Week of April 24th, 2023

Your local branch may lend musical instruments, let you renew a driver’s license and give you some eggplant seeds.

They’re back in the headlines.

Every car has one, but what you actually pay may differ from this amount.

Is that good for financial stability? Plus, we’ll look into the “We buy ugly houses” business and discuss how new economic data will influence the Federal Reserve’s next move.

Short sellers have made more than a billion dollars betting that First Republic would tank. Is that good for financial stability?

The FAA has asked airlines to give up precious landing slots.

Real estate wholesalers offer convenience, but at what price?

They’re making less on crude, more on refining it.

The latest measure of the Federal Reserve’s preferred gauge of inflation is out today, and it showed a considerable tapering in rising prices. But according to FHN Financial Chief Economist Christopher Low, the economic tea leaves are still saying that America’s central bank will likely hike rates again when its top interest rate-setting committee meets next month. Plus, we chat with Zanny Minton Beddoes, editor-in-chief of The Economist, about the news magazine’s recent edition highlighting the U.S. economy’s surprising long-term overperformance. And, what the latest rounds of layoffs at Gap Inc. say about the retail sector. 

The company just announced it would cut 1,800 corporate jobs, in addition to 500 it eliminated last fall.

Talking about the economy nowadays is a miserable affair — inflation, inequality, and other topics dominate an increasingly negative discussion. But over the longer term, the U.S. economy has actually outperformed when compared to nearly every other advanced economy, a recent issue of The Economist magazine finds. Zanny Minton Beddoes, editor-in-chief of The Economist, lays out the case for looking at the bigger picture. And, we spoke to E.J. Schultz, editor at the publication Ad Age, about the ongoing turmoil at beer maker Bud Lite about the recent sacking of two executives after the company’s campaign with a transgender influencer. 

Other brands are watching how the company deals with becoming part of the debate on transgender rights, says E.J. Schultz of Ad Age.

Zanny Minton Beddoes, editor-in-chief of The Economist, explains why the U.S. economy may be stronger than it looks.

From the BBC World Service: With a desperate need to stop relying on Russian energy, there are plans to make the North Sea ‘Europe’s biggest green power plant’. We speak with Maurice Berns, head of the Boston Consulting Group Center for Energy Impact, about the idea. Plus, Brazil will continue to farm according to its own regulations, despite European Union laws banning the import of products linked to deforestation. And, rising sugar and cocoa prices are bringing a sour note to the confectionery industry.

Tips, tricks and mistakes to avoid.

At least five Black men in the U.S. were arrested after being misidentified by police artificial intelligence software. The ACLU’s Nate Freed Wessler says law enforcement should “walk away” from this tech.

Libraries are community hubs that provide a vast array of services, including resume and application help and educational resources.

Plus, pranksters phone Powell.

The May 1 ritual can put pressure on students to make a choice before they have financial aid information, a college consultant says.

GDP continued softening but was buoyed by consumer spending. We dig in. Then later, tallying the costs of College Decision Day announcements.

So far, price increases have not driven customers away. But there’s evidence that is starting to change.

The number of available H-2B visas available nearly doubled in 2023, providing more people to carry out beautification projects.

Private equity “is a major driver of the enormous gulf between rich and poor in this country,” says author Gretchen Morgenson.

Inflation was up and inventories down, but consumer spending kept GDP growing — albeit at a slower pace.

Monetary policymakers’ fight against inflation has centered around hiking interest rates to cool off the economy, and today’s economic data shows just that — GDP growth slowed considerably last quarter. But core inflation, a measure of price rises among goods that aren’t as volatile, rose at the same time. We ask KPMG chief economist Diane Swonk what that means for the Fed’s inflation fight going forward. Plus, new studies show that popular melatonin gummies contained amounts of the hormone that differed significantly from what had been advertised. And, a look at Texas’s recent push to eliminate sales tax period products like tampons and pads. 

Texas is poised to be the next state to eliminate the sales tax on tampons, pads and liners. It’s currently the most populous state taxing these products.

A new study in the Journal of the American Medical Association looked at 25 melatonin gummies and found that some contained much more melatonin than advertised, or none at all.

Big banks across the financial sector — including giants like JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, and Bank of America — have made green pledges to reduce their contributions to climate change. But as a pair of new reports point out, the firms’ progress toward those goals has been slow even amid a period of high profitability. We look at why that’s been the case. Plus, the embattled First Republic Bank, one of the mid-sized financial institutions caught in the backblast of the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, is in fresh trouble after its stock tanked this week. And, oil tankers are becoming more and more expensive for companies to hire because of Russia’s war in Ukraine. 

Two recent studies show the biggest banks are still not doing enough to meet the goals of the Paris Climate agreement.

From the BBC World Service: Microsoft’s president Brad Smith has been left fuming after the UK’s anti-trust regulator blocked the planned $70 billion merger with gaming giant Activision Blizzard.  He told the BBC he’s disappointed with the UK approach and now sees the European Union as a better place for business investment. Britain’s Competition and Markets Authority is one of three key regulators considering the deal along with those in the U.S. and the EU. Plus, Deutsche Bank has allayed concerns over its health with a set of strong results, but First Republic has hit new lows. And, how the humble homemade sandwich is not immune to inflation.Plus, Deutsche Bank has allayed concerns over its health with a set of strong results, but First Republic has hit new lows. And, how the humble homemade sandwich is not immune to inflation.

The idea that advancing technology outpaces regulation serves the industry’s interests, says Elizabeth Renieris of Oxford. Current oversight methods apply to specific issues, but “general purpose” AI is harder to keep in check.

Today, we’re joined by the head of the National Economic Council to delve into investing in American industry, strengthening supply chains, regulating banks and more.

Plus, let’s talk bonds.

A burst of orders for Boeing in March juiced the durable goods data.

The job requires leaders to be good with both people and money.

Some experts say the decision is rooted in the U.K.’s efforts to develop its own tech industry.

The new head of the National Economic Council on inflation, supply chains, jobs and post-SVB bank regulation.

Google’s parent company, Alphabet, reported higher-than-expected profits yesterday, leading to a big stock buyback being authorized by CEO Sundar Pichai. However, that’s a seemingly contradictory move to the extreme cost-cutting measures the company announced this year in response to a slowdown in ad revenue, including layoffs of over 12,000 employees. Plus, a look at how the airline industry is doing amid widespread delays and flight cancellations. And, why fire insurance is increasingly hard to come by for companies that conduct controlled burns to prevent wildfires. 

Why some countries are moving away from U.S. bucks.

Whether or not mainstream ad dollars return to Carlson’s time slot, the cable news business model isn’t likely to change much.

Why companies that conduct controlled burns are having a harder time finding insurance policies willing to cover them.

The chaos at Fox News in recent weeks amid the sacking of Tucker Carlson and the Dominion legal settlement has cast a spotlight on the network, which would normally be unwanted. But the chaos may actually end up bringing advertisers who had previously fled when Tucker took over primetime. And, we talk about the musings of the U.S. dollar’s decline with Council on Foreign Relations expert Zongyuan Zoe Liu.

From the BBC World Service:  The head of carmaker Volvo joins the Marketplace Morning Report and tells us Europe needs to work harder to implement green subsidies to counter the impact of the Biden administration’s Inflation Reduction Act. Plus, British American Tobacco has been handed a $635 million fine for selling cigarette materials to North Korea. And, we finish by heading to Portugal, which has become the unlikely European capital for bicycle manufacturing.

For-profit welfare companies are pushing low-income parents into temp agencies that offer precarious jobs with rock-bottom wages.

Silver Keskküla created the website Have I Been Encoded to let people check what AI chatbots say about them and raise awareness of the widespread desire to opt out.

Families, companies and states are bearing high costs.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency will lower the loan-level price adjustment fee for people with smaller down payments.

Today, we’re joined by Gina Raimondo to hear why “the stakes are so high” when it comes to making the U.S. a leader in semiconductor manufacturing.

It isn’t as lucrative for airlines to fly planes full of leisure travelers. They need higher-spending business travelers to juice profits.

Following a rash of strikes in the public sector, some British workers have settled their pay disputes, but more are taking further action. And the government is striking back.

Several of them were responsible for the 2008 financial crisis.

“The stakes are so high” when it comes to making the U.S. a leader in this key technology, says Gina Raimondo.

Leisure travel has fully recovered, but business travel hasn’t. That’s hitting carriers’ bottom lines.

The embattled First Republic Bank, which was nearly a casualty of the banking crisis that saw the collapse of three banks in early March, released earnings yesterday that showed the institution lost $100 billion in deposits due to panic among consumers. We look at what that says about First Republic and the wider banking sector. Plus, how the housing market is looking as home price increases continue to slow. And, we talked to Jean Twenge, professor of psychology at San Diego State University, about her new book “Generations,” which explores the differences between people of different age groups.

Microsoft and Alphabet both reporting earnings this week. Expect AI to play a big role in their earnings reports.

Airlines aren’t doing the hottest at the moment — just look at the headlines about Southwest’s latest spate of flight cancelations. According to Samuel Engel, senior vice president at the consultancy ICF, that’s been due to higher labor costs and a slowdown in highly-profitable business travel. Plus, tech sector results from some of the industry’s biggest companies are out soon, which will shed light on how the AI race is playing out. And, what a weakening U.S. dollar means for companies at home and abroad. 

It’s not true that all baby boomers are better off and millennials have no chance at owning homes.

From the BBC World Service: Hoping to capitalize on the huge success of Squid Game, streaming service Netflix has announced that it is doubling its investment in Korean films and TV shows to $2.5 billion. Plus, is a fresh privatization drive coming to Russia as the head of a state-owned bank calls for extra investment? Russian economic analyst Alexandra Prokopenko gives us the details. And, the BBC’s Bernadette Kehoe looks at China’s plans to use 3D printing technology to construct buildings on the moon.

Forrester analyst Christina McAllister advises companies to keep human agents involved in those calls and chats. That’s because generative AI models hallucinate, their responses can’t be controlled and they can jeopardize customer relationships.

A tale of two channels

Yanely Espinal, host of Marketplace’s podcast “Financially Inclined,” tells the story of taking on a financial responsibility she wasn’t prepared for.

The dollar has lost value against major currencies since last summer. This means U.S. products are cheaper abroad, but importing is more costly.

When Bed Bath & Beyond goes to the great beyond, what’s gonna happen to all those empty storefronts? Plus, the role of hope in confronting the climate crisis.

There may be more demand for the suburban real estate than there was for sheets and towels.

Well-known author Rebecca Solnit co-edited “Not Too Late,” which argues we shouldn’t view climate change as a battle we’ve already lost.

For over two years, the whereabouts of one of China’s leading tech moguls has generated intense interest from the media and global investors. But is it warranted?

Marketplace’s senior economics contributor breaks down the impact of employer-sponsored health insurance on college educated and non-college educated workers.

The classic pantry staple can tell us a lot about competition in the grocery space and U.S. sugar policy.

The next two years could end up being the hottest on record.

A new survey out from the National Association for Business Economics that polled over 50 economists shows a collective “maybe” on whether respondents thought a recession will appear later this year. We chat with NABE president Julia Coronado about what the survey can tell us about the wider economy. Plus, we look at new power plant emissions guidelines to be proposed by the Environmental Protection Agency. And, senior economics contributor Chris Farrell talks about the health insurance inequality trends between people with and without college degrees. 

The blockchain has a secret: It contains all the clues needed to connect underground purchases to people in the real world.

Lenders are worried about increasing defaults.

Prices for new and used cars are finally falling, but prospective buyers may have another hurdle to overcome: rising rates on loans. We look at what that could mean for people who are looking to make their next big auto purchase. Plus, this year looks to be a hot one with the prospect of an “El Niño” weather event, which could affect the economy. And, how some people are using cryptocurrency to track criminals through the blockchain. 

From the BBC World Service: New results from Credit Suisse have given an insight into its demise — nearly $70 billion was withdrawn in the first three months of the year, leading to its eventual forced sale to Swiss rival UBS. Also, Australia is the latest country to ramp up its military spending after a review found its armed forces need to be radically overhauled. Plus it’s been a decade since the Rana Plaza building collapse in Bangladesh; has the industry learned the lessons of the disaster? And, how Ryan Reynolds’ and Rob McElhenney’s soccer adventure paid off.

A new global study suggests that the tsunami of data, much of it conflicting, can paralyze decision-making. Many business leaders would like “a robot to make their decisions,” says data scientist Seth Stephens-Davidowitz.