The Fed is on the hook for an estimated one-and-a-half trillion dollars. Despite the recent headlines, that's not because of building renovations. It's a much larger cost blowout caused by big actions taken during the pandemic to help the economy: quantitative easing.

Today on the show, we talk to both a critic of these actions and someone who helped put those those actions in play.

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Private equity is a risky business. There are high-highs and low-lows. A retirement plan, on the other hand, is meant to be a reliable beast. But President Trump believes your 401(k) can handle it! On today's show, the president's expected executive order could help offer some legal cover for fund managers who include private equity in your retirement portfolio. What are the risks and benefits?

Related episodes:
The Prudent Man Rule (Apple / Spotify)
Carried interest wormhole (Apple / Spotify)
Let's party like it's NVIDIA earnings report day! (Apple / Spotify)

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Fact-checking by Sierra Juarez. Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.

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BRICS is an economic alliance of countries that includes Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa and several other nations. They met earlier this month to discuss everything from international law to global health. President Trump, however, is not a fan of BRICS and threatened members with increased tariffs.

So why has this alliance generated so much animosity from the President? Today on the show, we talk to the economist who coined the term "BRICs" about the origins of the group and why the international economic organizations have been western dominated for so long.

Related episodes:
China's trade war perspective
Is the US pushing countries towards China?

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Fact-checking by Sierra Juarez. Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.

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Baby bond fever is catching on. In recent years, states like Connecticut have been experimenting with giving newborns government-seeded accounts that grow tax-free until they are 18. Now, President Trump's signature tax and spending bill will give a thousand dollars to every U.S.-born baby through 2028. On today's show, what are baby bonds and could they help tackle wealth inequality?

Related:
Baby bonds, proportional representation, and no left turns
Could cash payments ease recessions?
Building generational wealth in rural America

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Fact-checking by Cooper Katz McKim. Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.

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It's ... Indicators of the Week! Our weekly look at some of the most fascinating economic numbers from the news.

On today's episode: Nigeria gets a GDP surprise, Magic the Gathering mutes tariff impact for Hasbro, and Bitcoin reaches record highs following the passage of the GENIUS Act.

Related episodes:
How stable is Stablecoin? (Apple / Spotify)
Episode 609: The Curse Of The Black Lotus

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.

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It's the Beigie Awards, our eight times a year salute to the art and science of telling stories about the economy. The most recent Beige Book shows that Americans are finding ways to spend less money ... including on their vacations. On today's show, we find out what Benjamin Franklin and Jersey Beach goers have in common.

Related episodes:
How many times can you say uncertainty in one economic report?
Trump's cuts come for food banks
The secret tariff-free zone

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Fact-checking by Sierra Juarez. Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.

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The quintessential American economic myth is that the free market picks winners and losers. But the federal government has long had a role in this equation, from the current administration all the way back to the Great Depression. Today on the show, we uncover the history of the country's national investment bank, which shaped the relationship between the government and the market in ways that are still felt today.

Check out Chris Hughes Substack

Related episodes:
The day Russia adopted the free market (Apple / Spotify)
Giant vacuums and other government climate bets (Apple / Spotify)

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Fact-checking by Julia Ritchey. Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.

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Despite presidential saber rattling and huge tariff threats, the U.S. stock market keeps reaching record highs. Why?

Today we sit down with the man who coined the acronym TACO (Trump Always Chickens Out) and chew through several hypotheses. (Over tacos, of course.)

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Once upon a time, the states had a thriving tinned fish market. Like a lot of U.S. manufacturing though, that's been lost. But sardines are having a moment right now and that may help a growing effort to resurrect this lost industry.

Related episodes:
Why do shrimpers like tariffs (Apple / Spotify)
When a staple becomes a luxury (Apple / Spotify)
We're gonna need a bigger boat-building industry (Apple / Spotify)

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.

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To cap off our weeklong series on all things Hollywood, we're going to have a little fun! Tune in to hear Adrian, Darian and Wailin battle it out as they try to name movies based on cryptic descriptions of the businesses featured in them. You can play along!

Related episodes:
When is cosplay a crime?
The story of China and Hollywood's big-screen romance
Why aren't filmmakers shooting in LA?
Before La La Land there was Fort Lee, New Jersey

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.

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