What is the difference between a good bailout, and pouring billions of dollars down the drain? Plus how video games are getting a boost from the new stay-at-home economy. And should we be worried about the empty shelves at the supermarket?

Why keeping small businesses going will be so important as we come out of this pandemic, plus what is the cost of keeping the economy on pause for health reasons? How do economists factor in the literal cost of remaining living? And we try to explain the differences between current economic projections and recessions or depressions of years past.

In this special podcast-only edition of The Cost of Living, Paul Haavardsrud and executive producer Tracy Johnson answer listener questions about what is happening in the economy vis-a-vis COVID-19 and the impact of the coronavirus.

Everyone still has bills to pay, and those financial obligations are especially tough on small businesses who are trying to face the challenges posed by the novel coronavirus and the world's reaction to it. Plus we look at what money means in the race to develop vaccines.

In this special podcast-only extra, The Cost of Living explores why customer service is of paramount importance for the hospitality industry as they reel from the extraordinary circumstances that make up the COVID-19 coronavirus situation.

The price war when it comes to oil can mean hard times both for the energy industry itself, and for Canada's economy from coast to coast to coast. Plus what do our consumer choices mean for the broader economy, and what are the emotional responses when there's a run on toilet paper?

Oil price wars, COVID-19, falling markets, all of this is super heavy. For a bit of levity, we explain the global oil market through the lens of a high school teen drama.

Will central banks cutting the overnight rate help the economy as COVID-19 leads to more uncertainty? And are the employment numbers from StatsCan really what you should be looking at each month? Plus how Canada can avoid shocks as vehicle manufacturing goes electric.

We explore the difficulty for Canada in balancing environmental priorities with economic development, along with a look at how COVID-19 is affecting markets.

After rail blockades across the country, we look at what is and isn't working when private companies deal with Indigenous nations. We also try to explain why Canadians can't seem to cash-in on the low-cost air travel other countries enjoy. Plus, after an online tax software company got bought out, do clients know where their personal information ended up?