Wages are still rising. Because employers are still feeling the pressure to pay more.

May 26, 2022
Apple is the latest big employer to announce it's hiking hourly pay. The market for in-person work is especially competitive.
An employee serves customers at an Apple store. Apple increased its hourly starting wage to a minimum of $22.
Brandon Bell/Getty Images

For teachers, add inflation to the causes of burnout

May 20, 2022
And that’s on top of the fact that teacher pay was already relatively low.
Teachers and other education workers are up against pandemic burnout, understaffed schools and wages that aren’t keeping up with inflation.
Michael Loccisano/Getty Images

For this Detroit restauranteur, business is still "day to day"

May 18, 2022
For Lester Gouvia, chef-owner of Norma G's Detroit, business in the pandemic economy has been a "rollercoaster."
"We do have some good days, we do still have some bad days," says Lester Gouvia, chef-owner of Norma G's Detroit, a Caribbean restaurant.
Courtesy Lester Gouvia

Former Chair Ben Bernanke takes long view of Federal Reserve's current challenges

May 17, 2022
“I think it's important to look back at history,” said the former leader of the U.S. central bank.
During an interview with Kai Ryssdal of "Marketplace," former Fed Chair Ben Bernanke discussed how the Federal Reserve has dealt with inflation in the past as well as its current approach.
Nancy Farghalli/Marketplace

How looking back at the Fed’s past can help us understand its future

May 17, 2022
Former Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke's new book charts a history of “remarkable innovation and change.”
The Marriner S. Eccles Federal Reserve building in Washington, D.C.
Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images

Energy is getting more expensive. More middle-income families are struggling to pay.

May 16, 2022
Between a quarter and a third of U.S. households are said to be energy insecure, and many don't qualify for aid.
Energy costs should take up about 6% of household income, energy experts say. But many low- and middle-income families are spending  multiple times that.
Photo illustration by George Frey/Getty Images

Cloud of inflation hangs over retailers, consumers as Memorial Day sales approach

May 16, 2022
As consumers think about the impact of inflation on their wallet, retailers are devising ways to welcome them into their stores for sales.
Both retailers and consumers will see how inflation could affect this year's Memorial Day sales.
OLIVIER DOULIERY/AFP via Getty Images

For public good, not for profit.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell: "Whether we can execute a soft landing or not, it may actually depend on factors that we don't control."

May 12, 2022
"I think the one thing we really cannot do is to fail to restore price stability," Powell told Kai Ryssdal.
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, left, speaks with Marketplace host Kai Ryssdal in Washington, D.C., on Thursday.
Nancy Farghalli/Marketplace

Inflation eases, but uneasy consumers expect more price hikes

May 11, 2022
Will worries about higher costs down the road lead to curtailed spending?
Inflation is slowing slightly, but economic anxiety is ramping up.
Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images

With money to spare, some states look to tax breaks to ease inflation

May 10, 2022
How and when the breaks are applied will vary from state to state.
States could use budget surpluses to help people with everyday costs.
Stefani Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images