The Indicator from Planet Money

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The Indicator from Planet Money episodes

January 09 How AI is shrinking the job market for teens
Karissa Tang is a 17-year-old in California who got curious about the impact of AI on typical teen jobs like cashiers and fast food counter workers. She embarked on an ambitious economic research project and shares her findings with us.

Related episodes:
How much is AI actually affecting the workforce?
AI creates, transforms and destroys... jobs
When does youth employment become child labor?

For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Fact-checking by Sierra Juarez. Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

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10 min
January 08 Venezuela didn't steal U.S. oil. Here's what happened
President Trump claims Venezuela stole American oil. Is that true? We trace Venezuela's oil industry from its 1920s birth through nationalization and then collapse. Today on the show, how did the Venezuelan oil industry get to a point where it’s barely pulling from its reserves? And will anything change now?

Related episodes:
Venezuela’s economic descent (Update)
Venezuela’s recent economic history (Update)
Why oil in Guyana could be a curse

For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Fact-checking by Julia Ritchey. Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

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10 min
January 07 Can you trust you're getting the same grocery prices as someone else?
When you're in a grocery store nowadays, chances are your data is being collected. From a swipe of the loyalty card to the purchase of an ice cream pint, your data tells stores what you like, how much they should stock, and more.

But what if that data meant a grocer could charge you a different price than another shopper?

On today's show, the evolving price tag.

Related episodes:

Should 'surveillance pricing' be banned?

How Grocery Shelves Get Stacked

How niche brands got into your local supermarket

For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Fact-checking by Sierra Juarez. Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

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10 min
January 06 How cocaine smuggling through Latin America really works
Former Venezuelan leader, Nicolás Maduro, appeared in a New York court yesterday. He’s facing drug-trafficking and weapons charges after the U.S. abducted him and his wife in an explosive operation over the weekend. But is there any credibility to the drug-trafficking accusations? And what does the cocaine supply chain look like in 2026?

Today on the show, tracing cocaine’s journey from the Andes to the streets of U.S. cities.

Further reading:
Ioan Grillo – El Narco

Related episodes:
Venezuela’s economic descent (Updated)
Why Are Venezuelans Starving?
Lessons from a former drug dealer

For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Fact-checking by Cooper Katz McKim and Sierra Juarez. Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

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10 min
January 05 Why China pulled the plug on Japan
Japan’s new prime minister Sanae Takaichi made waves last fall after saying her country might intervene if China invaded Taiwan. In response, China launched state-organized boycotts against Japan — canceling concerts, restricting seafood imports, and even recalling pandas. Today on the show, what does it look like for a state to organize a boycott, and does it work?
Related episodes:
How Japan’s new prime minister is jolting markets
When do boycotts work?
Forging Taiwan's Silicon Shield
For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Fact-checking by Sierra Juarez. Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

NPR Privacy Policy
10 min
January 03 Venezuela’s economic descent (Updated)
At The Indicator, we’ve been following the conditions in Venezuela over the years. In 2024 we covered how Venezuela’s economy went into freefall, and have been checking in with an economist there frequently — including after the U.S. attacked over the weekend, deposing its leader Nicolás Maduro.

On today’s show, we’re revisiting our episode about Venezuela’s economy, and hear from our contact in Caracas.

Send us questions you’d like The Indicator to answer on future episodes about Venezuela: [email protected].

Related episodes: The Measure of a Tragedy Why are Venezuelans starving? An Economist in Caracas: Day In The Life

For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

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11 min
January 02 We resolve to watch these 2026 indicators
2025 is finally over.

We had bad consumer sentiment vibes, tariffs, and a seemingly ascendant stock market. And those are just a few indicators from last year!

As we enter 2026, what indicators should we keep an eye on … in the future? On today’s episode, our top indicator predictions for the new year.

Related:

What AI data centers are doing to your electric bill

Tariffs. Consumer sentiment. Cape ratio. Pick the Indicator of the Year!

What indicators will 2025 bring?

For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Fact-checking by Sierra Juarez. Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

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9 min
December 31, 2025 Why Americans don't want to move for jobs anymore (Encore)
Americans are moving at record lows for work. What’s driving people to, well, not drive cross-country for jobs? On today’s episode, we explore the rising homebody economy.

This episode originally aired Oct. 3, 2025.

Related episodes:
Why moms are leaving their paid jobs
How the end of Roe is reshaping the medical workforce

For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Fact-checking by Corey Bridges. Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

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11 min
December 30, 2025 Gilded Age 2.0? (Encore)
To hear President Trump tell it, the late 1800s, i.e. the Gilded Age, were a period of unparalleled wealth and prosperity in the U.S. But this era was also marked by corruption and wealth inequality. Sound familiar? On today's show, is history repeating itself?

This episode originally aired June 5, 2025.

Related: Trump's tariff role model

For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Fact-checking by Sierra Juarez. Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

NPR Privacy Policy
10 min
December 29, 2025 The cautionary tale of a recovering day trading addict (Encore)
Seasons greetings from the The Indicator! On today's show, the story of a man who started buying and selling stocks as a hobby — and got seriously addicted. We also speak with a neuroeconomist about the human brain on day trading.

This piece originally aired Jan. 25, 2025.

Related episodes:
The young trolls of Wall Street are growing up
Invest like a Congress member
For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Fact-checking by Sierra Juarez. Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

NPR Privacy Policy
10 min

About The Indicator from Planet Money

From the publisher's feed

A bite-sized show about big ideas. From the people who make Planet Money, The Indicator helps you make sense of what's happening in today's economy. It's a quick hit of insight into…