In the latest installment from their trip to Phoenix, “Marketplace” host Kai Ryssdal and Washington Post columnist Heather Long visit Native Resources — a plant relocation, nursery and landscape company — that sits at the intersection of conser

What happens when millions of people can’t make loan payments?

2 Apr 3rd, 2020 27m

We got the March jobs numbers this morning — 4.4% unemployment, more than 700,000 jobs lost, and it’s going to get a lot worse. Lenders are bracing themselves for missed mortgage payments and investors are avoiding loans that aren’t backed by t

Small businesses are barely hanging on

1 Mar 27th, 2020 27m

Lawmakers have finally passed a $2 trillion COVID-19 relief package. When it comes to saving small businesses, will the aid be enough? We talk with some business owners who are barely getting by. Plus: the new economies of Canadian border towns

Low wages are burning out federal firefighters

Jul 14th, 2021 28m 8s

Firefighters working for the federal government are often the first line of defense, but near the end of the line when it comes to pay, especially compared to their peers on the state and local level. That’s led to a boiling point for many, who

Meet me at the mall, it’s goin’ down

Sep 13th, 2019 26m

Forever 21 is expected to close 100 stores as part of a bankruptcy filing. Big anchor stores like Sears have been struggling for a long time, so what’s left? The American mall looks pretty different these days. Plus: The federal deficit has pas

“The granddaddy of all stock indices”

3 days ago 28m 53s

The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed above 40,000 for the first time on Friday. As we say regularly on this show, the stock market is not the economy. But it can still be a good indicator of how some folks are feeling about the state of the

Walmart, Wayfair and . . . wool?

4 days ago 30m 27s

Staying ahead is tough if you run a business — especially in this odd economic moment, where even affluent shoppers are picking low-cost alternatives. Whether you’re selling furniture, home goods or sheep’s wool, sometimes you have to adapt by

The inflation cooldown we’ve been waiting for?

5 days ago 28m 26s

Looking at fresh economic data, retail sales were flat and some categories of food dropped in price from March to April. That indicates both falling inflation and a consumer spending pullback — good things if you’re the Federal Reserve. We’ll d

Biden hits Chinese goods with new tariffs

6 days ago 29m 3s

President Joe Biden announced a slate of new tariffs on $18 billion worth of Chinese goods today, including electric vehicles, semiconductors, steel and aluminum. We’ll look at how the tariffs compare to those implemented under the Donald Trump

Consumer sentiment slumps

7 days ago 29m 41s

Americans are feeling worse about the economy. And that’s partly to do with fears about lasting inflation. According to the latest data, consumers expect inflation to rise three-tenths of a percentage point a year from now. Also in this episode

Is the U.S. ready to be a chipmaking superpower?

10 days ago 28m 50s

Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo wants to position the U.S. to become a leader in semiconductor manufacturing. After all, the U.S. invented the industry not so long ago. The Biden administration has invested $30 billion in new factories, and co

Democracy is critical to prosperity, Treasury secretary says

11 days ago 26m 14s

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen sat down with “Marketplace” host Kai Ryssdal to discuss inflation, economic growth, U.S.-China relations and why having a strong democracy matters for our economy. She also highlighted federal investments in clea

Rents outpace wages in big cities across the U.S.

12 days ago 27m 29s

Over the past five years, rents in nearly every major U.S. city have risen faster than wages. In New York City, rent surged seven times faster than wages last year. But this spike isn’t confined to the Big Apple. Later in this episode: GE’s thr

A little more time for Social Security and Medicare funds

13 days ago 27m 17s

The good news: The forecasted date at which the Social Security and Medicare trust fund can’t pay full benefits for everyone was pushed back a few years in a report issued Monday. Bad news: That day is still coming, unless Congress acts. Also:

Do you like your job?

14 days ago 27m 56s

Workers are more satisfied with their jobs than they’ve been in nearly 40 years, according to a report from The Conference Board. But dig a little deeper and there are signs of rising dissatisfaction. In this episode, why workplace happiness mi

Why government benefits are likely to stick around

17 days ago 27m 23s

The U.S. spends about half of its $6 trillion budget on three government entitlements: Social Security, Medicaid and Medicare. When it comes to the national debt, cutting these benefits is often part of the cost-cutting conversation. In this ep

Breaking Ground: Where are all the jobs?

18 days ago 29m 41s

Phoenix is on track to become a national hub for semiconductor production. The city has had lots of help: billions in funding from the Biden administration and buy-in from major chipmakers like TSMC and Intel. One thing they still need, though,

Breaking Ground: A visit to the “Silicon Desert”

20 days ago 26m 33s

Phoenix has been in the semiconductor business for a while now, but the Biden administration is taking it to another level by sending a major infusion of cash to tech companies in the desert city to expand chip-making capabilities. In this epis

Keep on truckin’

21 days ago 27m 20s

Warehouses and cargo-moving companies spent a few weeks in limbo after the Baltimore bridge collapse. Now, they’re working hard to reroute goods that usually went through the city’s port, with some truckers driving far and wide to pick up freig

A looming deadline for student loan forgiveness

24 days ago 28m 52s

People with certain federal student loans have until Tuesday to consolidate them and qualify for debt cancellation. The Department of Education is reviewing over 40 million loan accounts and issuing credit for past payments that previously didn

GDP grows more slowly than expected

25 days ago 30m 12s

Gross domestic product grew by 1.6% in the first quarter, slower than expected after the six-quarter steak of 2% growth or more. How will the Federal Reserve respond to this data when making its next interest rate decision? Also in this episode

Clock starts on TikTok ban

26 days ago 29m 2s

Today, President Joe Biden took a decisive step by signing a bill that could ban TikTok in the U.S. unless its Chinese owner, ByteDance, divests from the company within nine months. This move echoes a long history of limiting foreign ownership

The business cycle is getting less cyclical

27 days ago 27m 12s

Expand, slow down, contract and recover. Businesses tend to make decisions based on what stage of the business cycle the economy’s in. The problem is, that doesn’t work so well anymore. We’ll get into it. Also: The hot U.S. dollar causes troubl

A new spin on the yard sale

28 days ago 29m 28s

Many states are making it easier for homeowners to subdivide their single-family lots. But those with space to spare may not know how to develop it. Now, new companies are offering cash for the land. Also: Profits are up, but probably not becau

It’s a good time to be an asset owner

Apr 19th, 2024 30m 26s

Thanks to a strong stock market and record home prices, asset owners are feeling richer, even if it’s only on paper. Today, we get into the “wealth effect” and how it may play out in the presidential election. Also: Higher prices slow Procter &