Business Daily

Inflation has hardly been seen in the developed world economies for the last three decades. But now some economists are warning it could be returning with a vengeance, because of supply chain problems, post-Covid exuberance, and higher wage demands. What is going on, and should we all be worried? We hear opposing views from Claudia Sahm, former economic adviser to the Federal Reserve and the White House, Steve Hanke of Johns Hopkins University, and Andrew Sentance, senior adviser at Cambridge Econometrics and a former member of the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee.

Image: Full shopping cart in supermarket aisle (Credit: Getty Images).

Guy Hands, the founder of Terra Firma, opens up on the highs and lows and risks involved in deal making and private equity. From being bullied at school to becoming a household name, buying and selling businesses from cinema chains and pubs to waste management, aircraft leasing and green energy companies. We hear his side of the deal that turned sour, the acquisition of multinational music company EMI in 2007, and how his addiction to doing deals has affected his personal life.

The future of credit for the young, or just another way of getting into debt? Would you pay for a product now, when you could simply delay payment for free? Ever since the pandemic forced millions of us to stay at home, millions more of us have been buying goods online using a new form of credit. Buy now, pay later offers goods interest free and it's proving very tempting to many younger shoppers. But is it just a new form of debt trap? Ed Butler speaks to Nick Molnar co-founder of Afterpay and Sebastian Siemiatkowski, the cofounder and CEO of Klarna, the Swedish based firm that's now the world's biggest buy now pay later provider. He also hears from Alice Tapper of personal finance forum Go Fund Yourself who says regulation is desperately needed to protect younger consumers. Plus Amber Foucault from the consumer spending analytics company Cardify who says that until global regulation comes in, we should watch out for many younger customers getting into financial trouble using this system.

(Picture: "Payment due!" written on a calendar with a bank card on top. Credit: Getty Images.)

As the world focuses its attention on climate, we’re looking to the money that could create real change. Venture capital is the type of financing that can take new ideas to the mass market and it’s finally looking to fund clean, green tech. First, to understand how start-ups go about seeking VC funding, Vivienne Nunis hears from founder Diedre McGettrick. Gabriel Kra, of the venture capital firm Prelude Ventures, explains the shift he's seen in low-carbon investing. But Silicon Valley attracts the world’s sharpest minds, so why aren’t more tech leaders coming up with the bright ideas needed to fight climate change? We ask founder-turned-investor, Ben Parr. Producer: Sarah Treanor. Image: Smart farming technology. Credit: Getty Images

Correction: Prelude Ventures invested approx. $125m in the past 12 months, in deals totalling $1.3bn. It didn’t invest $1.3bn on its own, as was stated in the programme.

As world leaders gather in Glasgow in Scotland for the UN’s global climate conference, COP26, we ask if a new project partnering with the private sector will help save the Amazon rainforest, or whether it’s simply another way for the corporate sector to pay away its guilt. Plus, we hear from a youth delegate to the last big climate conference in Paris – what is she hoping for this time round? And, can electric freight vessels help global shipping to go green? We hear how a Norwegian company is working on one. We also look at the fight against plastic waste and how the world’s recycling systems simply aren’t working. And they’re big, glamorous and they involve hundreds of people. But are the days of the big Indian wedding over? Business Weekly is produced by Matthew Davies and presented by Tamasin Ford.

Trophy hunting – paying to kill large animals, often in African game reserves – promotes strong feelings. Many oppose it, but some conservationists argue it adds value to wildlife and their habitats. We discuss the arguments and hear from a psychologist about the motivations of people who want to kill animals in the wild. With Doctor Sue Snyman from the School of Wildlife Conservation; Dr Mark Jones who represents the charity Born Free; tourism expert Dr Muchazondida Mkono; and Geoff Beattie, the author of Trophy Hunting: A Psychological Perspective. Vivienne Nunis also gets the view from Richard Leakey, the famous paleoanthropologist and former head of the Kenyan Wildlife Service.

Producer: Sarah Treanor.

(Photo:: A rhinoceros. Credit: Getty Images)

How does a $200,000 starting salary sound? That’s now the industry standard for newly qualified lawyers at big corporate law firms in the US and the UK. But before you sign on the dotted line consider that in exchange for your princely wage packet, 100 hour working weeks and being on-call 24 hours a day could be part of that deal.

So is it all worth it? Elizabeth Hotson speaks to "recovering lawyer" Taly Matiteyahu, whilst Christopher Clark, director of legal head hunting firm, Definitum Search, explains why salaries have got so high and Stephen Parkinson, a senior partner at law firm, Kingsley Napley sets out some alternatives to the status quo.

Plus, a practising corporate lawyer in New York tells us about his work schedule and Anna Lovett, an Associate Solicitor at law firm Burnetts, tells us about changing attitudes to work. And Charlene Bourliout, an ex-lawyer and burnout consultant offers some strategies for coping with an overwhelming workload.

Presented and produced by Elizabeth Hotson

Picture description: dollar bills Picture credit: Getty Images

Around one fifth of the world’s 2000 largest public firms have committed to net zero targets in the coming years. Most are pledging to something called climate neutrality by a given date. But do these pledges actually make any difference in the flight against climate change? We here both sides of the argument with climate futurist Alex Steffen based in California, and Simon Glynn, the co-lead on Climate and Sustainability, at the UK management consultants, Oliver Wyman.

(Image: Cooling towers at a coal fueled power station. Credit: Getty Images).

Fergus Nicoll travels to the port of Workington in the north west of England, where he hears from port manager Sven Richards about how small regional ports can make global haulage more sustainable. Blue Line Logistics run a fleet of low emission barges in Belgium and the Netherlands and have plans to expand to the UK and the US. Fergus speaks to the company's founder, Antoon van Coillie. The BBC's Adrienne Murray has been looking into the research and development going into producing 'green fuel' in Copenhagen. Fergus also hears from Yon Sletten, who is developing the Yara Birkeland, a zero emission, autonomous, electric freighter, currently undergoing final sea tests off the coast of Norway. Also in the programme, the efforts of Green Marine, a group of ship owners, ports and shipyards in North America, that has come together to raise the bar for environmental standards in their industry, as their executive David Bolduc explains.

Producer: Russell Newlove.

(Picture: aerial view of a container ship surrounded by green sea. Credit: Getty Images.)

The Amazon is the world's largest rainforest but this crucial carbon sink is facing increased deforestation. Land clearing for mining or agriculture has increased under Brazil's president Jair Bolsanaro. But the world needs the Amazon jungle to keep absorbing carbon if more ambitious climate goals are to be met. Is there a place for the private sector to step in where governments have failed? Vivienne Nunis hears from economist Nat Keohane about a new not-for-profit called Emergent. It acts as a kind of middle man, connecting tropical forests with corporations searching for ways to cancel out their emissions. Can it work? Also on the programme, journalist Karla Mendes explains how many Brazilians feel about the Amazon's plight, while Robert Muggah from the Igarapé Institute tells us companies such as Google have stepped up to help with deforestation mapping, when government agencies had their budgets cut. Producer: Sarah Treanor. Image: A toucan in the Amazon rainforest. Credit: Getty Images