca Cola v. Coca Pola
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Planet Money

Coca Cola v. Coca Pola

by , , ,

The coca leaf has been an important part of Andean culture for thousands of years. But when one indigenous woman decided to use the plant in a drink she calls Coca Pola, she awoke a sleeping giant. Today on the show, a small business goes head to head with Coca-Cola over a trademark dispute.

Coca Cola v. Coca Pola

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How to launder $600 million on the internet
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Planet Money

How to launder $600 million on the internet

by , , ,

Erin Plante is a private detective who specializes in chasing down stolen cryptocurrency. In March of 2022, she got the biggest assignment of her career: Hackers had broken into an online game called Axie Infinity and made off with over $600 million worth of digital money.

How to launder $600 million on the internet

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Economics, boosternomics and Swiftnomics
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Planet Money

Economics, boosternomics and Swiftnomics

by , , , ,

For this week's Indicators of the Week, Darian is joined by NPR colleagues Jeff Guo and Sydney Lupkin. We get into the latest numbers on child poverty in the U.S. and what it tells us about effective policy intervention. Sydney brings an update on the new covid booster and who's paying for it. And Jeff talks about Taylor Swift...again. He promises it has to do with economics.

Economics, boosternomics and Swiftnomics

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Wait — did we really need to raise rates?
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Planet Money

Wait — did we really need to raise rates?

by Paddy Hirsch , , ,

Inflation remains stubbornly high as the Federal Open Markets Committee weighs whether they will raise interest rates again. However, new research suggests that elevated interest rates weren't the primary driver for the decline in inflation. Today, we take a look at the debate surrounding disinflation and what comes next for the Federal Reserve.

Wait — did we really need to raise rates?

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Giant vacuums and other government climate bets

Global Thermostat's pilot plant for direct air carbon capture, on April 4, 2023, in Brighton, Colorado. The company is also receiving funding from the U.S. Department of Energy to build a plant with 1,000 times the capacity of this demonstration plant. Hart Van Denburg/CPR News/Hart Van Denburg/CPR News hide caption

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Hart Van Denburg/CPR News/Hart Van Denburg/CPR News

Planet Money

Giant vacuums and other government climate bets

by , , ,

Yesterday we brought you a debate over whether the government should subsidize industries in the name of economic growth and societal benefits. Today on the show, we zero in on the climate industrial policy of the Biden administration, which is funneling billions into experimental projects that promise to remove, capture and store carbon. It's an effort by the U.S. to meet its ambitious climate goals, but it's not without its skeptics.

Giant vacuums and other government climate bets

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China's weakening economy in two Indicators

This photo taken on June 14, 2023 shows university graduates and youths attending a job fair in Yibin, in China's southwestern Sichuan province. Unemployment among Chinese youths jumped to a record 20.8 percent in May, the National Bureau of Statistics said on June 15, 2023, as the economy's post-Covid growth spurt fades. CNS/AFP/Getty Images hide caption

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China's weakening economy in two Indicators

by , , , , Aowen Cao , , , Paddy Hirsch

In China, data on the economy is sometimes difficult to come by. The Chinese government has put a pause on releasing some of its official economic data. But many of the stories emerging from the country paint a clear picture: the second largest economy in the world is struggling.

China's weakening economy in two Indicators

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Industrial policy, the debate!

DURHAM, NC - MARCH 28: Union workers look on during a series of remarks by U.S. President Joe Biden during a visit to Wolfspeed, a semiconductor manufacturer, as he kicks off his Investing in America Tour on March 28, 2023 in Durham, North Carolina. Melissa Sue Gerrits/Getty Images hide caption

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Planet Money

Industrial policy, the debate!

by , ,

There is a lot of taxpayer money going into propping up industry in the U.S. From semiconductor chip fabrication in Arizona to green hydrogen plants in California. Is this smart policy? Today on the Indicator, our guests debate!

Industrial policy, the debate!

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Is retail theft getting worse?
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Planet Money

Is retail theft getting worse?

by Paddy Hirsch , , ,

Lately, retailers have been complaining to their investors about thieves coming to their stores and stealing stuff and blaming them for falling profits. It's the biggest part of a well-known industry problem called "shrink," but is this trend as pervasive as stores are making it out to be? Today on the show, retail theft and what stores are doing about it.

Is retail theft getting worse?

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Apple, drugs, Grindr
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Planet Money

Apple, drugs, Grindr

by , , , ,

Today on Indicators of the Week: government iPhone restrictions in China that walloped Apple's market value. Plus plans emerge over how the US government plans to negotiate drug prices. Also, a mass exodus of employees from a top dating app that sheds some light on where the whole working from home debate is.

Apple, drugs, Grindr

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How the Phillips Curve shaped macroeconomics
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Politics & Policy

How the Phillips Curve shaped macroeconomics

by , , Molly Messick ,

When economists and policymakers talk about getting inflation under control, there's an assumption they often make: bringing inflation down will probably result in some degree of layoffs and job loss. But that is not the way things have played out since inflation spiked last year. Instead, so far, inflation has come down, and unemployment has stayed low.

How the Phillips Curve shaped macroeconomics

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'Welcome to the USA! Now get to work.'

Syrian refugees take notes during their Vocational ESL class at the International Rescue Committee center in San Diego on August 31, 2016. Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images

Planet Money

'Welcome to the USA! Now get to work.'

by , , ,

When refugees arrive in the U.S. the clock starts ticking. They usually have up to 90 days to get a job and become 'self-sufficient'.

'Welcome to the USA! Now get to work.'

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The dementia tax

April Simpkins, left, was her husband Joe's primary caregiver after he was first diagnosed with dementia in 2013. As the disease progressed, April moved Joe to a memory care facility in Nashville, Tenn. Joe Simpkins died in January 2020. (Photo: April Simpkins) April Simpkins hide caption

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April Simpkins

Planet Money

The dementia tax

by Paddy Hirsch , ,

More than 7 million Americans are living with dementia. To take care of this population, family members must often make the difficult choice of giving up work or paying for a costly facility. Today on the show, the rising cost of memory care in an aging population.

The dementia tax

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The Andy Warhol Supreme Court case and what it means for the future of art

A portrait of Prince taken by Lynn Goldsmith (left) in 1981 and 16 silk-screened images Andy Warhol later created using the photo as a reference (right). Collection of the Supreme Court of the United States hide caption

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Collection of the Supreme Court of the United States

Planet Money

The Andy Warhol Supreme Court case and what it means for the future of art

by , Julia Longoria , ,

In 1981, photographer Lynn Goldsmith took a portrait of the musician Prince. It's a pretty standard headshot — it's in black-and-white, and Prince is staring down the camera lens.

The Andy Warhol Supreme Court case and what it means for the future of art

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Jobs Friday: More jobs and more unemployment
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Planet Money

Jobs Friday: More jobs and more unemployment

by , , , , Paddy Hirsch

The jobs report is in! And both the rate of employment AND unemployment went up in August. How does that happen? Plus, how disabled people are doing in the labor market.

Jobs Friday: More jobs and more unemployment

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How one man fought a patent war over turmeric
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Planet Money

How one man fought a patent war over turmeric

by , , Molly Messick ,

Back in the 1990s, Dr. Raghunath Mashelkar was in his office in New Delhi when he came across a puzzling story in the newspaper. Some university scientists in the U.S. had apparently filed a patent for using turmeric to help heal wounds. Mashelkar was shocked, because he knew that using turmeric that way was a well known remedy in traditional Indian medicine. And he knew that patents are for brand new inventions. So, he decided to do something about it – to go to battle against the turmeric patent.

How one man fought a patent war over turmeric

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A drought, a jam, a canal — Panama!

(Photo by GABRIEL RODRIGUEZ/AFP via Getty Images) GABRIEL RODRIGUEZ/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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GABRIEL RODRIGUEZ/AFP via Getty Images

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A drought, a jam, a canal — Panama!

by , Paddy Hirsch , ,

The Panama Canal links the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. It sees hundreds of billions worth of stuff pass through it every year. But a historic drought is making it a little harder for big cargo ships to get through the fifty-one mile long channel. Today on the show, we look at how this backup presents yet another test for global supply chains.

A drought, a jam, a canal — Panama!

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