Marketplace

The Ambassador Bridge, which connects Ontario to Detroit, carries more than a quarter of all goods traded between the U.S. and Canada. For three days now, truckers protesting Canada’s vaccine mandates and COVID-19 restrictions have blocked the bridge, interrupting a trade link critical to American automakers and Canadian parts manufacturers. It’s the latest in a long line of supply chain disruptions for the industry. Also on today’s show: A small-business love story from Draper, Utah, and a close look at how inflation is disproportionately affecting rural America.

Inflation clocked in at a decades-high 7% in December. But inflation varies depending on where you’re located. Today, we’ll take a look at what inflation feels like for businesses and consumers in Atlanta, Detroit and San Francisco, as well as the sectors in which prices may be higher for longer. We’ll also travel to Istanbul to hear how Turkey’s staggering 36% inflation rate is fueling a tourism boom for visitors eyeing luxury living at low cost. Buckle up — it could be a steep and bumpy ride.

Joe Rogan’s podcast will remain on Spotify following controversies over COVID misinformation and his past use of a racial slur. Still, the company’s CEO issued an apology to staffers this weekend. In a competitive industry with a tight labor market — and at a time when workers prioritize company values — the streaming platform may be less worried about keeping subscribers than it is about retaining employees. Plus: An inside look at China’s zero-COVID policy and supply chain management programs see a boom in student interest.

Whatever your adjective of choice, the January jobs report was — to say the least — surprising. Despite gloomy forecasts, employers added 467,000 jobs last month. Pay and labor force participation were up, too. Today, we’ll dig into the data and tackle more of this week’s economic news in the Weekly Wrap. Plus, the little perks just aren’t cutting it anymore to retain workers, and finding a home in a family-friendly neighborhood is easier said than done.

We’ve said before that now is a good time to be a job seeker. But more people are unemployed now than before the pandemic. On today’s show, we hear from a few folks who are looking for work and the barriers that stand in their way. Plus: Tech stocks take a tumble (with big ripple effects), and small businesses weigh the best ways to deal with inflation in the coming year.

Only 10 states have some version of paid family medical leave. Today we hear from a family who’s experienced two major medical events in two states, one that has paid family medical leave and one that does not. We examine how the policy has affected their financial and mental well-being. Plus, how omicron may mess with the numbers in January’s jobs report, and how being crafty has helped one microbusiness navigate the pandemic.

The pandemic has taken its toll on Indigenous workers, but take a look at the monthly jobs report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and you wouldn’t be able to tell. That’s because the report omits American Indians and Alaska Natives. Today, we’ll take a look at what employment looks like in a few tribal communities and examine the difficulties of implementing policy without meaningful data. Plus, we’ll hear how businesses are grappling with inventory surpluses and look at what the deployment of Russian troops means for Ukraine’s economy.

The American Rescue Plan gave public schools $122 billion to update facilities and help students through the pandemic, but they’ll have to return whatever they don’t spend by September 2024. Today, we look into the pressures of working in a bureaucracy and why schools may need more time. Plus: Why our obsession with older homes might not be so charming and how economists are predicting Fed interest rate hikes will play out.

Working from home has opened up where people choose to reside, and data shows that climate change is increasingly factoring in, too. Today, we take a trip to Duluth, Minnesota, to hear from a few climate migrants who moved to the city, in part because they felt it safer from the impacts of the climate crisis. Plus: Inflation is still rising and consumers are still bummed about it.

Spending and inflation? Up. GDP? Also up. Interest rates? Soon to be up. After the economic nosedive that was 2020 and the huge rebound of 2021, we dig into when the Federal Reserve’s tentative rate hike is likely to ripple out to the rest of the economy. We’ll also take a look at why it’s so hard to pass climate legislation in the U.S. and hear from a venture capital fund investing in Black-founded health startups.