Planet Money
Episodes
When bricks were rubles
01 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
For a brief, strange period after the U.S.S.R. collapsed, "real" money was less valuable than tradeable objects like bricks or towels. We look back at...
The Bond King
30 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Investing legend Bill Gross revolutionized the bond market, built an empire, and lost it all. Our very own Mary Childs talks about her new book, The B...
Fashion Fair's makeover
25 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Fashion Fair was the first big national brand to make makeup for Black women, but it slowly faded into obscurity. Now that it's relaunched, can it com...
Two inflation Indicators: Corporate greed and mortgage rates
24 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Corporate profits are soaring. So are prices. Can corporations just not raise prices? Would that fight inflation? We examine this theory making the ro...
Tech giants and tiny dogs
18 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
What a business that makes ramps for wiener dogs teaches us about the massive power of tech giants. | Subscribe to our weekly newsletter here.Learn mo...
Escape from Russia
16 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
An American business owner with employees in Russia extracts her colleagues from the country. | Subscribe to our weekly newsletter here.Learn more abo...
Grocery delivery wars
11 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Behind the scenes at a new kind of grocery store that promises delivery in minutes. | Subscribe to our weekly newsletter here.Learn more about sponsor...
The dollar at the center of the world (Classic)
10 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
After World War II devastated the global economy, there was a push for a new universal currency. This is the story of how the U.S. dollar won. | Subsc...
Of oligarchs, oil and rubles
05 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Three stories about how the sanctions imposed on Russia are playing out – for regular Russian people, for Russia's super-rich, and for Russia's ener...
'Fortress' Russia put to the test
02 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The U.S. is putting Russia's defense plan against sanctions to the test. Meanwhile, Russia's role as a huge exporter of oil and natural gas could caus...
Putin's big bet: Sanction-proofing Russia
25 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The U.S. is imposing economic sanctions on Russia to punish it for invading Ukraine. But Russia has spent years trying to make its economy immune to s...
How bad is inflation?
24 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Two stories about the effects of inflation on the economy. We meet a gig worker who's seen an increase in wages, but because of inflation, how much of...
Predictions: Inflation!
18 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
It's time for another round of "Planet Money Predictions!" Economic forecasters square off to predict the future of inflation and explain what's going...
SPAM strikes back
17 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Hormel Foods makes SPAM, and for generations, the company also created jobs for families in Austin, Minnesota. Today, the story of a labor strike that...
Waste land (Bonus)
14 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Recycling most plastic doesn't work. It never has. In 2020, we ran an episode showing how big oil companies misled the public into thinking plastic wo...
Our Valentines 2022
11 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
We profess our love for our curiosities, obsessions, and the things we wish we'd thought of first. | Subscribe to our weekly newsletter here.Learn mor...
A SWIFT getaway
10 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In 2016, thieves tried to steal nearly a billion dollars from the Bank of Bangladesh's reserves without ever entering the building. And six years late...
Uncle Sam wants YOU to fight inflation
05 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
How war bonds, controlled prices, and a national network of nosy neighbors helped beat inflation during WWII. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter here....
The M&M anomaly (Classic)
02 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Despite costing the same price, a pack of peanut butter M&M's weighs 0.06 ounces less than a pack of milk chocolate M&M's. A trade secret explains why...
The Spider-Man Problem
29 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Spider-Man isn't the first film franchise to be rebooted over and over again. But the infamous off-screen drama between Marvel Studios and Sony Pictur...
Two indicators: supply chain solutions
26 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Two stories about people trying to overcome supply chain challenges. We follow a ship that is forced to get creative to bypass clogged ports, and we v...
'Soul Train' and the business of Black joy
21 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
When Soul Train first launched in 1970, Black audiences weren't understood as a viable target market. Don Cornelius changed that forever with his week...
Patent racism (classic)
19 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Economist Lisa Cook has been nominated to serve on the Federal Reserve board. In 2020, she talked to us about proving that racism stifles innovation. ...
The rapid testing show
15 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The Planet Money team fans out across the nation with one goal: to get a Covid test in 24 hours. It is easier said than done. | Subscribe to our weekl...
No such thing as a free return
13 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Lenient policies have shoppers making more returns than ever — around half a trillion dollars worth of products. Today, we find out the fate of some...
HBO 2.0
08 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
What happens when the iconic symbol of your brand no longer makes sense? Today, HBO tries to evolve their sonic brand. This episode was adapted from t...
The rest of the story, 2021
05 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
On protests, pasta and forgiven payments. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter here.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoic...
The holiday industrial complex (Classic)
31 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Where do holidays like National Potato Chip Day and Argyle Day come from? We trace the roots of one made-up holiday until we find out who is running t...
The economic indicator of the year
30 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Will it be inflation? Striketober? The supply chain? Our hosts make their case, and the choice is up to you.Learn more about sponsor message choices: ...
Bell wars (Classic)
24 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
The two biggest handbell companies in the world have been locked in a feud for decades. Why? | Subscribe to our weekly newsletter here.Learn more abou...
Planet Money's Supply Chain Holiday Extravaganza
23 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Planet Money's Supply Chain Holiday Extravaganza Did the supply chain wreck your holiday shopping? Planet Money comes to the rescue. | Subscribe to ou...
No shortages of labor stories
18 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
We asked for your dispatches from the labor market, and boy did we hear back. | Subscribe to our weekly newsletter here.Learn more about sponsor messa...
We buy a lot of Christmas trees (Classic)
15 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Nick and Robert head to the world's largest Christmas tree auction with $1,000 and a truck. And get schooled in the tree market. | Subscribe to our we...
Two music indicators
11 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Ticket scalping frustrates fans, but it fascinates economists. It's been a favorite topic of ours in the past. This time, Darian turns to friends and ...
Is a Stradivarius just a violin? (Classic)
08 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Many music aficionados will tell you that violins and violas made by legendary craftsman Antonio Stradivari represent the pinnacle of the instruments....
Consider the lobstermen
04 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
A tense conflict between Indigenous fishermen and commercial lobstermen flared up in Nova Scotia in the fall of 2020. Today, how it all got started an...
A locked door, a secret meeting and the birth of the Fed (Classic)
02 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
The story of the back-room dealings that created America's central bank. | Subscribe to our weekly newsletter here.Learn more about sponsor message ch...
Day of the Debt
26 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
We make a loan to the U.S. government, and it does not go the way we thought it would. Plus: the story of that one time the U.S. defaulted. Subscribe ...
You asked for real raises, free shipping, and a special delivery
25 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
It's listener question time. We've got answers about "free" shipping, full employment, when a raise isn't a raise, Taylor Swift, crypto seizures and o...
A trunk full of truffles (Update)
20 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Truffles are one of the most expensive and sought after ingredients in the world. Today, we look back at our NYC adventure with a truffle smuggler and...
Of boats and boxes
17 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
We take a trip to ports on the east and west coasts to ask what's on everyone's mind: why are they so clogged? And how can we fix it? | Subscribe to o...