A bite-sized show about big ideas. From the people who make Planet Money, The Indicator helps you make sense of what's happening in today's economy. It's a quick hit of insight into money, work, and business. Monday through Friday, in 10 minutes or less.
It's ... Indicators of the Week! Our weekly look at some of the most fascinating economic numbers from the news. On today's episode: Could more babies change the climate in a big way ? Why did a U.S. judge side with AI company Anthropic? And why is the bond market so chill these days? Related episodes: Artists vs. AI You told us how tariffs are affecting you ( Apple / Spotify ) For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus....
During World War II, the U.S. shipbuilding industry flourished. Now, it's nearly non-existent. China is the dominant shipbuilder in the world economy. On today's show, we look at what happened to American shipbuilding and the protectionist impulses that could stifle a revival. Related episodes: Will Iran block the Strait of Hormuz? The great turnaround in shipping The wide open possibility of the high seas For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ v...
What's the price to save a human life? We examine the monumental legacy of the U.S. President's Emergency Plan For AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) with journalist Jon Cohen, who traveled to Eswatini and Lesotho to learn how cuts under the Trump Administration are hitting people at the clinic door. Related episodes: The gutting of USAID How USAID cuts hurts farmers For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org . Fact-checking b...
The world has held a close eye on the Strait of Hormuz lately with Israeli and U.S. strikes on Iran. Nearly a quarter of the world's seaborne oil passes through the narrow waterway, and many are worried Iran could shut the strait down. Today on the show, we explore what it would mean for Iran to close off the strait, and what insurance could tell us about tensions in the Middle East. Related episodes: Oil prices and the Israel-Hamas war ( Apple / Spotify ) How the 'shadow fleet' helps Russia ski...
Americans like to spend money. In fact, we spend more per person than almost any other country in the world. So, we wanted to know how an uncertain economy is affecting that. Today on the show, we hear from consumers directly on how their spending habits have changed the past few months. Related episodes: How's ... everybody doing? ( Apple / Spotify ) Three ways consumers are feeling the pinch ( Apple / Spotify ) For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet M...
It's ... Indicators of the Week! Our weekly look at some of the most fascinating economic numbers from the news. On today's episode: the Senate passes the GENIUS Act , the SALT cap might be DOA in the OBBB, and a gender split on the state of the economy. Related episodes: How stable is Stablecoin? ( Apple / Spotify ) Feeling inflation in the grocery store For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org . Fact-checking...
Last week, the U.S. Treasury held an auction for 30-year bonds. Some were worried no one would show up to buy these things! That didn't happen, but the 'long bond' isn't exactly thriving at the moment. Today on the show, we look back at why we have such a long maturity bond and why it might be a good idea to start paying attention to it going forward. Related episodes: Bond market nightmares ( Apple / Spotify ) Bond vigilantes. Who they are, what they want, and how you'll know they're coming ( A...
Last month, Eric Trump, executive vice president at The Trump Organization, attended a ceremony in Vietnam to break ground on a $1.5 billion residential development and golf course. This comes as Vietnam's government is in trade talks with the administration of Eric's father, President Donald Trump. Today on the show, we look at how the Trump family's business projects in Vietnam are raising red flags when it comes to government ethics. Related episodes: How Trump is making coin from $TRUMP coin...
Nintendo has been a titan in the video game industry for decades, but that wasn't always the case. At its very core, Nintendo sees itself as a toy company which is evident in its products from the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) to the Nintendo Switch 2. Today on the show, we explore Nintendo's history and examine how a small playing card company in Japan became a multimedia giant. Related episodes: Forever games: the economics of the live service model Designing for disability: how video ga...
It's ... Indicators of the Week! Our weekly look at some of the most fascinating economic numbers from the news. On today's episode: the monetary cost of Trump's military parade, looks like FEMA could be phased out, and another change to Warner Bros. Discovery. Related episodes: Coyote vs. Warner Bros. Discovery ( Apple / Spotify ) Gilded Age 2.0? ( Apple / Spotify ) For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org . F...
Healthcare churn—when people switch insurance plans—is particularly bad in the US. In today's episode, why Americans switch healthcare plans so much, and how that can cost a lot in money ... and in health. Related episode: How doctors helped tank universal health care ( Apple / Spotify ) Healthcare And Economic Despair For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org . Fact-checking by Sierra Juarez . Music by Drop Ele...
There's something interesting happening at the Port of Baltimore. On today's show, we explore the hidden world of bonded warehouses, where you can stash your imported Latvian vodka or Dutch beer tariff free (for a while). Related episodes: Tariffied! We check in on businesses ( Apple / Spotify ) For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org . Fact-checking by Sierra Juarez . Music by Drop Electric . Find us: TikTok ...
For four decades, the US has maintained a consistent policy position: money should be fairly free to come and go in and out of the country. That's changing. Two sections in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act would add friction. First is a 3.5% tax on immigrants sending money home, commonly known as remittances. Second is what's known as Section 899 or, colloquially, the 'revenge tax'. This one is making Wall Street wary. It would slap extra taxes on people and businesses investing in the U.S. if the...
A debate has been raging over universal health care in the U.S. since the 1940s. Back then, a formidable opponent emerged to dump a lot of money into ensuring it wouldn't happen. That opponent was doctors. Today on the show, Sally Helm, a Planet Money reporter, comes to us in her capacity as the host of HISTORY This Week to detail how doctors helped tank single pay healthcare back then and the role communism played in the fight. A longer version of this episode is available at HISTORY This Week ...
For the last couple of years, U.S. labor productivity has been on the rise. And economists don't know exactly why. So today on the show, the president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago plays economic detective and helps us investigate some different theories about why U.S. workers seem to be more productive than in prior decades. Related episodes: What keeps a Fed president up at night ( Apple / Spotify ) Productivity and workforce whiplash ( Apple / Spotify ) For sponsor-free episodes of T...
To hear President Trump tell it, the late 1800s, i.e. the Gilded Age, were a period of unparalleled wealth and prosperity in the U.S. But this era was also marked by corruption and wealth inequality. Sound familiar? On today's show, is history repeating itself? Related episodes: Trump's tariff role model ( Apple / Spotify ) Worst. Tariffs. Ever. ( Apple / Spotify ) For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org . Fac...
The U.S. government has tallied the economic impact of major natural disasters going back to 1980. State and local governments used this data for budgeting and planning. But last month, the administration retired its Billion-Dollar Weather and Climate Disasters disaster database. Today on the show, we speak to Adam Smith, the architect of the program, on the work he did and what might be next. Related episodes: How much is a weather forecast worth? (Update) ( Apple / Spotify ) How ski resorts ar...
By 2048, more than $100 trillion is expected to be inherited , or passed down from one family member to another. But a lot of the time, the money doesn't end up where it's intended. On today's show, we navigate the thornier questions in estate planning. Related episodes: What women want (to invest in) For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org . Fact-checking by Sierra Juarez . Music by Drop Electric . Find us: T...
A significant portion of young people feel like they aren't on solid financial footing. And yet, the numbers show Gen Z adults on average actually earn more and have more wealth than previous generations did at their age. This phenomenon has been dubbed (by the internet) as 'money dysmorphia'. Today on the show, we chat with a neuroscientist who co-wrote a book, Look Again , that helps explain this phenomenon. Related episodes: Relax, Millennials! You're Doing Great . Gen Z's dream job in the in...
It's ... Indicators of the Week! Our weekly look at some of the most fascinating numbers from the news. On today's episode, we examine: General Motors invests big in V-8s; U.S. Steel and Nippon Steel flirt with the Golden Share; Trump's tariffs just got more unpredictable. Related episodes: Dealmaker Don v. Tariff Man Trump ( Apple / Spotify ) The tensions behind the sale of U.S. Steel ( Apple / Spotify ) For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ vi...
Top Trump advisers have been boasting about 'awesome' trade deals the administration is negotiating with other countries. But are these deals real ? Today on the show, we ask a former U.S. trade negotiator whether these agreements hold up. Related episodes: Dealmaker Don v. Tariff Man Trump ( Apple / Spotify ) Why there's no referee for the trade war ( Apple / Spotify ) Is this a bank? For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or ...
If you had to guess, would you say the president of a university usually makes more money than the football coach? Well, you may be wrong. A college's football coach is often their highest paid employee. The University of Alabama pays its football coach on average close to $11 million. Today on the show, why are college football coaches paid so much? Do their salaries really make economic sense? Related episodes: Why the Olympics cost so much ( Apple / Spotify ) Want to get ahead in youth sports...
Why is building affordable housing so hard these days? We talk to author Derek Thompson about his new book with Ezra Klein, Abundance , about what they believe is keeping affordable housing out of reach in high-income cities. Related: How big is the US housing shortage? ( Apple / Spotify ) How California's speed rail was always going to blow out ( Apple / Spotify ) Why building public transit costs so much For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ v...
Today on the show, we bring you a special episode from the Understood feed at CBC podcasts. It's an excerpt from a series called Who Broke the Internet hosted by Cory Doctorow. The four part series details his criticisms on the state of the modern internet and what we can do about it. From his conversations with Eric Corly the publisher of 2600, an iconic hacker magazine, best known under his hacker name Emmanuel Goldstein, to Clive Thompson a tech and culture writer to Steven Levy the author of...
Can you tell me how to get... how to get to Indicators of the Week? This week's econ roundup looks at Target's sagging sales, Klarna's pay-later problem, and Sesame Street's new streaming address. Related: When do boycotts work? ( Apple / Spotify ) Buy now, pay dearly? For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org . Fact-checking by Sierra Juarez . Music by Drop Electric . Find us: TikTok , Instagram , Facebook , Ne...
Just before Trump began his second administration in January, he and his business partners launched the $TRUMP coin. It's a meme coin that quickly raked in hundreds of millions of dollars. And there's a lot of earning potential still left on the table. Is any of this legal? Today on the show, we examine how the $TRUMP coin works and talk to an expert about how the president's meme coin gambit interacts with the Foreign Emoluments Clause of the Constitution. Related episodes: How the memecoin gam...
President Donald Trump wants more products made in America, and he's not afraid of a few trade wars to make it happen. Back in the 80s, a different trade dispute brought new manufacturing to the U.S. Today on the show, how former President Ronald Reagan used the threat of trade protectionism to bring car-making stateside, and why the same strategy might not work today. Related episodes: The tensions behind the sale of U.S. Steel ( Apple / Spotify ) Tariffs: What are they good for? ( Apple / Spot...
We are back to answer your questions, listeners. Today on the show, we tackle three big questions: Are airport lounges worth it for credit card companies? How effective have carbon taxes been for Canada? Why is gasoline getting more expensive over the last few months as the price of crude oil has sunk? If you want to submit your OWN question to be considered in a future episode, send us a message at [email protected] . Related episodes: Can cap and trade work in the US? ( Apple / Spotify ) A Qui...
All of us negotiate — whether it's accepting a job offer, buying a house or working out who does the dishes. Economist Daryl Fairweather has a new book out: Hate the Game: Economic Cheat Codes for Life, Love, and Work . It's all about the negotiation lessons she's learned through the research, her own career and Destiny's Child. Related episodes: What women want (to invest in) A conversation with Nobel laureate Claudia Goldin (Update) Summer School 7: Negotiating and the empathetic nibble For sp...
The Indicator discusses Japanese investment in US assets amid market instability, the costs of Trump's tax cuts and potential impacts on Medicaid, and Apple's work with brain implants to aid those with paralysis, exploring the intersection of economics, healthcare, and technology.
