This week on the Cost of Living, we take a closer look at the government's new childcare promise. Plus the perception versus the reality of inflation — according to the Bank of Canada. And we ask why you can't find mason jars, appliances or patio heaters this fall (we'd give you a hint but you probably already know the answer).

When corporations do business abroad, they have to adjust what they do and how they do it for their international partners. But today, our connected world is watching like never before. As Disney faces #BoycottMulan pushback, we take a closer look at how companies are operating far from home and why it matters

We also take a page from Oscar the Grouch's book and find out what our trash is telling us about the COVID-19 economy in Canadian cities.

And while the death of retail has been foretold, multiple times, what does it mean for our shopping spaces? Put on your jelly bracelets and your cool graffiti coat as we head to the mall.

We head to North Bay, Ontario, for the only wild fur auction happening in North America this year despite a global pandemic. What is happening to the fur trade, a business that predates this country itself, amid not just the coronavirus but changing cultures and consumer demands internationally?

As well, with the fall comes lots of changes. Kids are going back to school, businesses are reopening and government programs around the COVID-19 economic fallout are wrapping up or changing. We take the pulse of where the economy is at, and where it might go.

This week the team takes on questions from our listeners, who wanted business mysteries solved like - why has the price of baby formula changed so much over the years? Why are eyeglasses so expensive, anyway? Why are payday loan interest rates allowed to be so high? And just what is modern monetary theory — or MMT — anyway?

The return to the classroom for many, if not all, Canadian students means their parents are also heading back-to-school shopping. So what does that mean for kids, parents … and the retailers adjusting to new purchasing patterns as COVID-19 continues to adjust expectations and behaviours.

And because your call is important to us, we take a closer look at just what has changed about hold music as call volumes skyrocket since, well, many of us have way more time at home to hold on for one more day.

Gold prices have recently hit an all-time high. To some, this is sweet validation. To others, it's baffling why anyone would still care about gold. Is the traditional safe haven in times of uncertainty really a meaningful investment? Or as detractors say, are you just putting your money into something that, well, doesn't really do anything...

We also look at why those bare shelves at your local sporting goods store might not be due to business woes, but the exact opposite. It's the summer of staycations, and that's leading to retail shortages when it comes to outdoor gear in Canada.

And does it ever feel like someone is getting a better deal on their cell phone plan than you? We revisit a story from last October where we discovered the answer is yes — if they live in Saskatchewan or Quebec.

Canada has a new finance minister, and while Chrystia Freeland has been at the cabinet table in senior roles for years now, she's the first woman to hold many of the proverbial purse strings attached to the federal government. What can Canadians expect Minister Freeland do differently for our economy than her predecessor?

Plus - with a new minister comes a new crop of lobbyists knocking on her office door. We explore just who is going to be lobbying Freeland, for what, and why?

And in a flashback to pre-COVID times, we peek under the floating SCOBY to find out how kombucha went from a Japanese seaweed tea to a fermented staple on grocery and convenience store shelves.

Whether you are growing canola on the prairies or canning craft beer in Vancouver - international trade spats have been a thorn in the side of Canadian businesses and consumer for the past two years. But as another fight with our American neighbours looms over aluminum tariffs, we explain what's happening.

Plus canola prices are spiking to the highest level in years, but we head to a prairie farm to explain why that doesn't mean farmers raising one of Canada's most important crops will be taking home any more money from the market spike right now.

And we look back at the economics of vaccine development, in a replay of a story that originally aired in late March 2020. Just how much does creating a vaccine cost? Here's a big hint - there are a lot of zeros at the end of that dollar figure.

Canada's economy is trudging back from the depths of the coronavirus lockdown. But the road isn't exactly smooth. We look at the state of our economic recovery, and whether it's all clear or more worthy of a "yikes!"

And Donald Trump has been threatening to ban the social media video platform TikTok unless it finds a U.S.-based buyer before Sept. 15. Microsoft may be waiting in the wings, but it could be harder to make happen than getting a millennial to learn the "Savage" dance.

We also take a look back at one of our stories from the past year and explain why accents — and the diverse actors who have them — are behind the booming business of the human voice.

This week on The Cost of Living, host Paul Haavardsrud asks: Is Canada "Plan B" for the world's best and brightest? As the Trump administration continues to close U.S. borders, we find out if a loss for the U.S. can be Canada's gain. Also on the program, producer Richard Raycraft takes a closer look at what it means to get so-called 'pandemic pay.' Finally, we replay producer Tracy Fuller's piece from December 2019 on the economics of babysitting.