Marketplace All-in-One

The report from the Federal Housing Finance Agency also shows that the trend is growing. Also, car prices that shot up drastically during the pandemic are starting to come down … just a bit. Then, we check in on the “care economy” and discuss what can help it.

From the BBC World Service: Hong Kong’s reputation as a haven for stability and profitability has been undermined in recent years by the pandemic and a crackdown against anti-government protesters. So can U.S. banks be persuaded to invest in the territory? Plus, authorities have now locked down a wider area around the world’s largest iPhone factory in China. And, can synthetic hair be made in a more sustainable way?

Buckle up, grab a hard hat, a tent (and maybe a snack). It’s going to be a bumpy ride! From camping on top of a glacier, right before billions of tons of ice melt off of it, to dealing with the aftermath of a hurricane that destroys Miami, this episode we’re diving head first into the realclimate predictions — and the imagined ways society will handle them. 

We’re unpacking why a glacier halfway around the world is causing sea levels around South Florida to rise faster, and then we’re heading to an imagined world (that doesn’t seem too far from reality) where millions of people in Miami and South Florida are displaced after a hurricane ravages the metro area. With every twist and turn of the episode, we’re exploring the ways we can still have hope in the face of what’s to come.

The U.S. is experiencing a massive demographic shift as the baby boom becomes the senior boom. According to the Census Bureau, more than 1 in 5 Americans will be 65 or older in 2030. The tech industry is catching on. Big companies and small startups are increasingly developing products with older users in mind. Marketplace’s Meghan McCarty Carino speaks with Keren Etkin, a gerontologist and creator of the blog The Gerontechnologist, where she writes and podcasts about the latest in age tech. Etkin said the idea that older people don’t “get” technology is just a tired stereotype.

Spoiler alert: We’re not in a recession. But maybe one is on the way.

That debate reignited last week after the yield curve inverted, again. As we’ve talked about on the show, inverted yield curves can be a warning sign.

“A lot of this is psychological. It’s a lot about what you think is going on, not necessarily what is going on,” said Todd Knoop, professor of economics at Cornell College and author of “Business Cycle Economics: Understanding Recessions and Depressions From Boom to Bust.”

While the National Bureau of Economic Research has the final word on whether we’re in a recession, today we’re asking: If recessions are a regular part of the economy, why are they so hard to predict? Knoop breaks it down. Plus, we dig into the psychology of recessions and why they could become self-fulling prophecies.

In the News Fix, Kai gives a lesson in how to decode the upcoming Federal Reserve meeting. Plus, Kimberly gets an up-close look at the ongoing supply chain crisis.

And for this week’s answer to the Make Me Smart question, a listener explains what potty training her kids taught her about creating new habits.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

Join us for tomorrow for Whaddaya Wanna Know Wednesday. If you have a question you’d like the hosts to answer in a future episode, leave us a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART or email [email protected].

A cooling labor market means cooling inflation — at least in theory. But fresh data shows that job openings are growing and the quits rate remains high. Today, we’ll dig into the implications for workers and the Federal Reserve. Then, we’ll travel back to Buffalo, New York, to hear how the pandemic has altered the trajectories of a global hospitality company, a small inn and a young worker.

We get a little into the size and scope of trying to enact a profits tax on oil companies. David Kelly of J.P. Morgan joins us for market discussion. The New York pay transparency law went into effect today, and we look at its potential impact on gender and wage gaps. A pair of propositions on sports betting will soon be facing California voters.

A federal judge has blocked Penguin Random House from buying up rival Simon & Schuster, which counts as a win in the Biden administration’s battle against industry consolidation. Also, Tower Records might not be a huge thing in the U.S. these days, but it’s emerged as a culture beacon in Japan.

From the BBC World Service: Unverified social media posts reportedly indicate a committee of some kind is being formed to discuss how to end the world’s strictest COVID-19 mitigation measures in China. That’s sent stocks in Hang Seng and Shanghai surging. Plus, truck drivers in Brazil who support outgoing President Jair Bolsonaro have been blocking major roadways to protest his defeat, prompting concerns for food supply chains and the economy. And, what hosting the soccer world cup could mean for Qatar’s economy.

Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and TikTok have banned deepfakes, which are realistic but fabricated or manipulated representations, often of public figures. Yet a TikTok video in which a fake Tom Cruise serenades the real Paris Hilton went viral. That video is one of dozens from the account @DeepTomCruise. The account has racked up almost 4 million followers with its digital simulations of the famous actor singing, golfing and, of course, laughing in a slightly too intense way. Marketplace’s Meghan McCarty Carino speaks with Anjana Susarla, professor of responsible artificial intelligence at Michigan State University’s Broad College of Business. She said we can thank TikTok’s algorithm for keeping deepfakes alive.