The Indicator from Planet Money

The Indicator from Planet Money

A bite-sized show about big ideas. From the people who make Planet Money, The Indicator helps you make sense of what's happening in today's economy. It's a quick hit of insight into money, work, and business. Monday through Friday, in 10 minutes or less.

Episodes

Red tape indicators: sports betting, R&D and click-to-cancel

July 11, 2025 • 9 mins
We are back with Indicators of the Week! Today, we'll be digging into why U.S. professional gamblers are worried about their future, why businesses might start investing more in research and development, and why cancelling your subscriptions is going to remain difficult.

Related episodes:
How sports gambling blew up (Apple / Spotify)
The cautionary tale of a recovering day trading addict (Apple / Spotify)
The 'Pla...
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Could Meta do more to protect us from cyber scams?

July 10, 2025 • 9 mins
Many small businesses are online now, but so are cyber criminals trying to take advantage. On today's show, how one bar owner fell victim to a Facebook scam and if big tech could do more to protect small business owners from increasing cyber attacks. Read Stephan's original piece.

Related:
The secret world of those scammy text messages
After being scammed, one woman tries to get her money back

For spon...
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Can you afford to evacuate ahead of a disaster?

July 9, 2025 • 9 mins
We are just at the start of hurricane season, and we're already seeing the danger and tragedy brought on by storms. There's another cost that gets much less attention, but it's a gamble everyone in the path of a storm has to make.

Today on the show, we examine the decision on whether or not to evacuate from an oncoming disaster.

Based on the digital story: 1 reason people don't evacuate for hurricanes? Rising cos...
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Will the tax cuts pay for themselves?

July 8, 2025 • 8 mins
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act is now law. It's expected to cost the government a pretty penny. The Congressional Budget Office predicts a $3.4 trillion increase in the deficit over ten years. This is driven by significant tax cuts, including extensions of those made in 2017.

Trump's advisors argue the tax cuts will pay for themselves. Today on the show, we speak with the guru on that school of thought, Arthur Laffer, and...
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Why can't we insure trees?

July 7, 2025 • 9 mins
In the U.S., we insure most everything we sell. So why not trees? Today on the show why trees aren't insured like other crops, and what it would take to get that insurance with extreme weather events on the rise.

Related episodes:
When insurers can't get insurance (Apple / Spotify)

For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. ...
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One of the cheapest ways to save a life is going away (EXTENDED VERSION)

July 4, 2025 • 20 mins
This episode was first published as a bonus episode for our Planet Money+ listeners. Today, we're making it available for everyone!

U.S. aid helped Eswatini and Lesotho, two small countries in southern Africa, in their efforts to treat and curb the spread of HIV. Will President Trump's "America First" foreign policy threaten years of progress there against the virus?

In this bonus episode, we're featuring an ex...
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How ICE crackdowns are affecting the workforce

July 3, 2025 • 9 mins
The Trump administration's crackdown on immigrants might be the most profound change in the American labor market right now. Industries that rely on immigrant labor are especially vulnerable, as ICE continues to raid businesses believed to have unauthorized workers.

Today on the show, we talk to representatives from the agriculture, construction and long-term care industries to ask: Are people still showing up to work? <...
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Tech layoffs, recession pop and more listener questions answered

July 2, 2025 • 8 mins
We are back with another edition of listener questions! In this round, we tackle recession pop, why the job market feels so crummy for IT grads, and whether President Trump saying that Walmart "eat the tariffs" is a form of price control.

Related episodes:
Hits of the Dips: Songs of recessions past (Apple / Spotify)
The beef over price controls
Price Controls, Black Markets, and Skimpflation: The WWII Battle Agai...
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We're nearing 'peak population.' These economists are worried

July 1, 2025 • 9 mins
Over the past century, the world's human population has exploded from around 2 billion to 8 billion. Meanwhile, the average fertility rate has gradually declined. And if that trend continues as it has, we may soon see a crash in the population rate, which some argue could have disastrous effects.

Today on the show, we talk to co-authors Michael Geruso and Dean Spears about their forthcoming book After the Spike: Population...
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Can Starlink stay ahead in satellite internet?

June 30, 2025 • 9 mins
Whether you're watching Love Island in an RV or streaming a playlist in a remote California campground, if you're using satellite internet, odds are you're using Elon Musk's Starlink.

Today on the show, we learn how Starlink got such a big lead in the satellite market and if it can stay ahead of the European Union, China, and, of course, Jeff Bezos.

Related episodes:
Elon's giant rocket
Why I joined DOGE ...
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Babies v climate change; AI v IP; bonds v world

June 27, 2025 • 9 mins
It's ... Indicators of the Week! Our weekly look at some of the most fascinating economic numbers from the news.

On today's episode: Could more babies change the climate in a big way? Why did a U.S. judge side with AI company Anthropic? And why is the bond market so chill these days?

Related episodes:
Artists vs. AI
You told us how tariffs are affecting you (Apple/Spotify)

For sponsor-free episod...
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We're gonna need a bigger boat-building industry

June 26, 2025 • 8 mins
During World War II, the U.S. shipbuilding industry flourished. Now, it's nearly non-existent. China is the dominant shipbuilder in the world economy. On today's show, we look at what happened to American shipbuilding and the protectionist impulses that could stifle a revival.

Related episodes:
Will Iran block the Strait of Hormuz?
The great turnaround in shipping
The wide open possibility of the high seas
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One of the cheapest ways to save a life is going away

June 25, 2025 • 9 mins
What's the price to save a human life? We examine the monumental legacy of the U.S. President's Emergency Plan For AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) with journalist Jon Cohen, who traveled to Eswatini and Lesotho to learn how cuts under the Trump Administration are hitting people at the clinic door.

Related episodes:
The gutting of USAID
How USAID cuts hurts farmers

For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Pla...
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Will Iran block the Strait of Hormuz?

June 24, 2025 • 9 mins
The world has held a close eye on the Strait of Hormuz lately with Israeli and U.S. strikes on Iran. Nearly a quarter of the world's seaborne oil passes through the narrow waterway, and many are worried Iran could shut the strait down. Today on the show, we explore what it would mean for Iran to close off the strait, and what insurance could tell us about tensions in the Middle East.

Related episodes:
Oil prices and the...
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You told us how tariffs are affecting you

June 23, 2025 • 9 mins
Americans like to spend money. In fact, we spend more per person than almost any other country in the world. So, we wanted to know how an uncertain economy is affecting that. Today on the show, we hear from consumers directly on how their spending habits have changed the past few months.

Related episodes:
How's ... everybody doing? (Apple / Spotify)
Three ways consumers are feeling the pinch (Apple / Spotify)
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SALT-n-pessimism

June 20, 2025 • 8 mins
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 Senate passes the GENIUS Act, the SALT cap might be DOA in the OBBB, and a gender split on the state of the economy.

Related episodes:
How stable is Stablecoin? (Apple / Spotify)
Feeling inflation in the grocery store

For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator f...
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Why the 30-year bond matters

June 18, 2025 • 9 mins
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 the 'long bond' isn't exactly thriving at the moment. Today on the show, we look back at why we have such a long maturity bond and why it might be a good idea to start paying attention to it going forward.

Related episodes:
Bond market nightmares (Apple / Spotify)
Bond vi...
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Mixing family business with US trade policy in Vietnam

June 17, 2025 • 8 mins
Last month, Eric Trump, executive vice president at The Trump Organization, attended a ceremony in Vietnam to break ground on a $1.5 billion residential development and golf course. This comes as Vietnam's government is in trade talks with the administration of Eric's father, President Donald Trump.

Today on the show, we look at how the Trump family's business projects in Vietnam are raising red flags when it comes to gov...
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The secret to Nintendo's success

June 16, 2025 • 9 mins
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 company which is evident in its products from the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) to the Nintendo Switch 2.

Today on the show, we explore Nintendo's history and examine how a small playing card company in Japan became a multimedia giant.

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

June 13, 2025 • 8 mins
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 of Trump's military parade, looks like FEMA could be phased out, and another change to Warner Bros. Discovery.

Related episodes:
Coyote vs. Warner Bros. Discovery (Apple / Spotify)
Gilded Age 2.0? (Apple / Spotify)

For sponsor-free episodes of The ...
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