Marketplace with Kai Ryssdal

...and paying taxes on things (or not paying taxes on things) always leaves one. That’s probably why special counsel Robert Mueller is starting with indictments of former Trump campaign chief Paul Manafort and his business associate, Rick Gates, on c...Show More

A lot's changing about America's place in the global economy. NAFTA negotiations are starting next week in Washington, and President Trump has already withdrawn from the Trans-Pacific Partnership. In a lot of ways, it's the total opposite of the late...Show More

Congress approved a spending bill this week to support broadband infrastructure in underserved areas. Besides keeping the government open, we look at what that means for rural America. Then: How businesses are preparing for a no-deal Brexit. Plus, we...Show More

Thanks to her best-selling book and new Netflix show, Marie Kondo is inspiring Americans to get organized. But what happens to all the stuff that doesn't "spark joy"? We look at the cost of tidying up and who foots the bill. But first: What you need ...Show More

Some 600,000 American-born children whose parents have returned to Mexico, voluntarily or not, are believed to be in Mexican schools. Today, we look at the economics of them coming back to the United States. Plus: What you need to know about the pote...Show More

"1888, have the press check it out," President Donald Trump said at a rally Monday night, citing one of his favorite historical precedents for tariffs. Well, we did. Plus: cross-border commerce in the Trump era and the race to make the perfect fake m...Show More

If you own a home, or want to own one, chances are you’ve spent some time with one of the many apps that estimate home values. Watching those prices rise, at least on paper, has become something of a national pastime — but it could be doing a number ...Show More

The government reopened two weeks ago, which means, yes, we're just one week from another potential shutdown. The thing is, it takes time to get an organization that large started again. Case in point: Thousands of workers still don't have back pay. ...Show More

As tax season carries on, states are trying to adjust to the new federal tax law and are putting thousands of tax returns on standby. We start today's show bringing you the latest. Then: the lingering debt of federal workers who borrowed to get by in...Show More

The partial government shutdown may be over, but people going back to work are still feeling its effects. Today we hear from one contractor about her bittersweet return. Then: Hundreds of Texans are suing the government over how it handled relief eff...Show More

The impacts of the trade war with China are widespread. Today we'll zoom in on agriculture, and a family farm in Washington that's feeling it. Plus, the latest on Foxconn, which now says it's backing away from building TVs in Wisconsin in favor of ad...Show More

We can say "Super Bowl" as much as we want. Super Bowl, Super Bowl, S U P E R  B O W L. But if you're an Atlanta-area business or an advertiser hoping to capitalize on the game, you have to get creative because the NFL has that trademark locked down....Show More

We've got big tech drama at home and abroad topping today's show: We'll get you caught up on the new charges against Huawei and an alarming iPhone bug. Plus, the latest on Brexit. Then: Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz might be running for preside...Show More

The government shutdown may be over, for now, but agencies that gather economic data could take a while to get caught up. We'll look at the effects and talk with Congressional Budget Office Director Keith Hall. Plus, the state of the iPhone in China ...Show More

As President Donald Trump agreed to temporarily reopen the government Friday, mayors from all around the country were wrapping up a trip to Washington, D.C., to talk about what the shutdown has cost their communities. We'll talk to some today, plus w...Show More

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said recently that modern monetary theory, or MMT, should “be a larger part of our conversation” when it comes to funding ambitious policies she’s proposed. On today's show, we'll explain how it works — it's kind of like...Show More

That's where the situation is heading in Venezuela. We'll tell you what you need to know as President Nicolás Maduro is called to resign. Then, more from our series on President Trump's signature economic moments. Plus, why the government shutdown is...Show More

In the past two years, President Trump has changed the way we talk about business and economic life in this country. He views the economy through a transactional lens: there are always deals to be made or renegotiated. He's the CEO of America, Inc., ...Show More

Things weren't looking exactly glass half-full today at the World Economic Forum, the annual meeting of economists, bankers and world leaders. During a news conference, IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde said the global economy was growing “more...Show More

During periods of economic uncertainty, many people look to what central bankers say as a forecast of what’s to come. In that spirit, we have Federal Reserve Gov. Lael Brainard on the show today to talk about the longest government shutdown in histor...Show More

The rap superstar took to Instagram yesterday to make sure her followers were paying attention to the government shutdown: "this s**t is really f**king serious, bro." She's right! We'll start the show by looking at the newly "essential" employees Pre...Show More

With no end in sight to the partial government shutdown, some businesses are starting to miss the regulation that shielded them from risk. Then: The fallout from yesterday’s failed Brexit vote may not be isolated to Britain. We'll look at how uncerta...Show More

British Prime Minister Theresa May's Brexit deal was shot down today. We'll kick off our show with the latest and what's next. Then, speaking of "no deal": Under the partial government shutdown, some Trump advisers are seeing what a smaller governmen...Show More

As of this weekend, we're in unprecedented territory. It's the longest partial government shutdown in history. We'll spend some time on today's show looking at how the effects of the shutdown could snowball over the coming days. Then: More than 30,00...Show More

While the American government shutdown turns into the longest ever, a crucial vote on Prime Minister Theresa May’s Brexit deal heads to Parliament next week, which could determine the fate of Britain’s future with the European Union. We'll bring you ...Show More

Going into the holidays, consumer confidence was high and retail forecasts were looking rosy. Now, more than a week into the new year, it turns out the results are a bit of a mixed bag. We take a closer look at industry news out today. Then, governme...Show More

With today's talks falling through and federal workers about to miss a paycheck, this shutdown is on its way to becoming the longest-ever, and millions in missing income has ripple effects. We're devoting much of today's show to that, looking at how ...Show More

Friday's payday — or it should be. If the government shutdown continues through the week, federal workers will miss out. We talked with some out-of-work employees about how the shutdown is affecting their personal economies. Then: High economic growt...Show More

We can feel it all the way from China. Apple's revised forecast yesterday helped torpedo stocks today. But this might just be a leading indicator of the problems a lot of companies will have as the second-biggest economy in the world slows down. We l...Show More

U.S. markets are closed for Christmas, which means that investors can take a deep breath from this month's volatility. We'll zoom out and talk about the disconnect between plummeting stock prices and what's keeping our economy strong. Then: Consumer ...Show More

’Twas the night before Christmas, and the markets continued to dive, so we start with the big picture question: Can President Donald Trump remove Jay Powell as head of the Federal Reserve? Like many things in life, the answer is a bit complicated. Th...Show More

Apple quietly announced a new $1 billion, 15,000-employee campus to Austin, Texas. It did so without the media frenzy — and blowback — Amazon experienced with its East Coast expansion this year. We'll compare the two tech giants' approaches. Then: Ne...Show More

Mainly, Mars. SpaceX COO Gwynne Shotwell talked with us about it during a tour of the company's main factory in Southern California. But first, with the sun (possibly) setting on the government-supported 30-year fixed-rate mortgage, we'll assess its ...Show More

Unemployment, inflation, GDP growth, bond yields ... we do a lot of numbers on this show. But what should you really be watching if you're nervous about another economic downturn? We asked James Poterba, president of the National Bureau of Economic R...Show More

You've got a corgi, some home-cooked meals and a few thousand bot followers. What more do you need to be famous on Instagram? Today we'll talk to a writer who learned it takes a lot more to make that sweet, sweet #spon money. But first, we'll catch y...Show More

Big retailers have followed Amazon's lead in making free shipping a staple. But that leaves small businesses in the uncomfortable position of managing expectations or just eating the cost of two-day air themselves. But first: Wages are up, inflation ...Show More

Nahhhh. With the holidays right around the corner, and ads inundating our collective consciousness, we try to figure out why deals are everywhere. But first, the British pound has fallen nearly 2 percent against the dollar amid shaky Brexit negotiati...Show More

There's a Brexit deal ... we think. What happens next? What sticking points have held up the process? We talk to Marketplace’s Stephen Beard about whether or not the May administration will be able to close the deal with the European Union. Then, a f...Show More

It's been a long week. Let's take five minutes just to recap. We'll talk midterms, the Federal Reserve and more with the Wall Street Journal’s Kate Davidson and Politico Managing Editor Sudeep Reddy for the Weekly Wrap. Then, we'll get into tariffs, ...Show More

Some things might change with the American economy because of the midterms, but we can always count on the good ol' Federal Reserve. The Fed has been meeting this week to discuss interest rates and the state of the economy. While interest rates held ...Show More

Sears is shutting down more than 100 stores, which is good news for people in the liquidation business. What's it like when your job is help shut down other businesses? We'll look into it, but first: Fed Chair Powell said yesterday that the U.S. won’...Show More

At the turn of the century, only about 2 percent of people in India had internet access. Thanks to cheaper and cheaper tech, you can get online in just a few minutes for maybe $100, and that's transformed the country. We'll look at how, and turn stat...Show More

Inflation is (slowly) creeping back up, and major companies are starting to raise prices on essentials like diapers and paper towels. On today's show, we'll look at whether consumers are feeling the effects and ask all of you about your price-hike br...Show More

It's felt harder than ever to avoid political conversations since the 2016 election, even (maybe especially) in the workplace. We'll look at how employers are handling tough conversations. But first, an unintended consequence of Disney's acquisition ...Show More

The Los Angeles Lakers are more than just a basketball team. They are also a company worth $3.3 billion, one of the most successful franchises in the NBA. Fundamentally, the Lakers are an entertainment company with outsized influence. Today we'll tal...Show More

Corporate tax cuts from earlier this year have helped drive up the deficit, and lawmakers are debating ways to pay it down. We'll look at how the deficit works and how politicians like to use it. Then, the U.S. posted more than 7 million jobs in Augu...Show More

Gibraltar, on the southern tip of Spain, is a British territory. It’s also one of Europe’s most prosperous economies. But could Brexit change all that? We'll take a closer look at the territory caught in the middle. Then, an unintended consequence of...Show More

With an avalanche of tariffs to navigate, companies are facing a lot of uncertainty over how to plan ahead. Meanwhile, business is booming for trade consultants. We'll talk about it, but first: mortgage rates have hit a seven-year high, and Obamacare...Show More

Roughly one in three people in the United States have less than $5,000 in retirement savings, but for those lucky enough to have some money stashed away, the cost of investing has been getting lower and lower. Management fees for mutual funds have dr...Show More

We're a couple weeks away from the midterm elections, and it's crunch time for voter registration. Political organizations and campaigns have spent millions on voter registration efforts targeting young and diverse voters, but will it work? Also on t...Show More

We hardly used ye. Google is phasing out its social platform Google Plus after a massive data breach. We look at how this could affect Google’s business model. Also on today's show, the International Monetary Fund predicted in its global economic for...Show More

Yale economist William Nordhaus, along with New York University’s Paul Romer, received the Nobel Prize in economics Monday. We look at the consequences of putting Nordhaus’ research on the economic impact of climate change to policy. Then, Romer's wo...Show More

Unemployment is at a 40-year low and wages are starting to tick up, but the number of people working multiple jobs hasn’t changed in more than a decade. Why? Then: Mattress Firm has filed for bankruptcy, citing poor sales. The sleep business has chan...Show More

Forecasts are predicting strong holiday sales this season, which means retailers, warehouses and other businesses are going to need more employees. But with a labor market this tight, we'll look at how companies are competing for seasonal workers. Th...Show More

Most of today's show is devoted to our conversation with Jamie Dimon, the CEO of JPMorgan Chase. We talked about what it was like managing the bank and tangling with the government during the financial crisis, and how he sees his role in today's econ...Show More

Amazon will pay its American employees at least $15 an hour, the company announced today. With 250,000 employees and another 100,000 seasonal workers set to benefit all over the country, can the retail giant pressure its competitors to give out raise...Show More

The Trump administration has struck a deal with Mexico and Canada to revise NAFTA, now called the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement. We'll bring you the details and see how the deal is playing down on the farm. Plus: Elon Musk stepped down from T...Show More

Thousands of people in California live out of their cars. And for those people, the threat of parking tickets is also the threat of losing their home. But first: We'll look at the week in business and economic news, and tell you everything you need t...Show More

As the United States and Mexico finalize details of a trade agreement, the Trump administration has written a rule that Mexican auto manufacturers pay workers a $16 hourly wage or face a 2.5 percent tariff. But the extra taxes might be cheaper than r...Show More

According to the Federal Reserve, anyway. We'll play some of Chair Jerome Powell's statement from today's rate hike announcement and unpack how the central bank sees this economy right now. Then, with the NAFTA deadline looming, we'll look at how clo...Show More

Tariffs on more than 5,000 new Chinese products went into effect this week, and American importers are scrambling to catch up. The notice was so short that some shipments were on the water on the way to the United States when tariffs hit. We'll talk ...Show More

We're starting the week with two big mergers in the headlines: SiriusXM is buying the streaming music pioneer Pandora, and American fashion company Michael Kors is expected to buy Versace, the Italian fashion house. Those deals have more in common th...Show More

President Donald Trump rejected the government’s assessment of the death toll from Hurricane Maria this morning. "3,000 people did not die in the two hurricanes that hit Puerto Rico,” he tweeted, accusing Democrats of inflating the number. Those stat...Show More

You probably haven't heard of Michael Osinski. He's an oyster farmer in upstate New York. But before he did that, in the '80s, he wrote the software that helped banks securitize mortgages — software that would contribute to Lehman's collapse and to t...Show More

The phrase "too big to fail" is closely associated with the financial crisis of a decade ago, and it was used as a justification for government bailouts. It wasn't always this way. There was a time when most banks were small, and they liked it that w...Show More

Neel Kashkari runs the Minneapolis Fed now, but 10 years ago he was in charge of the Troubled Asset Relief Program, also known as the bank bailout. We talked with Kashkari about how TARP architects put a pricetag on the bailout, how his life changed ...Show More

Earlier this week, the United States and Mexico reached a trade agreement as apart of the North American Free Trade Agreement overhaul. Then it was Canada's turn. But after three days of talks, the United States and Canada have no deal. Will Canada w...Show More

As new college students across the country start moving in, we're taking a look at the booming dorm-in-a-bag business. Turns out there's a lot of money in making a 170-square-foot cinder-block box feel like home. But first: It's been a wild week for ...Show More

In a week that's seen the looming threat of impeachment and the longest bull market ever, President Donald Trump has said the former would crash the latter. We'll kick off today's show by examining whether presidential scandals can really affect mark...Show More

A year ago this week, a storm named Harvey left Houston underwater for days. A year on, many neighborhoods are just beginning to rebuild, and residents face a tough decision: take any insurance or FEMA money and rebuild, or cut their losses and leave...Show More

The Environmental Protection Agency released details today of its plan to replace the Obama-era rules governing carbon emissions from power plants. This proposal gives a lot of concessions to the coal industry and is a step toward ending what the pre...Show More

This morning, the U.S. Trade Representative opened six — yup, six — days of public hearings into President Donald Trump's proposed tariffs on Chinese imports. The hearings are to let companies and trade groups affected by those tariffs weigh in, and ...Show More

No judgement if you did. Verbally promised promotions can go up in a poof of smoke and proving a boss or co-worker is abusive is a lot easier when you have solid proof. But there are a few things you should think about before you hit that record butt...Show More

Republicans are betting on the strong economy to sway voters in November’s elections, but will that work? This time around, maybe not. Also on today's show: A dispatch from Turkey, where Syrian refugees-turned-entrepreneurs are working to stay afloat...Show More

It's been a year since the United States started NAFTA renegotiations with Canada and Mexico. Since then, Mexico has elected a new president and the U.S. has engaged in several controversial trade maneuvers. So are we any closer to signing a new deal...Show More

Fax machines, once the height of telecommunications tech, have mostly gone the way of the beeper. Some offices still fax occasionally, via those big industrial copiers, which new research shows are very vulnerable to hacking. We'll talk through today...Show More

With the caveat that President Donald Trump is often his own economic adviser, we headed to the West Wing today to chat with National Economic Council Director Larry Kudlow. He joined the administration just as Trump levied new tariffs on steel and a...Show More

We do the numbers all the time, but today's is the biggest yet: Apple is the first company to reach an estimated $1 trillion market capitalization. We'll talk about what that means on today's show. But first: The Trump administration announced its pl...Show More

The NBA has become the first major sports league in this country to sign a deal with a sports betting operation. Back in May, the Supreme Court said it was OK for states to legalize sports betting, meaning Las Vegas would no longer have a monopoly. E...Show More

Southern California's housing market is as hot as ever, with home prices double the national average. That has many buyers searching for more affordable houses outside the city, and that means a much longer commute. Think 90+ minutes. Then: The Labor...Show More

It’s report card time for U.S. companies. Every three months, corporate executives from publicly traded companies sit down with shareholders to share their quarterly earnings. This quarter, CEOs are stuck between those shareholders and the trade war....Show More

Welfare reform is in the air again, with a House bill and a renewed push at the White House Council of Economic Advisers. But what do we really know about welfare in America? Especially since the last reform effort two decades ago? Our podcast The Un...Show More

President Donald Trump accused China of manipulating its currency today. It's not the first time the White House has thrown out the accusation, but this time it comes amid trade tensions, when the yuan has fallen 8 percent compared to the dollar, whi...Show More

"Domestic car company" is kind of a misnomer these days. Auto manufacturers get parts from all over the world, and companies like Ford and General Motors stand to both benefit and be hurt by tariffs, making the politics much murkier. We'll talk about...Show More

Antitrust regulators in the European Union are charging Google a $5 billion fine for using its Android software to push out competition and making phone companies pre-install its apps. We'll talk about what that means for the company and the ways ove...Show More

Under the Trump administration, federal agencies are no longer required to determine the financial costs of climate change, so a group of scientists have stepped up to the plate. We'll talk about that project and what it can tell us about the real-wo...Show More

We're starting today with news from overseas, not Helsinki but Geneva, where the World Trade Organization is fielding complains from China against the United States, and the U.S. against pretty much everybody. We'll talk about what happens next and w...Show More

The Department of Justice is appealing the ruling that cleared Time Warner's $85 billion merger with AT&T, the government announced just before we put out yesterday's show. Today, we're trying to game out what's next, especially since the merger's al...Show More

Jay Powell's been the chairman of the Federal Reserve for about five and a half months. His office in the Federal Reserve Building on Constitution Avenue is still getting put together, but he's already put his mark on the central bank and chatting wi...Show More

In the five months since Jerome “Jay” Powell took over as chairman of the Federal Reserve, the country is facing a growing number of tests: stagnant wage growth, tariff disputes around the world and a White House that likes to publicly offer the Fed ...Show More

Today might feel like a Monday, but it's actually the end of the week, which means U.S. tariffs against China go into effect tomorrow. Should you be worried about inflation? Or even ... deflation? We'll talk about it, then head to a Georgian pecan fa...Show More

Happy Fourth of July, it's a hot one and your AC can feel it. The heat wave gripping parts of the midwest and northeast could have a damaging effect on the electric grid system. It also holds economic concerns for the areas poor. Although it’s a holi...Show More

Traders only worked half a day, giving everyone a chance to get out of town for the July Fourth holiday. In that spirit we're bringing you three stories about summer vacations: Why plane tickets are so cheap right now, how Orlando became an amusement...Show More

The trusty sedan might not be enough for Americans these days. Sales have been tanking the last few years, giving way to bigger trucks, SUVs and crossovers. We find out why. Also on the show, we talk with Politico’s Annie Karni about her reporting on...Show More

If only. President Donald Trump likes to talk about the trade deficit, the difference between what the United States sells to other countries and what it buys from them. It shrank between March and April, according to the latest report, something the...Show More

A year-plus into NAFTA negotiations, President Donald Trump might be considering a new tactic: Split up the whole thing into two bilateral deals with Mexico and Canada. We'll take a look at what that would look like. Then, we hear from more businesse...Show More

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin got the cold shoulder at the G-7 finance ministers meeting this past weekend, and as President Donald Trump heads to Quebec for more meetings, Canada, Mexico and the European Union are issuing blistering responses to...Show More

It's been a while since one of President Donald Trump's tweets made economic news, but today he kind of scooped the rest of the government. "Looking forward to seeing the employment numbers at 8:30 this morning," he tweeted, potentially violating a f...Show More

The threat of a trade war has been looming over this country since President Donald Trump announced steel and aluminum tariffs almost three months ago. But one set of tariffs, and a bunch of exclusions and carve-outs to it, does not a trade war make....Show More

Over 12.5 million people in the United States work in the manufacturing sector. That's nearly 12 percent of U.S. GDP. So what we make and how make it matters. We're starting off with the second part in our series about manufacturing in America. Today...Show More

... unless you're driving. Then honk maybe? At any rate, you're not alone. The White House is back to being the Bad Cop, pushing ahead on tariffs and punishing China for playing unfair with intellectual property. We'll bring you the latest on that an...Show More

Or are you in the 52 percent of American workers who left them on the table in 2017? We look at the economic effects of people taking their paid vacation time. And on this Memorial Day, the future of of the $55 billion VA Mission Act, which provides ...Show More

Starbucks stores around the country are closing down next week for unconscious bias training. The programs are getting more and more popular, but is their impact measurable? Plus, we cap of our week covering graduates in the recession with the story ...Show More

The Trump administration announced it would investigate possible tariffs on auto imports on national security grounds. But, how exactly is the auto industry connected to national security? We sent Marketplace's Sabri Ben-Achour on a hunt for answers....Show More

Probably not, to be honest. They have a lot of student loans. But hey, the job market is good! Well, sort of. Listen to the story, we'll explain. Today we talk to Qualcomm CEO Steven Mollenkopf about why he isn't worried about China and why 5G is exc...Show More

The House is set to take up a bill today dialing back parts of Dodd-Frank, the law regulating banks after the financial crisis. The bill, which has already passed the Senate, would change mortgage lending requirements and raise the threshold at which...Show More

After two days of trade talks in Washington and a high-level trip earlier this month, China and the United States have announced a truce in the simmering trade war, with U.S.-imposed tariffs on hold. We'll spend some time a the top of today's show re...Show More

We're talking NAFTA. We're also talking tariffs. And China. And trade deficits. Leigh Gallagher from Fortune Magazine and Dion Rabouin from Yahoo Finance join us for the Weekly Wrap to talk about the unforeseen consequences of U.S. trade policy and t...Show More

We're just a couple days away from the royal wedding, and the fashion industry loves Meghan Markle. We'll look at her style and how it might change once she marries Prince Harry. But first, let's talk about the Newtonian law of global trade: For ever...Show More

That's the name of Ken Langone's new book. He co-founded The Home Depot, and he's been around this economy for a while. We'll unpack that premise, but first we'll talk NAFTA renegotiations. Tomorrow's supposed to be the deadline, but it appears that ...Show More

So what are they actually doing about it? Today on the show, we'll do the numbers. The 100 most-common brand-name pharmaceuticals got 232 percent more expensive in the past decade. State lawmakers have filed more than 150 bills this year to rein in c...Show More

It's not all it's cracked up to be. A Tesla Model S rear-ended a firetruck at a red light last night. The car was doing 60, and witnesses say it didn't break. The driver broke his ankle, and now investigators are wondering if the car's autopilot syst...Show More

We packed a lot in the first half of this episode: What President Donald Trump said (and didn't say) in his speech on drug prices today, the looming NAFTA deadline, the swamp and the draining thereof, it's all here. Then: The upfronts are next week. ...Show More

President Donald Trump announced today he's going to meet Kim Jong Un on June 12 in Singapore. There are a whole lot of variables in this equation: What's motivating who to do what? One thing that might have driven North Korea to the negotiating tabl...Show More

The news coming out of Facebook this week is maybe a bit friendlier than it has been: The company announced some leadership shuffles yesterday, along with a new department focused on blockchain technology. We'll kick off today's show with everything ...Show More

Iran agreed to a slew of limits on its nuclear program three years ago in exchange for lifting decades of international sanctions from the United States and five other countries. The year after the deal went into place, Iran's real GDP grew by 12.5 p...Show More

Or maybe it's a grande deal? Whatever. It's a very big deal. The Swiss food brand is paying more than $7 billion for the rights to distribute Starbucks coffee. We'll talk about what Nestle does (or doesn't) get for its money. Probably it means no one...Show More

The labor market, to be specific. It's been out of whack for a while, and this morning's jobs report only got stranger. Last month saw 3.9 percent unemployment, the lowest in 18 years. Finding a job is pretty easy, but wages still aren't rising. What...Show More

We've been talking a lot about the countries and companies that have asked for exemptions from President Donald Trump's steel and aluminum tariffs. But remember, the whole point of these things is to help out America's steel and aluminum industries. ...Show More

Today, the Federal Open Market Committee chose not to raise interest rates, but it did have other news: Inflation has reached the Fed benchmark of 2 percent. How tolerant of inflation is the Fed going to be? That depends on whether the economy is exp...Show More

Ahead of a midnight deadline last night, the White House gave a slew of countries exemptions from steel and aluminum tariffs lasting a month or longer. South Korea has already scored itself a permanent pass by agreeing to restrict its steel and alumi...Show More

The big corporate story du jour is T-Mobile and Sprint, but we're going to focus on something specific the two wireless companies said when they announced a proposed merger: that the combined company would be able to move faster on fifth-generation w...Show More

The e-cigarette manufacturer Juul started off aiming its product at adult smokers looking to quit, but now the brightly-colored, fruit-flavored refill cartridges have caught on with teens, and the FDA is stepping in. We'll talk about it. Plus: the vi...Show More

The big corporate headline of the day is an industrial story, a commodities story, a global trade story and a good ol' wow-that's-an-interesting-move story. Ford Motor Company announced this morning it's going to stop making cars for the North Americ...Show More

If what's past is prologue, we're in for a change of mood at the White House. French President Emmanuel Macron's on his way out of town, after what you can only call a very warm reception from President Donald Trump. German Chancellor Angela Merkel s...Show More

Quick: Are rising interest rates good or bad? What about oil prices? Home prices? It's kind of a trick question. Those are all signs of an economy that's growing quite nicely — when wages are going up. That's where we're starting today. Then: If you'...Show More

We begin today with a number, a relatively simple number that brings with it meaning for everybody in this economy who has debt: 3 percent. That's the interest rate that the government's 10-year Treasury note is getting really close to, for the first...Show More

Wells Fargo will pay the federal government a billion dollars to settle charges of misconduct in its car and home loans. That's a lot, but only a small percentage of the banks' recent profits. It's also the biggest bank fine imposed by the Trump admi...Show More

Sometimes you've got a plan for reporting out a story, then circumstances change your mind. That's what happened to Marketplace Weekend host Lizzie O'Leary, who's in Puerto Rico this week. She was in the middle of reporting an update on how the islan...Show More

American consumers can be a fickle bunch, and companies spend billions to make that fickleness break their way as best they can — especially in a crisis. Bloomberg calculated that Starbucks' upcoming shutdown for racial bias training is gonna cost $1...Show More

It was supposed to be Tax Day in America, but thanks to computer issues at the IRS, everyone gets another day to file. Taxes were still on the docket at the Supreme Court today though — the justices heard South Dakota v. Wayfair Inc. At issue is whet...Show More

It's a bit of a musical episode today, from Beyoncé's mammoth Coachella performance to... the new Fed appointments? We'll explain. None of our trading partners were hit with a currency manipulator label in the latest report from the Treasury departme...Show More

President Donald Trump has gone back and forth on the Trans-Pacific Partnership the past few days, and you might be looking for a refresher. What exactly is in the thing? We'll get you up to speed today and talk a bit about the Farm Bill, too. Then: ...Show More

Much like health care, it seems global trade is a harder nut to crack than the White House thought it might be. In a meeting today, Presdient Donald Trump said he's told his top economic and trade advisers to look at getting the United States back in...Show More

We got the most recent Federal Reserve meeting minutes. The key takeaways: Trump tax cuts and increased federal spending will give the economy a short-term boost, but all the deficit spending and retaliatory tariffs carry long-term risks. Speaker of ...Show More

If you were listening to Mark Zuckerberg's testimony in front of the Senate, you missed the sort of bewildered smile on the Facebook CEO's face as he explained to Sen. Orrin Hatch how his company makes money. Zuckerberg was still answering questions ...Show More

It's been a while since we've started this program by dissecting a presidential tweet. But with a whiff of trade war in the air, there's some good economic context to be had from that exercise today. At 6:03 in the morning, the president said, "When ...Show More

Today's jobs report was underwhelming, no doubt. But after putting up huge numbers last month, we're still adding 200,000 jobs a month this year. What we should really be worried about is The Ghost of Jobs Reports Yet to Come, because this run of eco...Show More

The trade deficit — all the goods and services we buy from overseas, minus what other countries buy from us — is President Donald Trump's key economic irritant. He's cited it when threatening to raise tariffs and tear up trade deals like NAFTA. We ju...Show More

We should be clear from the jump: China and the U.S. are trading specific, escalating threats of tariffs, but none have actually gone into effect. So you could call it a "trade war," but it really isn't ... yet. Still, you all have a lot of questions...Show More

The 12 regional banks in the Federal Reserve are ostensibly equal, but in reality the New York Fed leads the way on regulation of Wall Street and other bits of monetary policy. Today, the central bank announced John Williams (no, the other one) will ...Show More

Wall Street finally reacted to the escalating tariffs between the U.S. and China today, and sliding tech stocks contributed to what was a pretty manic Monday for markets. We'll kick off the show with everything you need to know. Then: We'll zoom in a...Show More

... but Molly Wood is here! Walmart is looking to acquire the health insurance giant Humana, which is valued at $37 billion. If approved by regulators, it'll be the latest in a string of big health care mergers. Plus: More and more people are playing...Show More

... about who controls it or where it all goes. OK, that's not great poetry, but it is a pretty good business model. Even Facebook couldn't get enough. The embattled company was getting consumer data from outside brokers until this week, when it anno...Show More

The South Korea trade deal we were talking about has finally gone through, and there's a lot in there: cars, currency manipulation and steel. South Korea gets out from under the steel tariffs that went into effect last Friday in return for limiting h...Show More

It goes something like this: "Politicians use economics the way a drunk uses a lamppost: for support, not illumination." It's what Princeton economist Alan Blinder is exploring in his new book: Why can't economists and lawmakers seem to understand ea...Show More

Cambridge Analytica allegedly leveraged a personality test taken by 270,000 people to scrape data from 50 million Facebook users in its effort to influence elections. The quiz was based on a popular test used for modeling what’s called the “Big 5” pe...Show More

That is, former Fed Chair Ben Bernanke, former Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and Timothy Geithner, former president of the New York Federal Reserve and former Treasury secretary. We sat down with all three of them at Yale University last week to t...Show More

If the legal machinations of giant corporate mergers are your thing, next week is gonna be a good one for you. The U.S. v. AT&T and Time Warner heads to Federal court Monday. The Justice Department is trying to block the $85 billion deal, and the com...Show More

Your regularly scheduled episode of Marketplace is landing in your feed later today, but for now we have something special. Make Me Smart with Kai and Molly is back with brand-new weekly episodes, wading into the big topics we want to get smart about...Show More

Yesterday we examined the financials that lead to the fall of Bear Stearns, and now we're going to look at the human side: A couple of unlikely Wall Street workers who met and eventually got married at Bear's headquarters. We'll trace their relations...Show More

On this day in 2008, an 85-year-old investment bank became the very public face of the financial crisis. Only a $29 billion loan guarantee from the Federal Reserve and JP Morgan's buyout kept Bear from actual bankruptcy, but the company was ruined. W...Show More

The Trump Administration is reportedly looking to impose tariffs on Chinese goods, adding up to $60 billion in tariffs that would target tech products and telecom companies. That follows the White House's surprise move to block Singapore-based Broadc...Show More

President Donald Trump has complained about unfair trade practices with China since before his campaign even began. But in the escalating war of words around trade, the White House has a new target: The European Union, one of America's most important...Show More

Here's one way to think about the business and economic news at the end of what feels like a very long week: It literally took something that's never happened before to knock the economy off front pages. But we're going to put it right back on today....Show More

... At least not Canada, Mexico or China. The first two countries were exempted from the steel and aluminum tariffs President Donald Trump signed today. Meanwhile, for all Trump's talk about China's unfair practices and a "good" trade war, reaction f...Show More

President Donald Trump announced less than a week ago, pretty much out of nowhere, that he was going to impose tariffs on imported steel and aluminum. Trump's fellow Republicans and others have pushed back, but the White House has been steadfast ... ...Show More

And today, Gary Cohn is one of the losers. He spent a year and a couple of months as the head of the National Economic Council, a free-trade Democrat in a populist Republican White House. He announced today he's leaving the White House. We'll talk ab...Show More

Now what? We're starting today's show trying to figure that out, with several stories on the new steel and aluminium tariffs Trump announced last week, if they'll actually protect American jobs, how other countries might respond and how trade policy ...Show More

What do you say about a week where the president of the United States, without any indication that the decision had been thought through by policy experts, announces trade tariffs that leave basically every constituent part of the global economy goin...Show More

In retrospect, we should have seen these steel and aluminum tariffs coming. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin mentioned "reciprocal free trade," in our interview earlier this week, and President Donald Trump said something similar today. Tariffs are ...Show More

There are a whole lot of threads to pull from the national conversation we're having about gun violence. President Donald Trump did one of those televised meetings with congressional leaders at the White House today. Dick's Sporting Goods said it'll ...Show More

Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin faced a boisterous crowd while in conversation with Kai on stage at the Burkle Center for International Relations at UCLA last night. We're bringing you that chat in two parts on today's show, and we cover a lot of gr...Show More

Organized labor was on the docket at the Supreme Court of the United States today in a case called Janus v. AFSCME, the Association of Federal, State, County and Municipal Employees. It's one of the biggest public employees union in the country, and ...Show More

The National Rifle Association is losing business ties in the wake of the school shooting in Parkland, Florida, last week. SimpliSafe, Met Life, Enterprise and a handful of other companies have said they're done with the group. It's a powerful brand,...Show More

Here we are, 10 years after the American financial system imploded, and something amazing has happened. President Donald Trump came into office saying he would "do a big number" on the "disaster" that was Dodd-Frank, but now his administration is kee...Show More

That's the word(s) of the day according to the Federal Reserve, which released the minutes from its last meeting this afternoon. Along with that momentum, the Fed said the initial bump the economy's gonna get from the tax cuts might be bigger than or...Show More

It's not often we take you deep into the underbelly of the American bond market, but today's your lucky day. The federal government kicked off a big couple of days in the Treasury market this morning. It sold almost $180 billion worth of short-term b...Show More

A couple of weeks ago on this show, we told you about some of the funding and resources available for mass shooting victims to help with their short-term recovery. Today, we consider what life and work is like five, or even ten years after surviving ...Show More

Things turned out a little differently though. That's how we'll start today's episode, reflecting on the week in deficits, inflation and immigration. Then we examine the growing trend of online retailers expanding to brick-and-mortar stores. Amazon's...Show More

What's that saying? You can't manage it if you don't measure it? Everybody's got their own answer about how to stop mass shootings, but nobody has substantive data. That's because there's effectively a ban on spending federal money for research on gu...Show More

We hate days like this, when there's been a shooting in a school or at a concert. There's no economic angle right after a tragedy like this. It's not our story, but we can't ignore it. So we're gonna acknowledge it, trust that you've had your fill of...Show More

We'll get the latest monthly inflation numbers tomorrow morning, before the bell, and as we saw last week, markets are a little skittish. The thing about the Consumer Price Index is we can measure it pretty well, but predicting it is a lot harder. Th...Show More

The fiscal year 2019 budget the White House released today isn't what you might call an "operative" piece of fiscal policy. Congress hammered out a two-year spending plan just last week, after all. But the budget is still worth a read for some of the...Show More

What a week, right? Huge market swings, a correction and, oh yeah, a baby government shutdown. Is this the new normal? That's what we're sorting through in the conversation that kicks off today's show. Now let's be clear: We're in a correction, there...Show More

Another down, volatile day on Wall Street. The Dow closed down more than 1,000 points, and major indices are down about 10 percent from a couple weeks ago, putting U.S. markets square in correction territory. That's where we'll start today's show. Th...Show More

As we tape this, one congressional chamber has come to an agreement about how to run the American economy, at least in part. The two-year budget deal would mean we wouldn't have to worry about shutdowns or short-term funding bills until the middle of...Show More

How are we doing today? Everyone feeling a little better? With clearer eyes and some of yesterday's dive recovered, let's take a closer look at what's going on in the stock market. We'll talk about algorithmic trading, bonds and the international mar...Show More

It's the Dow's biggest single-day point drop on record. We're starting off today's show with some context: What we know, what we don't and how serious to take it. Then: If you've ever had Wonderful Pistachios, POM pomegranate juice or Halo mandarin o...Show More

You hear us say it all the time: The stock market is not the economy. That's especially true today, as the Dow took a steep dive just after a really great jobs report. We'll talk about it on the Weekly Wrap. Then: We're gonna dig into wages, because ...Show More

With all the drama in Washington these days, you may have missed another deadline looming soon: the federal debt limit. While the government shutdown a couple of weeks ago was about Congress failing to approve new money to pay for government services...Show More

Janet Yellen presided over the Federal Open Market Committee meeting for the last time as chair today. As expected, the committee left interest rates alone for now, but signaled that hikes could come later this year if inflation picks up. That depend...Show More

... and walk out running a health care company. Together they employ about a million people, and it appears health care was driving them nuts. They're starting their own company that will give coverage "free from profit-making incentives and constrai...Show More

There comes a time in the life of every presidential administration when, economically speaking, they own it. We're not talking here about taking credit for the economy, Trump's been doing that since the early days, but when they've earned it. With P...Show More

The stage is getting set for a fight over net neutrality. The Federal Communications Commission rolled back the federal rule last month, clearing the way for internet service providers to throttle or favor content. But states have other ideas. The go...Show More

Ahead of his big speech in Davos, Switzerland, tomorrow, President Donald Trump told CNBC that while he prefers bilateral trade deals, he'd be open to a bigger agreement like the Trans-Pacific Partnership if the U.S. gets a "substantially better deal...Show More