The Indicator from Planet Money

Why the 30-year bond matters

18 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Last week, the U.S. Treasury held an auction for 30-year bonds. Some were worried no one would show up to buy these things! That didn't happen, but th...

Mixing family business with US trade policy in Vietnam

17 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Last month, Eric Trump, executive vice president at The Trump Organization, attended a ceremony in Vietnam to break ground on a $1.5 billion residenti...

The secret to Nintendo's success

16 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Nintendo has been a titan in the video game industry for decades, but that wasn't always the case. At its very core, Nintendo sees itself as a toy com...

Trump's parade, FEMA phase out, and Warner Bros. Discovery divorces ... itself?

13 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

It's ... Indicators of the Week! Our weekly look at some of the most fascinating economic numbers from the news. On today's episode: the monetary cost...

The hidden costs of healthcare churn

12 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Healthcare churn—when people switch insurance plans—is particularly bad in the US. In today's episode, why Americans switch healthcare plans so mu...

The secret tariff-free zone

11 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

There's something interesting happening at the Port of Baltimore. On today's show, we explore the hidden world of bonded warehouses, where you can sta...

What's a revenge tax?

10 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

For four decades, the US has maintained a consistent policy position: money should be fairly free to come and go in and out of the country. That's cha...

How doctors helped tank universal health care

09 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A debate has been raging over universal health care in the U.S. since the 1940s. Back then, a formidable opponent emerged to dump a lot of money into ...

Why U.S. workers keep getting more productive

06 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

For the last couple of years, U.S. labor productivity has been on the rise. And economists don't know exactly why. So today on the show, the president...

Gilded Age 2.0?

05 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

To hear President Trump tell it, the late 1800s, i.e. the Gilded Age, were a period of unparalleled wealth and prosperity in the U.S. But this era was...

An indicator lost: big disaster costs

04 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The U.S. government has tallied the economic impact of major natural disasters going back to 1980. State and local governments used this data for bud...

Who should get mom's ring?

03 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

By 2048, more than $100 trillion is expected to be inherited, or passed down from one family member to another. But a lot of the time, the money doesn...

Why Gen Z is feeling 'money dysmorphia'

02 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A significant portion of young people feel like they aren't on solid financial footing. And yet, the numbers show Gen Z adults on average actually ear...

Let's 'TACO' 'bout General Motors gassing up V-8s and golden shares

30 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

It's ... Indicators of the Week! Our weekly look at some of the most fascinating numbers from the news. On today's episode, we examine: General Motors...

Are Trump's trade deals the real deal?

29 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Top Trump advisers have been boasting about 'awesome' trade deals the administration is negotiating with other countries. But are these deals real? T...

Why are college coaches paid so much?

28 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

If you had to guess, would you say the president of a university usually makes more money than the football coach? Well, you may be wrong. A college's...

How to build abundantly

27 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Why is building affordable housing so hard these days? We talk to author Derek Thompson about his new book with Ezra Klein, Abundance, about what they...

The dawn of search engines

26 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Today on the show, we bring you a special episode from the Understood feed at CBC podcasts. It's an excerpt from a series called Who Broke the Interne...

Target, Klarna and Sesame Street's new addy

23 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Can you tell me how to get... how to get to Indicators of the Week? This week's econ roundup looks at Target's sagging sales, Klarna's pay-later probl...

How Trump is making coin from $TRUMP coin

22 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Just before Trump began his second administration in January, he and his business partners launched the $TRUMP coin. It's a meme coin that quickly rak...

The old trade war that brought foreign carmakers to the U.S.

21 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

President Donald Trump wants more products made in America, and he's not afraid of a few trade wars to make it happen. Back in the 80s, a different tr...

The rise of the credit card airport lounge

20 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We are back to answer your questions, listeners. Today on the show, we tackle three big questions: Are airport lounges worth it for credit card compan...

The Art of the Deal ft. Beyoncé

19 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

All of us negotiate — whether it's accepting a job offer, buying a house or working out who does the dishes. Economist Daryl Fairweather has a new b...

Brain-controlled iPhones, a Japanese asset buy-a-thon, and Trump tax cut debt

16 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

It's ... Indicators of the Week! Our weekly look at some of the most fascinating economic numbers from the news. On today's episode: Japanese asset bu...

Bond market nightmares

15 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In early April, the bond market gave people a scare. Investors began selling off their historically secure U.S. Treasuries in large quantities. It rep...

What we misunderstand about gun violence

14 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The U.S. is known around the world for its problem with gun violence. The vast majority of murders in the U.S. are committed using guns. But what lead...

A brief history of NPR funding

13 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Where does NPR get its funding? Today on the show, we open our books and share a brief history of public radio. And we learn what's at stake with Pres...

It's actually really hard to make a robot, guys

12 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Robots have been a thing for a long time, but they've never quite met expectations. While AI has changed the game for chatbots, it's not quite so clea...

What's in YOUR wallet?

09 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

It's ... Indicators of the Week! Our weekly look at some of the most fascinating economic numbers from the news. On today's episode: China bulks up fo...

It's hard out there for a Fed chair

08 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

President Trump has flirted with firing Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell since returning to office, but can he legally do that? Not without good ca...

Why do shrimpers like tariffs?

07 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Many businesses are scared of what President Trump's tariffs will mean for their industry. However, the shrimping industry is one that doesn't seem to...

What do farmers do in a trade war?

06 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Two American farmers tell us how they're feeling about a trade war that targets the soybean industry's biggest customer: China. Related episodes: How ...

Trump's cuts come for food banks

05 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The Beigie Awards are back to recognize the regional Federal Reserve Bank with the best Beige Book entry. On today's episode, we shine a spotlight on ...

American science brain drain

02 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

President Trump's federal cuts and scrutiny of academic institutions are forcing some U.S. scientists to head for the border. On today's show, an ento...

How much international students matter to the economy

01 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Many international students are rethinking their education in the United States as the federal government revokes visas, often over minor infractions....

How stable is Stablecoin?

30 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Stablecoins are the latest digital asset to grab headlines. Congress is considering legislation around the cryptocurrency, and a Trump family-affiliat...

Is the US pushing countries towards China?

29 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

As the U.S. goes head-to-head with the rest of the world on tariffs, those countries are trying to figure out their best diplomatic strategy. One dile...

When do boycotts work?

28 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

For weeks, Target has been the subject of a boycott after its decision to pull back on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies. And early dat...

Student loans are back, U.S. travel is whack, and AI — please, step back

25 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

It's ... Indicators of the Week! Our weekly look at the some of the most fascinating economic numbers from the news. On today's episode, we investigat...

Who's advising Trump on trade?

24 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

President Trump has not been afraid to tack on tariffs over and over again. Allies and foes alike are anxiously wondering if the tariffs will stick or...

Dealmaker Don v. Tariff Man Trump

23 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Donald Trump grew up learning to make deals. He's also loved tariffs since the 1970s. So are his market-shaking tariffs a bargaining chip? Or are they...

China's trade war perspective

22 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

By now, you've heard a lot about how the U.S.-China trade war is affecting American consumers, businesses and the stock market. But how is the trade w...

A trap-loving DJ takes on economics

21 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

It's time for The Indicator Quiz! We test you, dear listener, on your knowledge of topics that we've covered on The Indicator.Today's quiz show involv...

Economic lessons learned from Investopedia (and Ferris Bueller)

17 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The current economic upheaval has lots of us scrambling for our glossaries and history books. Today on the show, the editor-in-chief of Investopedia w...

Did Trump enable insider trading?

16 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On the morning of April 9, President Trump posted on Truth Social "THIS IS A GREAT TIME TO BUY!!! DJT." Around four hours later, he announced a pause ...

The spat over VAT

15 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

If you've ever passed through airport customs overseas and been refunded a VAT — or value added tax — for souvenirs, you've benefited from the VA...

How much is a weather forecast worth? (Update)

14 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The federal government has been tracking the weather for more than 150 years. But the rise of the Internet and big tech have made weather forecasting ...

IRS information sharing, bonds bust, and a chorebot future

11 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Today on the show, we discuss why the IRS is sharing some taxpayer information, why bonds and stocks both fell, and how robots will replace you,or at ...

What keeps a Fed president up at night

10 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

"There's no bad weather, only bad clothing." That's the motto of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, where Austan Goolsbee is president. As economic ...

What happens when an economist becomes prime minister?

09 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Today on the show, we meet Canada's new Prime Minister, economist Mark Carney. What's it like when your former job — being a non-political banker wh...

What's so bad about a trade deficit?

08 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

President Trump claims a main goal of his crippling tariffs is to address the U.S. trade deficit. So is the U.S. trade deficit a problem? On today's s...

Tariffied! We check in on businesses

07 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Trump's wave of tariffs is here. Just about everyone in the world of business is still processing exactly what this means. It's a massive, widespread ...

How states are scooping up federal workers

04 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

It's Jobs Friday and all eyes are on government workers. Will the Trump administration's layoffs finally show up in the latest jobs report? Today on t...

Why the great vinyl shortage is over

03 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

There have now been a few major vinyl booms. And unbeknownst to many, a small village in the Czech Republic has been responsible for manufacturing a l...

What $10 billion in data centers actually gets you

02 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Billions of tech dollars flowing into a community to build data centers should transform a local economy ... right? Well, maybe not. On today's episod...

Should we vote for all judges?

01 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Mexico is gearing up to directly elect federal and state judges for the first time this June. President Claudia Sheinbaum says the new system will com...

Overly Friendly Emails and other marketing pet peeves

31 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Brands trying to be your best bud. Generational labels. Gendered double standards. Today on the show: three advertising experts bring their three pet ...

Missing taxes, spiking copper and Napster's re-re-rebirth

28 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On Indicators of the Week, we look at a huge projected tax shortfall, the price of copper and the afterlife of Napster, the peer-to-peer file-sharing ...

How nonprofits get cash from your clunker

27 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Many nonprofits accept your used cars as a way to donate. This happens from Make-A-Wish America to Habitat for Humanity to ... public radio stations! ...

Can Europe stand without the US?

26 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

As relations between the US and Europe continue to sour, European countries are working to lower their reliance on the U.S. for weapons and security. ...

How's ... everybody doing?

25 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

What's one word you'd use to describe the 2025 economy? That's the question we fanned out across the U.S. with microphones and open ears. From street ...

How specialization can lead to burn-out

24 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Half of all workers are showing signs of burnout according to a survey of international workers. Burnout can come from feeling detached from your work...

A new-ish gold rush and other indicators

21 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

It's Indicators of the Week! Our weekly look at interesting numbers from the news. On today's show, we welcome back co-host Adrian Ma.We also have the...

What's this about a crypto reserve?

20 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In 2009, Bitcoin launched as the first cryptocurrency. Just under two decades, President Trump has signed an executive order to create the "Strategic ...

Why there's no referee for the trade war

19 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Thirty years ago, the U.S. helped create the World Trade Organization, a group of countries linked by a common set of free trade agreements. But then ...

What might save China's economy

18 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

China has set out its target for economic growth this year: around 5 percent. That's a hefty goal for a nation coming off a painful real estate slump....

Why is the federal government still killing coyotes?

17 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The federal government spends millions of dollars each year on wildlife damage management, a program that includes killing thousands of coyotes. Yet t...

Southwest surprises, tariff guac shock, and fraud flourishes

14 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

It's Indicators of the Week! Our weekly look at interesting numbers from the news. On today's show, we have Southwest Airlines changing course on thei...

How many times can you say uncertainty in one economic report?

13 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Uncertainty. That's the word-of-the-moment with tariffs, market swings and lots of economic volatility. It's also showing up in the Federal Reserve's ...

The stock market is down, but you don't need to be

12 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Government cuts. Tariff uncertainty. Sticky interest rates. These are not helping the tumbling stock market. There's a sinking feeling among some Amer...

Can you take government spending out of GDP?

11 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The Trump administration has some nits to pick with government spending: They don't think it should be counted as part of the country's GDP, that it s...

What Bad Bunny teaches us about Puerto Rican tax law

10 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Bad Bunny's new album DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS laments how Puerto Rico is changing. We look at whether tax breaks to newcomers contributed.Related episo...

Can ... we still trust the monthly jobs report?

07 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Between the Trump administration wanting to change how GDP is calculated and DOGE accessing sensitive government information, statistical agencies are...

What to make of the Ukraine minerals deal

06 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Even after Monday's pause on military aid to Ukraine following the Oval Office blow-up, it looks like a minerals deal between the U.S. and Ukraine is ...

Is the Panama Canal a rip-off?

05 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Who pays to use the Panama Canal and how much? These questions are part of the tensions between the U.S. and Panama after President Trump threatened t...

Can the Federal Reserve stay independent?

04 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

President Trump has been on an executive order-signing spree since returning to office, with 76 so far. Today we look at two of them. Can the Fed real...

How tourist destinations recover after terrorism

03 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Mardi Gras is in full swing. It's a crucial time for the New Orleans' economy, but the celebrations are cast behind the shadow of the recent terrorist...

Slender Starbucks, Medicaid at risk, and the gold card visa

28 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

It's Indicators of the Week! Our weekly look at interesting numbers from the news. On today's show, we have potential cuts ahead for Medicaid, Starbuc...

Europe's NATO members take an economic hit

27 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

When it comes to defense, one thing looks certain: European members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) are going to have to pay more. Co...

A polite message from Canada to the U.S.

26 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

President Donald Trump has said that Canada should be the 51st state... and Canadians? Well, they're furious about it. The nation's former finance min...

What's the long-term cost of federal layoffs?

25 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The personal story of how an energetic lawyer got knocked off from her dream career and what she thinks that might mean for whether the government can...

What if our income was taxed ... totally differently?

24 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We are back to answer YOUR listener questions. This time, we answer why bananas can be considered the 'unbothered fruit', what a flat income tax would...

Chicken meat, Gulf of Mexico lawsuit and Social Security beyond the grave

21 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Surprisingly stable chicken meat prices, a lawsuit threat against the Gulf of Mexico's name change, and the Trump administration's false claims about ...

What happens when billions of dollars in research funding goes away

20 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Federal funding from the National Institutes of Health has driven the biomedical research industry in cities across America including Birmingham, Alab...

How USAID cuts hurt American farmers

19 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The ties between U.S. foreign aid and American agriculture run deep — or at least used to. The U.S. International Agency for Development, or USAID, ...

What the cluck is happening with egg prices?

18 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We visit a local egg farm and talk to an industry analyst to get to the bottom of why the prices of eggs are soaring so quickly and when they might co...

WWE, a very expensive banana, and a quiz contestant

17 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

It's time for The Indicator Quiz! We test you, dear listener, on your knowledge of topics that we've covered on The Indicator.Today's quiz is an econo...

Bailing out the FAIR plan, broligarchs beef, and CFPB RIP?

14 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

What's going on with the FAIR plan in a post-Eaton and Palisades fires California? What's the backstory to the frozen Consumer Financial Protection Bu...

The gutting of USAID

13 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The United States Agency for International Development, or USAID, has funneled humanitarian aid to countries around the globe for over six decades. To...

Exposing Charles Ponzi

12 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The name Charles Ponzi immediately recalls the financial scheme that bears his name. But what of the man who helped expose Ponzi's scheme? Today on th...

The U.K.'s tariff balancing act

11 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

President Donald Trump has already made noise with tariff threats against the United States' North American trading partners. And soon, the United Kin...

How the memecoin game is played

10 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Memecoins are having a moment, but who's making money off them? On today's show, how a dearly beloved internet squirrel found an afterlife as a crypto...

A 'Fork in the Road' for federal employees

07 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The job security of government employees has been in the spotlight since President Trump took office with big plans to slash the federal workforce. Ab...

How would a US sovereign wealth fund even work?

06 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

What is a sovereign wealth fund? President Trump's executive order calling for a plan to start a U.S. sovereign wealth fund is not a new idea. But it ...

Trump's tariff role model

05 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

President Trump speaks fondly of William McKinley, the 25th U.S. president who was a strong advocate for tariffs. He's credited with helping to protec...

Trump threatens the grim trigger

04 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

President Donald Trump had promised new tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China. However, after negotiations with both Mexico and Canada on Monday tariffs...

The reality stopping water pipelines to the parched western US

03 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

With so much water in the eastern U.S., why can't the region pipe some of it to its drought-prone neighbors in the West? This perennial question nags ...

Running the numbers on deportation, interest rates and math

31 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Why haven't American 8th graders' math scores recovered? Does Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) actually have the resources to make all the de...

Canada's key resource against Trump's potential trade war

30 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Canadians have a key leverage point if President Trump makes good on his threat to impose 25% tariffs: oil. We talk to a business journalist with the ...

Federal hiring is about to get the Trump treatment

29 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

President Trump is making big moves to shrink and reshape the federal workforce. He's offered buyouts, instituted a hiring freeze, and called for prio...