May 30, 2017

05/30/2017: Again with the trade deficit

President Trump holds a joint press conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel on March 17, 2017. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Donald Trump is back in the country, and his Twitter account is making up for lost time. The President ripped the "MASSIVE" and "very bad" trade gap between the U.S. and Germany. But reality check: it's not nearly as scary as it sounds. Then according to data released this morning, consumer spending rose last month. Home prices are up too, and the average American FICO score hit 700 last month, the highest it's been in over a decade. So how'd we get here, and what's it mean for the economy? Plus, a visit to the schools of Erie, Pennsylvania for our series "The Big Promise."

Segments From this episode

Britain balks at Brexit bill

by Stephen Beard

May 30, 2017

The European Union says the United Kingdom must pay big for leaving the bloc.

JUSTIN TALLIS/AFP/Getty Images

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Americans have higher credit scores, but also higher household debt

by Jed Kim

May 30, 2017

Americans’ credit scores are averaging way higher, around 700 according to a new report from FICO. Credit agencies are also cleaning up their rolls and getting old or bad data off people’s reports. Plus, many people who went into bankruptcy during the financial crisis are now returning to credit-worthiness as the statute of limitations comes […]

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A look at why the U.S. is running a trade deficit with Germany

by Sabri Ben-Achour

May 30, 2017

President Trump’s tweet Tuesday about the U.S.’s “massive” trade deficit with Germany got us wondering about just how big that deficit is, and why we’re buying all those German goods. First, the size of the deficit: The U.S. buys about $65 billion more from Germany than Germany buys from the U.S. One thing that tells […]

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The Big Promise

In Erie, Pennsylvania, a refugee family dreams of college and worries how to pay for it

by Amy Scott

May 30, 2017

'It's like heaven inside,' junior Megha Ghimirey says of her American high school.

Megha Ghimirey, 17, with her sister Niti, 8. Megha is wrapping up her junior year at Northwest Pennsylvania Collegiate Academy.

Amy Scott/Marketplace

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'Let's be real' and open markets, NAFTA architect Carla Hills says

by Kai Ryssdal and Robert Garrova

May 30, 2017

The former US trade representative says there's room for improvement, but restrictions could be costly.

President George Bush caps his pen after signing the North American Free Trade Agreement on Dec. 17, 1992, in Washington, D.C. Looking on are Canadian Ambassador Derek Burney, left, U.S. Trade Rep. Carla Hills and Mexican Ambassador Gustavo Petricioli.

RENAUD GIROUX/AFP/Getty Images

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Donald Trump is back in the country, and his Twitter account is making up for lost time. The President ripped the “MASSIVE” and “very bad” trade gap between the U.S. and Germany. But reality check: it’s not nearly as scary as it sounds. Then according to data released this morning, consumer spending rose last month. Home prices are up too, and the average American FICO score hit 700 last month, the highest it’s been in over a decade. So how’d we get here, and what’s it mean for the economy? Plus, a visit to the schools of Erie, Pennsylvania for our series “The Big Promise.”