The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed above 40,000 for the first time on Friday. As we say regularly on this show, the stock market is not the economy. But it can still be a good indicator of how some folks are feeling about the state of the economy. Also in this episode: Competition for small-business spending heats up, EV sales take a dip, and purchasing power for all income levels rises.
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“The granddaddy of all stock indices”

Every weekday, host Kai Ryssdal helps you make sense of the day’s business and economic news — no econ degree or finance background required. “Marketplace” takes you beyond the numbers, bringing you context. Our team of reporters all over the world speak with CEOs, policymakers and regular people just trying to get by.

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The economy is cooling, based on the latest inflation report, in part because American consumers are pulling back on spending. That’s good news for the Federal Reserve and its 2% inflation target. Also in this episode: GM says goodbye to the Malibu, OPEC+ members to talk about production quotas, and teen boys flock to luxury perfume counters.

Slowly, but surely, the economy is cooling

Revised gross domestic product for the first quarter shows even slower growth than the original estimate. With U.S. GDP representing nearly a quarter of global output, what happens here can affect other economies. Also in this episode: why companies opt for machines over people, how cyberattacks affect small businesses, and what one South Gate, California, business owner thinks of prices.

Revised 1st-quarter GDP shows slower growth

A small neighborhood in the Phoenix area, full of farm animals and dirt roads, is in turmoil: A huge TSMC semiconductor plant, now under construction, is bringing with it a wave of commercial development and new residents. Champions of the project say the jobs and housing are sorely needed, but locals feel the transformation threatens their way of life. In this episode, we’ll visit the so-called Golden Triangle and meet stakeholders who include longtime residents, small-business owners, a city councilwoman and a real estate developer.

Breaking Ground: Change isn’t coming — it’s here

Commercial Israeli banks process transactions with Palestinian banks — about $10 billion in trade per year, and paychecks for tens of thousands of Palestinians with jobs in Israel. Normally, the government protects them legally if any funding finds its way into terrorists’ hands. Israeli finance minister Bezalel Smotrich recently threatened to end these waivers. In this episode, what could happen to the Palestinian economy if he follows through? Plus, what’s included in “cost of living” indexes, why consumer confidence is rising, and are we in a climate change housing bubble?

What could happen if Israel severs banking ties with the Palestinian economy

Nearly two-thirds of Americans drink coffee every day, according to the National Coffee Association. If you’re part of that 63%, you may have noticed coffee getting more expensive. Some of it has to do with the cost of the raw crop, which is at a 45-year high, partly due to climate change reducing yields. And it doesn’t help that global demand is growing. Also in this episode: Mexico City is in a water crisis, Zoom cashiers usher in a new wave of digital offshoring and machinery and other things-that-make-things purchases were up last month.

“The granddaddy of all stock indices”

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