Marketplace

The beleaguered housing market is showing signs of improvement, but how will things look in 2024? We decided to step into the Marketplace time machine with a few industry experts and report back from this time next year to see how the housing market is shaping up. Plus, McDonald’s takes on the beverage market, inflation comes for holiday tamale makers, Apple watches and the long history of U.S. patent wars, and political campaigns base their pitches on your personal data.

When workers send money to their home countries, it can have a huge impact on local and national economies. Remittances to low and middle-income countries were up this year, and the U.S. was the biggest source. In this episode, we’ll get into why migrants and immigrants have been able to send more cash than they used to. Plus, alternative investments take a wild ride during the pandemic, Canada breaks into EV battery production  and 2022 unemployment hit a record low, new data shows.

When it comes to economic talk, inflation is a major topic these days. But the word for “getting inflation to slow down a bit” isn’t as well known. In this episode, we’ll talk to economists who tell us what the difference is between “disinflation” and “deflation” and why the Federal Reserve is aiming for the former. Plus, we’ll explain why stock indexes just shuffled their membership, how board games raise money and what the deal is with movie franchises flopping in theaters.

As 2023 comes to a close, some economists would say we’re ending the year in a better place than they would have predicted in January — inflation has come down quite a bit and the economy is chugging along. But getting all the way back to 2% annual inflation will take persistence. In this episode, Raphael Bostic, president of the Atlanta Federal Reserve Bank, reflects on the economic year we’ve had. Plus, the psychology behind incremental mortgage rate drops and why the online gift guide business has exploded.

In the last week, we’ve seen some solid labor and retail data. Unemployment is low, job availability is high and consumers are spending more than they did last year. But in an economy that’s hyperfocused on tamping down inflation, what’s good for workers might not be good for prices. In this episode, what news is good news right now? Plus, flood history disclosure laws catch on, online shopping drives retail growth and developing countries can’t keep up with their debt.

The Oxford English Dictionary’s word of 2023 is “rizz” — as in charming, skilled at wooing, cha-rizz-matic. Not a concept most people would apply to monetary policy. In this episode, economists weigh in on how the past 12 months have gone for the Federal Reserve’s mission, in just one word. Plus, car insurance costs more than it used to, solar and wind power may surpass the use of coal in the U.S. next year and a California startup fixes EV charging stations.

Tracking how folks feel about the economy is always tricky. Recently, consumer sentiment hasn’t lined up with the mostly positive data on inflation. And while small-business owners are anxious about sales, they’re spending on equipment anyway. In this episode, we’ll look at where those mixed signals might be coming from. Plus, a small-town newspaper makes a big-time change, major retailers pull back on self-checkout and the real estate sales commission model could get thrown out in court.

Food chain resiliency is a central topic at COP28 — the U.N.’s global climate conference. So far, countries have pledged $3 billion to address the issue. In this episode, why agricultural sustainability is in the spotlight and what makes it, in some ways, more complicated than energy decarbonization. Plus, Amazon packages incite chaos in a rural post office, Wyoming has an EV charging station problem and we do some holiday retail check-ins.

The Biden administration announced it’s putting $8 billion toward expanding the U.S. rail system. Travel by train is climate-friendlier than flying or driving, and in parts of Europe and Asia, it’s commonplace. So why has the U.S. been slower to build high-speed rail? Also in this episode: Amazon Fresh delivery tries out subscriptions, part-time workers find full-time employment and it’s tricky to predict labor demand for the holiday season.

Fitch Ratings issued a warning this week that U.S. colleges and universities are likely to encounter economic headwinds — bond investors beware. Declining enrollment, higher wages for faculty and staff and 2008 recession-era debt are all at play. In this episode, why some colleges may be affected more than others. Plus, artificial intelligence is already behind the scenes in Hollywood, rent-free housing comes with a cost and an electronic music store bides its time.