The Economy, Stupid is your weekly guide to the world of business, economics and finance. Every Thursday, economist Peter Martin is joined by a team of sharp young thinkers for a fresh conversation about the financial stories making headlines and how they might affect you.

Australians have a sleeping problem. The most conservative estimates show one in 10 have a sleep disorder, which is having an impact on their safety, wellbeing and productivity.

This ends up costing almost a $1 billion a week. And that’s not all. The total cost of inadequate sleep is thought to be as high as $75 billion a year.

We’re not alone either. International research shows places like the US, the UK and Europe are facing similar problems, with similar costs.

Guests:

Shanthakumar Rajaratnam, Chair of the Sleep Health Foundation

Professor Ron Grunstein, The Woolcock Institute 

Wendy Troxel, The Rand Corporation

Zafina Ademi, Professor of Health Economics, Monash University

Presenter: Richard Aedy

Producer: Whitney Fitzsimons 

This program was first broadcast on 9th May, 2024

Journalist Ed Conway went on a journey to discover where the things we use in everyday life come from. He narrowed that search down to six vital materials: sand, salt, iron, copper, oil and lithium. These materials, he says, are like a gateway allowing us to see the spectrum of different things around us that really do matter. These materials from the ground that have enabled us to connect with each other, to provide energy and make machines. 

Guest: 

Ed Conway, Economics and Data Editor of Sky News and columnist for The Times and Sunday Times. He is the author of: 

Material World: a substantial story of our past and future published by Penguin.

Credits: 

Presenter: Richard Aedy

Producer: Kate MacDonald

This program was first broadcast on 15th February, 2024

After nine terrific years explaining how the economy and everything in it works, Richard Aedy looks back at the highlights of the decade as well as Australia's economic future with Danielle Wood, Chair of the Productivity Commission. 

Guest - Danielle Wood, Chair of the Productivity Commission

The NDIS is vitally important, but because it was not designed to do everything, there are many areas where disabled Australians need more philanthropic support, assistance for those who want to start their own businesses or enjoy easeful, diverse travel experiences.

A story for IDPWD (International Day of People with a Disability) 3rd December 

Guests:

Simon Darcy, Professor of Management, UTS Business School

Emma Dawson, Executive Director of PerCapita

Kirsty Nowlan, Executive Director of The Achieve Foundation

Lorna Hallahan, Associate Professor at Flinders Uni and non-executive board member of The Achieve Foundation

Not many of us care for Mondays, and statistically it really is the most dangerous day of the week as opposed to Black Friday where the biggest danger is watching your money disappear.

Guest:

Fleur Brown from the Australian Retailer's Association

Milad Hagani from the University of NSW

Also, why are we not spending more on upskilling and training our workforce?

Andrew Barker Head of Research at CEDA

Germany's economic dominance as Europe's biggest economy is in danger. A new book argues that the weaknesses have been brewing for decades, leaving Germany over-reliant on Russian gas, too focused on old industries and unable to adapt to the digital realities of the 21st century. 

Guest: Wolfgang Munchau, former Financial Times associate editor, and author of Kaput: The End of the German Miracle, outlines the myriad economic problems and a possible way out. 

Kaput will be published by Allen and Unwin on February 4, 2025

And the Federal Government has decided to mandate keeping cash available for essential business, but this will come at a cost to small business.

Guest: Steve Worthington, Professor at Swinburne University of Technology

Donald Trump's economic agenda is clear: less taxation and regulation; more tariffs. But some of his programs will require a lot of money, which means America will need to borrow more. Those borrowings and the impact of tariffs will affect small, open trading economies, like Australia.

Guests

Professor Susan Stone, Credit Union SA Chair of Economics, University of South Australia

Win-Li Toh, Principal, Taylor Fry

Australians fork out much more on dental care than any other kind of health care. Which is why increasingly, people are delaying or skipping dental care, and 27% of kids aged between 5 and 10 had untreated decayed or missing teeth.   

So should, or could dental care be brought under the Medicare umbrella, and what might this cost? 

Guests:

Peter Breadon, Program Director for Health and Aged Care at the Grattan Institute

Dr Angie Nisson, Board Member of the Australia Dental Association and Clinical Director of Oral Health in Northern NSW

Dr Elizabeth Deveny, CEO of the Consumers Health Forum of Australia

One of the factors determining how people vote is the economy, and while America's is doing incredibly well right now, consumer confidence has slumped and most Americans are not feeling at all happy.  

Guests: 

• Betsey Stevenson, Professor of Economics and Public Policy at the University of Michigan
• Robert Armstrong, US Financial commentator at the Financial Times
• Christopher Rugaber, covers the US economy and Federal Reserve for Associated Press