Week of February 10th, 2020

Plus, Delta’s plan to become carbon neutral, dismal retail numbers and why teachers in D.C. aren’t managing to live where they work.

The New York Times correspondent Rukmini Callimachi was asked to write valentines for her baby son’s class.

Cleaner jet fuels and electric planes are still decades away, meaning Delta is focusing on carbon offsets.

A startup partners with school districts to help educators buy homes.

The paper greeting card giant is facing stiff competition from new entrants that cater to millennials.

The Department of Justice claims Huawei built its business using stolen intellectual property.

Although it can seem like a daunting concept, we’ve all used game theory in everyday life.

As spellwork, crystals, tarot and psychic readings rise in popularity, they have spawned a $2 billion industry in the U.S.

The U.S. charges Huawei with racketeering, but how can a law meant to target gangsters work against the Chinese tech giant? Young people are making greeting cards cool again.

The “export boom” from the trade deal will take longer because of the COVID-19 outbreak.

Home prices have become unaffordable, but many are still trying to buy.

A judge halts Microsoft’s JEDI project with the Pentagon as Amazon appeals the deal. Valentine’s Day marks a reduction in U.S.-China tariffs. Plus, how a British game show can teach us the basics of game theory.

China and the U.S. reduce tariffs, but Huawei feels the heat. Germany’s economic growth grinds to a halt. Celebrating Valentine’s Day in Saudi Arabia.

The foam allows the water to stay in place and keeps the plants upright to face the sun.

The CBO released a report this week estimating that over the next decade, the federal government will forgive $207 billion in student loans.

Plus: The cost of canceling the Mobile World Congress, Asia’s pilot shortage and a conversation with the woman who runs Wikipedia.

COVID-19 fears led to the cancellation of the largest telecom trade show.

Of abusive relationships, you sometimes hear people ask “Why didn’t they leave?” The answer normally comes down to money.

Financial abuse features in 99% of domestic violence cases. This week on the show, we consider money as a means of control.

Executives are navigating new technologies, new competitors, fallout from the trade war and a scramble for talent with low unemployment.

Under Armour announced it might hold off on opening a flagship store on Manhattan’s iconic Fifth Avenue.

The news of 15,000 more coronavirus cases is now worrying investors. Financial regulators are scrutinizing the relationship between the CEO of Barclays and Jeffrey Epstein. Analyzing the possible links between the uptick in truck sales and pedestrian deaths.

SUVs, crossovers and pickups dominate the market. There are implications for the environment and pedestrians.

The Senate takes a look at President Trump’s controversial Fed nominees. More CEOs are quitting. Are the U.S. and China actually on track to decouple?

The world’s largest cellphone conference is canceled on coronavirus fears. Barclays CEO’s links to Jeffrey Epstein are under scrutiny. The Seychelles swaps debt for environmental action.

The agency is searching for anti-competitive behavior in smaller acquisitions.

Like our own Kai Ryssdal, Alexis Coe is a history-student-turned-podcaster, but when she was in grad school, her path wasn’t always so clear.

After jobless claims spiked in the Great Recession, the state changed its system to pay less for a shorter duration to fewer recipients.

Misinformation has been spreading online, in some places seemingly faster than the disease itself.

It can be indication to banks that you’re unlikely to pay at all.

The coronavirus outbreak’s impact has already shown up in various parts of the economy.

In the grocery wars, every innovation counts.

Billboard doesn’t track plays on TikTok, but viral memes can help drive listens on other platforms.

The director of “Hair Love” said so-called Crown Acts should apply in all 50 states.

While CGI has hurt many animal trainers, Greg Tresan’s Atlanta business gets busier every year.

The FTC is scrutinizing tech giants’ acquisitions more closely. Investors don’t seem to pay be paying attention to the Democratic primaries. The House holds a hearing on diversity in banking. Tennis star Roger Federer is set to become a billionaire.

It’s Day 2 of intense questioning from lawmakers on Capitol Hill for Fed chair Jerome Powell. Sirius is investing big in Soundcloud, a destination for up-and-coming musicians. A new startup is helping teachers reach the dream of homeownership.

From the BBC World Service… Global markets are steady as speculation grows that coronavirus spread has peaked. Nissan sues former chairman Carlos Ghosn. Argentina starts crucial debt talks with the IMF.

Wikipedia runs on donations. Wanna guess how many of the site’s users give?

SoundCloud is known for hosting up-and-coming artists like Lil Nas X and Billie Eilish.

In exchange for a big cut, a startup is helping educators to buy houses in expensive cities.

Reforms after the financial crisis haven’t brought dramatic change.

Are Big Business’ gestures toward social and economic responsibility something we should take seriously or a canny bit of “woke-washing”?

William Morris Endeavor’s failure to start says a lot about the nature of its business.

In a report submitted to Congress the Federal Reserve highlighted an increase in the riskiest investment-grade corporate debt.

With a tight labor market and high turnover, what happened to two weeks’ notice? Plus: the Sprint and T-Mobile merger, WME’s failed IPO first responders stymied by Google Maps.

The old standard is too long for some workers, but far too short for many employers.

First responders say finding people who call 911 on a map is harder than it seems.

As factories in China idle, American companies scramble to find alternate suppliers.

Despite relatively great job and trade numbers, many other factors are contributing to slower growth. Delinquencies are rising rapidly in the subprime auto loan sector. The restaurant industry looks to immigration reform to deal with a worker shortage.

According to one estimate, the national workforce will lose more than a million workers aged under 25 in the next eight years.

A primer on unemployment, job-creation and economic anxiety in early voting states.

The economic fallout inside and outside of China continues as the coronavirus spreads. Fed chair Jerome Powell will have a lot to talk about when he goes before Congress Wednesday. Employment remains elusive for many people with disabilities.

Seventy companies have stayed away from the Singapore aviation industry event, but the show goes on. After two years of growth, global energy emissions remain unchanged. We hear what people think about tipping in Shanghai.

YouTube pays its creators. Will Instagram do the same?

Plus, President Donald Trump’s budget, the economies of early primary states, and the Oscars’ spotlight on hair discrimination.

Cybersecurity experts say there are lots of reasons China might have wanted that data, including to help identify American spies.

China is officially back at work but most enterprises not essential to containing the new coronavirus aren’t up and running just yet.

Joanne Heyler, founding director of The Broad in Los Angeles, explains why expanding the collection requires a delicate approach.

A quarter of adults in their 50s and early 60s worry about paying for health insurance.

Global supply chains around the world are getting hit hard by the coronavirus, including for the many Apple products made in China. A new study finds people nearing retirement fear they won’t be able to afford their health care.

What can we read into President’s new budget as we head closer to the election? The spreading coronavirus is starting to wreak havoc on the Chinese economy. How businesses are addressing worker safety and morale during the outbreak.

The threat of coronavirus keeps many Chinese workplaces closed despite the end of the Lunar New Year holiday. Indian taxi company Ola launches in London today. South Korea’s “Parasite” becomes the first foreign language Best Picture winner at the Oscars.

“You don’t want to negligently or knowingly expose your workforce to a novel infection like a coronavirus,” Lawrence Gostin of Georgetown University told Marketplace’s

Budgets offer a chance to project good times and appeal to certain constituencies.

The company remains heavily dependent on Foxconn’s factories in China for iPhones, iPads and Macs.

Quarantined or just curious, gamers are pushing titles to the top of the charts.