Marketplace All-in-One

Saudi Arabia is cutting oil production by nearly a million barrels a day in hopes of boosting prices. Thing is, plenty of supply and weaker global demand could derail its effort. Plus, construction spending is a bright spot in U.S. manufacturing, office space owners reel from remote work, and Make-A-Wish plays catch-up on a backlog of Disney wishes.

During the early years of the pandemic, people throughout the country left major cities and never returned. But in New York City, it seemed people were coming back in droves. What else would explain the lower availability of apartments and the increasing rent prices? The real reason may not be that simple, and it may have to do with algorithms and something called “warehousing.” Also, the patent examiner who sought to demonstrate the ingenuity of Black Americans through their inventions is being honored. Plus, we play a round of Half Full / Half Empty! “New Yorkers Never Came ‘Flooding Back.’ Why Did Rents Go Up So Much?” from New York magazine “9 Charts on the Russia-Ukraine War” from Gallup “Found on Baker’s list” from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office “No cow needed: Oat and soy can be called milk, FDA proposes” from AP “United launches $100 million green jet fuel fund” from Marketplace “How does a water bottle go viral — and stay viral?” from Marketplace “New York City’s push to become a tech hub” from Marketplace “Samsung Now Cloning Users’ Voices So an AI Can Answer Calls for Them” from Futurism We love hearing and reading your questions and comments, so please keep sending them! You can write to makemesmart@marketplace.org or leave a voice message at 508-U-B-SMART.

The United States and European nations have committed billions of dollars in military and humanitarian aid to Ukraine since Russia’s invasion one year ago. But there’s also a cultural dimension to the conflict. Today, we’ll hear from Ukrainian artists at home and abroad who are fighting to preserve their cultural identity. Plus, the Federal Reserve has more work ahead to reel in inflation, and consumers kept squirreling away savings in January.

The war in Ukraine and the accompanying energy crunch was great news for oil companies, many of which posted profits that neared or broke records. That may sound bad for the climate, but as the Economist’s Vijay Vaitheeswaran argues, it could actually lead to an acceleration in the transition to greener energy. The U.S. and allies announced they would impose new sanctions on Russia today, the one-year anniversary of the invasion. And, a look at how Russia’s economy is faring under the existing sanctions regime.

As technology becomes an increasingly large share of the U.S. economy, tech firms are setting up shop in cities outside of the traditional confines of Silicon Valley. We look at the burgeoning sector in New York City with Julie Samuels, president and director of Tech:NYC, a trade group. The Biden administration has announced new sanctions on Russia in concert with European allies — the additional U.S. restrictions are designed to hit Russian imports and individuals. And, a look into why GDP estimates are almost always changed after they’re released.

From the BBC World Service: 12 months on since the invasion what has been the cost to both Ukraine and Russia? We find out how the Russian economy has been able to withstand western sanctions, what brands remain, plus we hear how Ukraine could look to rebuild after the conflict.

When Russia invaded Ukraine a year ago, many security experts braced for an unprecedented escalation in cyberwarfare in addition to the physical assault. For years before the large-scale invasion, Ukraine was hit by massive cyberattacks that disrupted financial systems, transportation, energy and politics — disruptions that were expected to only intensify. But things haven’t exactly played out that way, according to Adam Meyers, chief of intelligence at the cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike.  

There’s tons of research showing teenagers aren’t getting enough quality sleep. One big contributing factor: early school start times. So why aren’t more schools getting with the program? Also, we’ll get into the different narratives being created about the Joe Biden administration’s pick for the next leader of the World Bank. Plus, Wordle cheaters, we know who you are. Here’s everything we talked about today: “Let Teenagers Sleep” from Scientific American “Republicans Will Hold Their First Presidential Debate in Milwaukee” from The New York Times “US to Pick Ex-Mastercard CEO Banga as World Bank President” from Bloomberg “Have Scientists Found a Rogue Supermassive Black Hole?” from Sky & Telescope “Brittney Griner returns to Phoenix Mercury on 1-year deal” from ESPN “Study calls DC residents’ Wordle streaks into question” from WTOP News Join us tomorrow for Economics on Tap. The YouTube livestream starts at 3:30 p.m. PT / 6:30 p.m. ET. We’ll have news, drinks, a game and more.

The American civil rights movement was about more than attitudes around racism. It also fought to expand workers’ rights and access to housing and good jobs. We’ll chart the economic agenda the movement outlined decades ago, which is sometimes left out of the conversation today. Plus, a look at how gross domestic product figures get revised and what a drop in unemployment claims says about the job market.

The number of strikes and other forms of labor organization — such as forming unions — increased sharply in 2022 from 2021. We look into how the strong job market could have contributed to the momentum behind workers. The stock market has been turbulent as of late, reflecting broader unease over the question of “how is the economy doing?” We check in with KPMG Chief Economist Diane Swonk, who says it’s likely a mix of good and bad. And, a look at a program at the University of Michigan’s School of Business to transform students’ interest in management into a real passion.

Nearly a year on from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the sanctions regime imposed on Vladimir Putin’s regime by the West and its allies looks to be less effective than initially hoped. According to Brooke Harrington, a professor at Dartmouth, that’s been due in part to the difficulty of sanctioning assets that are being held in the nebulous world of international offshore wealth management. And, a look at what the potential ramifications of a U.S. debt default could be if the federal government fails to raise the nation’s debt ceiling.

From the BBC World Service: With elections being held on Saturday, it’s the last day of campaigning in Nigeria; the largest economy in Africa. With the country going through economic turmoil, BBC presenter Alan Kasujja’s been speaking to business owners in the capital city Lagos. Plus a year in to the Ukraine war BBC’s Leanna Byrne investigates the impact of sanctions on the Russian economy.    

This week marks a year since Russia began its devastating invasion of Ukraine, and throughout that time, technology has shaped the conflict, from satellites beaming internet service from space to the mobile phones in people’s pockets. Marketplace’s Meghan McCarty Carino recently spoke to Roman Osadchuk, a research associate at the Atlantic Council’s Digital Forensic Research Lab, who is also based in Ukraine, about how mobile apps have become an essential lifeline there as citizens navigate the daily realities of war.

DALL-E, ChatGPT and now … Bing? It can be hard to keep up with all the new artificial intelligence systems hitting the scene. One listener called in to ask what makes the new AI-powered Bing different from ChatGPT. We’ll get into it and answer more of your questions about how a tax cut works versus a stimulus and the hidden costs of police misconduct. Plus, can journalists who cover business trade stocks? Here’s everything we talked about today: “Bing (Yes, Bing) Just Made Search Interesting Again” from The New York Times “The new Microsoft Bing will sometimes misrepresent the info it finds” from The Verge “Microsoft’s new Bing chatbot is fun but sometimes more cautious than ChatGPT” from CNBC “Why a Conversation With Bing’s Chatbot Left Me Deeply Unsettled” from The New York Times “What Is Economic Stimulus? How It Works, Benefits, and Risks” from Investopedia “Cities pay millions in police misconduct settlements” from Marketplace “Repeated police misconduct cost taxpayers $1.5 billion in settlements” from The Washington Post “Insurers force change on police departments long resistant to it” from The Washington Post “How Police Misconduct Affects Cities And Taxpayers Financially” from NPR Marketplace’s Standards of Behavior Got a question for our hosts? Leave us a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART or email us at makemesmart@marketplace.org.

Interest rates on government debts are set by where the market thinks the economy is headed. Fed rate hikes and a disappointing inflation report have pushed bond yields higher. Today, we’ll look at what they’re telling us about the future of the economy. Plus, more stores accept SNAP for online groceries, more school principals are quitting or retiring, and a Los Angeles distillery bets on more nonalcoholic spirits sales.