The latest jobs report is out Friday, and overall it’s pretty middling — some details are good news; others not so much. One data point sounding economic alarms? The labor force participation rate, which fell to 62.4% in May after several years of general growth since the height of the pandemic. In this episode, we explain what’s going on. Plus: E-commerce exporters in China describe the “rollercoaster” of keeping up with tariffs, and California’s Central Valley experiments with agricultural inn...
Jun 06, 2025•26 min
Call it an "it could have been worse" jobs report. In May, 139,000 more people drew paychecks, which is higher than expected. Job growth was up in sectors like teaching and health care, but immigration policy is hurting hiring in construction and retail. What sort of picture does this paint of the economy? And later: The BBC's James Graham explores what it takes to shut down a fraudulent e-commerce website.
Jun 06, 2025•8 min
It's a public breakup of sorts: Elon Musk thinks President Donald Trump's "big, beautiful bill" is bloated and financially destructive. In response, Trump is threatening moves that will hurt Musk's companies including SpaceX and Tesla. We'll discuss what it says about how companies manage their CEOs. Plus, try not to finish all the popcorn before the movie starts. AMC says it will show even more ads ahead of feature films starting in July.
Jun 06, 2025•7 min
From the BBC World Service: Financial regulators from the United Kingdom, Australia and the United Arab Emirates are teaming up to crack down on questionable financial advice on social media, targeting so-called "finfluencers." Then, India’s central bank has made its steepest rate cut in five years. And, how can you spot if a website is fraudulent and what can you do to take it down? We take a look at scam websites.
Jun 06, 2025•7 min
Yoshua Bengio, one of the so-called godfathers of AI, wants it to be less human. Plus, a federal judge temporarily blocked a law in Florida that would ban kids under 14 from getting social media accounts. But first, Meta announced an energy deal with one of the country's biggest operators of nuclear reactors. Marketplace’s Nova Safo is joined by Jewel Burks Solomon, managing partner at the venture capital firm Collab Capital, to break down these tech stories from the week.
Jun 06, 2025•12 min
Unemployment filings and layoffs are rising, and private sector hiring hit a two-year low, recent reports show. Is it just healthy turnover or should we be worried about the direction the labor market is headed? For now, analysts are split. Also in this episode: Reddit sues an AI firm for scraping its user data and Kai spends more time in Utah County with ADP’s Nela Richardson exploring the obstacles and opportunities that come with a young population. Every story has an economic angle. Want som...
Jun 05, 2025•26 min
The trade deficit — the difference between what the U.S. imports and what it exports — shrank by the most ever recorded in a single month in April. That news follows the largest widening of the trade deficit on record in the first quarter. We'll unpack what to make of it all. Also, service sector activity falls as tariffs take a bite, and predictive contracts raise questions around gambling regulation.
Jun 05, 2025•8 min
Expect the White House to keep trying to claw back money that Congress appropriated and that the Trump administration is supposed to spend. Administration officials think they’ve found a loophole in the law that runs out the clock on federal funding through a process known as rescission. We'll hear more. Plus, a group of Altadena homeowners who lost houses to this year’s wildfires are banding together to try to keep rebuilding costs down.
Jun 05, 2025•7 min
From the BBC World Service: India formally takes its dispute with the U.S. to the World Trade Organization, challenging Washington’s global tariffs on cars. Then, Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia work to stop Russia's fleet of illegal oil tankers from passing through the Baltic Sea. And later, students at the University of Havana in Cuba boycott classes over a sharp hike in mobile internet fees, and the Nintendo Switch 2 launches worldwide.
Jun 05, 2025•7 min
We've been looking at how technology is changing agriculture . Last month, we visited Central California where there's new investment in everything from electric tractors and leaf sensors to upskilling farmworkers . Today, Marketplace’s Kimberly Adams visits our neighbor to the north. Specifically, Canada's first fully-automated greenhouse. It's cost millions to set up, and it's just in time for a trade war....
Jun 05, 2025•5 min
Provo, Utah, which sits in one of the youngest counties of the U.S., has attracted some major employers in recent years. This week, “Marketplace” host Kai Ryssdal and ADP chief economist Nela Richardson visit and meet with some employers to find out why Provo’s young population and LDS community make a strong labor pool. Plus, a brief history of “tax the rich” and China curbs rare earth exports. Every story has an economic angle. Want some in your inbox? Subscribe to our daily or weekly newslett...
Jun 04, 2025•26 min
The White House triggered a sharp increase in tariffs on imported metals on Wednesday. The tax at the border is now 50%. But one trading partner got an exemption: the UK. Our BBC colleague Leanna Byrne joins us to explain. Also on the program: federal funding cuts hit the arts. We check in with the Brooklyn Conservatory of Music after the nonprofit lost its NEA grant.
Jun 04, 2025•7 min
Microsoft has unveiled a weather forecasting approach that makes its predictions using artificial intelligence. Google, Nvidia and Huawei are all using AI to try to make weather predictions more precise. And as hurricane season gets underway, we look into what it could mean for the broader economy. But first, how higher steel and aluminum tariffs could hurt U.S. manufacturers.
Jun 04, 2025•7 min
From the BBC World Service: The U.S. is doubling tariffs on most imported steel and aluminum, raising them from 25% to 50%. The stakes are extremely high — around one quarter of all steel and half of all aluminum used in the U.S. is imported. Meanwhile, the European Commission is unveiling its 2026 budget proposal, and Wednesday marks the deadline the U.S. has set for countries to provide their best offer on trade negotiations. Plus, on International Cheese Day, we hear how Gen Z's tastes are ch...
Jun 04, 2025•7 min
AI-generated deepfakes are everywhere on social media. Now, you can take a test developed by Northwestern University to see how well you spot them. Marketplace’s Nova Safo took the test, sifting through a bunch of real and fake images. He got five out of six right, which is the average in a study Northwestern conducted. Lead researcher Matt Groh also helped develop a litmus test, a series of things to look for to spot deepfakes.
Jun 04, 2025•7 min
The GOP’s budget bill, now at the Senate, includes proposed cuts to federal statistical agencies. That could make government data narrower and less reliable. And when governments fail to put out dependable data? “It ends up being a real drag on the economy,” said economist Laura Veldkamp. Also in this episode: We visit an entrepreneurship hub in Provo, Utah, experts weight the merits of hard and soft data, and warehouses see a usage boom amid tariff uncertainty. Every story has an economic angle...
Jun 03, 2025•26 min
Money borrowed for hospitalization is seen by many as different from paying what you owe for consumer goods: The debt is seldom from discretionary spending. The Biden-era Consumer Financial Protection Bureau had moved to protect credit scores from medical debt, but the agency is now reversing course. A nonprofit called Undue Medical Debt, led by CEO Allison Sesso, works to pay off people's medical debt as a charitable endeavor. But first, Trump's spending bill moves to the Senate.
Jun 03, 2025•7 min
"This Old House Radio Hour" — now a radio show and a podcast — helps listeners tackle home projects both big and small. "Marketplace Morning Report" host David Brancaccio is on that program this week, talking about the process of rebuilding his Altadena home after it was destroyed by the January wildfires.
Jun 03, 2025•52 min
The world will see lower economic growth due to tariffs and tariff uncertainty, according to the OECD. Global economic growth will fall below three percent this year, and the slowdown is expected to be most concentrated in the U.S., Canada, Mexico and China. Also on the program: how steel and aluminum tariffs could drive up grocery prices, and the economic pros and cons of a small-market NBA Finals.
Jun 03, 2025•7 min
From the BBC World Service: The global economy is losing steam, according to the OECD, which now forecasts growth to fall to just 2.9% this year and next. The Paris-based Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development — which represents most of the world’s advanced economies — issued its warning as trade tensions between the U.S. and China continue to grow.
Jun 03, 2025•6 min
It’s a new season of “Million Bazillion!” In this episode, Ryan and Bridget dive into the world of lotteries after listener Oskar asked how they work. With the help of a talking stat(istics) cat, they learn just how tricky it is to win big. But like many lottery hopefuls, the pair still buys a ticket with a plan they think will help them beat the odds. Will their idea work? Listen to find out! If your family is interested in learning more about the questions we answered in this episode, check ou...
Jun 03, 2025•27 min
On this episode of “Marketplace Tech,” host Meghan McCarty Carino spoke with Christopher Mims, a tech journalist at The Wall Street Journal, about the recent evolution of brain computer interfaces — technology that has enabled people with paralysis to move prosthetic limbs or type out communication using computer implants in their brains — and the neurotech startups trying to bring their implants to a larger market by making them less invasive.
Jun 03, 2025•11 min
It depends on who you ask. But we can all agree that this round of tariffs is not the same as the ones President Trump enacted during his first term. In this episode, we compare the tariffs of 2018 to the chaotic rollouts and rollbacks of 2025. Plus: We visit Utah County, one of the youngest areas in the U.S., with ADP chief economist Nela Richardson. Every story has an economic angle. Want some in your inbox? Subscribe to our daily or weekly newsletter. Marketplace is more than a radio show. Ch...
Jun 02, 2025•26 min
As the GOP tax and spending bill moves through Congress, questions about the U.S. debt have not gone away. Over the weekend, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the U.S. would never default on its debt. But the U.S. doesn't have to actually default in order to lose the confidence of investors, who would in turn charge the U.S. more to borrow. Plus: Why Gen X is finding it harder to save for retirement.
Jun 02, 2025•7 min
Tensions are once again escalating between the world's two largest economies. Last week, President Trump accused China of violating the terms of the trade truce, with the U.S. Trade Representative accusing China of restricting the flow of critical minerals. And on Monday, China accused the U.S. of violating the agreement with new restrictions on the export of U.S. computer chips. Also on today's show: why non-alcoholic beer is on the rise and what to know about the proposed "Trump Accounts" for ...
Jun 02, 2025•7 min
From the BBC World Service: Britain will boost its nuclear-powered attack submarine fleet to move to a state of "warfighting readiness,” as Prime Minister Keir Starmer declined to set a precise date for when UK defense spending would hit 3% of GDP.
Jun 02, 2025•7 min
Facial recognition systems use artificial intelligence to analyze patterns in faces, and they've come under increasing scrutiny, particularly in policing. There have been multiple instances of false positives leading to the arrest and detainment of innocent people. There's no federal regulation of this technology, but at least a dozen states have laws that limit its use. So, some law enforcement authorities have turned to a new system called Track, made by a company called Veritone. It doesn't a...
Jun 02, 2025•10 min
The economic reports out this week gave a fuzzy view of the economy, but next week will be all about jobs: job openings, labor productivity, and the latest jobs report. So far this year, employment has been pretty even-keeled — despite tariff uncertainty. Will May data be any different? Also in this episode: A field guide to the ultra-wealthy and a Minnesota family of seven (soon to be eight) grapples with higher costs. Every story has an economic angle. Want some in your inbox? Subscribe to our...
May 30, 2025•26 min
It's not a merger, but the two airlines are teaming up. JetBlue and United announced the partnership, called BlueSky, on Thursday to sell each others’ flights and link up their loyalty programs and more. Plus: Do soccer fans want pre-match entertainment and halftime shows?
May 30, 2025•7 min
Wednesday began with President Trump's sweeping April 2nd tariffs on track. Later that day, those import taxes were ruled illegal. Here on this Friday, that ruling is on hold, with tariffs still in place. Also on the show: Why more parents are struggling financially than just a few years ago, and how consumer spending is shaping this year's summer travel.
May 30, 2025•7 min
