Marketplace

Oil keeps the gears of the American economy running, from transportation to manufacturing. But the cost is creeping up — crude may well reach $100 a barrel soon. In this episode, we’ll trace how high oil prices ripple through our lives. Plus, college cost transparency, aircraft order volatility and federal firefighter pay cuts.

The July Case-Shiller home price index came out today, and it hit an all-time high. But mortgage rates, at 7%, are also high. We’ll demonstrate what this unusual pairing means for the housing market with some buyer-seller role play. Also in this episode: Staving off climate change will cost trillions, the pumpkin spice latte turns 20 and gas prices fuel consumer sentiment.

How do I make non-Zoom eye contact? What should I share about my personal life? Is my lunch stinky? Work etiquette experts are helping companies ease the back-to-office transition. Also in this episode: UAW strike strategies, the economics of recycling plastic, a hops farm check-in and domestic worker contracts.

Diners are digging in earlier than ever across the U.S. It’s an adjustment for the restaurant industry, but it might be better for workers and eaters alike. Plus, a flood of new apartment buildings should ease rent inflation, but it won’t solve the housing crisis. We’ll also analyze the week’s economic happenings with The New York Times’ Jeanna Smialek and Politico’s Sudeep Reddy.

The idea of energy “conservation” was new to Americans in 1973. Experiencing a first-of-its-kind gasoline shortage, the U.S. began to encourage fuel efficiency in cars and homes. If President Ronald Reagan hadn’t reversed such commitments, would renewable energy be ubiquitous today? Plus, doing without: manufacturing without temp workers, the Fed without government economic data and NYC without Airbnb.

Stocks fall; existing home sales are down more than 15 percent over the last year; leading economic indicators fall; unemployment claims drop

About three-quarters of Latinos in the U.S. speak at least some Spanish. Marketing experts have caught on. We’ll talk to a few about how they strike an English-Spanish balance in ads geared toward the growing demographic. Plus, Amazon is already aggressively hiring for the holidays, Japan might prop up the yen again, and the Federal Reserve didn’t raise rates — this time.

Clearview AI, widely used by U.S. law enforcement, can find a face anywhere on the internet thanks to a database of billions of scraped photos. Journalist Kashmir Hill, who recently published a book about Clearview, will tell us what it was like to investigate a company that’s always watching. Plus, the viability of a four-day workweek for blue-collar jobs and an electrical transformer shortage.

With government shutdowns becoming more frequent — we could have another one at the end of the month — taking a government job isn’t all that appealing. Why worry about the uncertainty of a furlough when plenty of other companies are hiring? We’ll also tackle the environmental impacts of barge shipping, hard-to-find auto parts in the U.S. and members-only shopping in China.

Consumer spending is key to this economy, but Americans are running through their cash just as student loan repayments are coming due. Could that be the straw that breaks the consumer’s back? We’ll discuss it on the Weekly Wrap. Plus, how car dealers are reacting to the UAW strike, why immigration is important to the AI race and why gross domestic product and gross domestic income often don’t match up, even though they should.