Marketplace Morning Report

There’s more evidence that China’s economy is stalling. Beijing released a batch of government data today that was not encouraging. Chinese consumers have slammed their wallets shut, and data from the National Bureau of...

This week, the Senate is set to take up the $900 billion National Defense Authorization Act. The House passed it last week. It is more than 3,000 pages of defense policy planning that the Senate will be digging through...

From the BBC World Service: "It's like I'm standing inside a cloud of dust and smoke," says BBC correspondent Devina Gupta of air quality in India's capital. Residents there have been urged to stay indoors, and new...

The Trump administration is reconfiguring a government watchdog that grew out of the Great Recession. The Financial Stability Oversight Council watches out for risks to the financial system to prevent the future need...

It’s the most wonderful time of the year — and with that, the obligatory office holiday party. Thing is, some choices around holiday parties can tell a story of how a company is doing. Who's there? Who's chatting...

From the BBC World Service: Reddit has filed a lawsuit calling for Australia's social media ban for children under 16 to be declared invalid. The text-based forum is one of 10 online platforms covered by the ban, which...

The Federal Reserve decided to cut interest rates again at its meeting this week, partly because Fed officials think the labor market is weaker than it appears. This morning, we'll hear why Fed Chair Jerome Powell says...

The COVID-19 pandemic changed the economic circumstances of many, creating demand for direct aid, interrupting consumer spending, and altering the nature of work. Today, there are people across the country in lockdown...

From the BBC World Service: Mexico’s parliament has voted in favor of a bill imposing tariffs of between 5% and 50% on more than 1,400 products from Asian nations, including China. Mexico states that the aim is to boost...

Dynamic pricing is here. Several consumer groups designed a shopping experiment with hundreds of volunteers who shopped on Instacart for the same products at the same time from the same stores. The conclusion? 75% of...

Today, the Federal Reserve is expected to lower interest rates by a quarter point. While there's no guarantee of it, the move could translate to lower mortgage rates, too. This presents an opportunity for bad actors to...

From the BBC World Service: Amazon has announced plans to double its investment in India by 2030 — to the tune of around $35 billion — with a focus on artificial intelligence and e-commerce. It comes after Microsoft and...

Today, we're walking you through the Hollywood drama currently unfolding over Warner Bros. Discovery. The studio's board has already approved an acquisition deal with Netflix, but now Paramount is launching a hostile...

Walmart is moving from the New York Stock Exchange to the Nasdaq market. It's the biggest company ever to make the switch. Thing is, Nasdaq has a cool-kids, growth-through-tech kinda vibe and is home to Apple...

From the BBC World Service: A new law comes into force in Australia today, banning children under 16 from some of their favorite social media platforms, including Snapchat, TikTok, and Instagram. And as you'd expect...

First up on the show: Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan Chase, says the economy is doing well. After all, consumers are chugging along, and the stock market is continuing a strong run. But that feeling of "doing well" isn't...

The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear arguments this morning in Trump v. Slaughter, a case that has broad implications for consumers and workers. The justices are considering whether the president has the power to fire...

From the BBC World Service: The latest economic data from China shows that while exports to the U.S. crashed over the past year, China's towering annual trade surplus surpassed $1 trillion for the first time last month...

How wired into your brain are tech companies? Spotify offers us a clue. The streaming company runs its Spotify Wrapped marketing campaign every December, taking user data and AI to create a personalized year-in-review...

Following a fierce bidding war, Netflix announced this morning that it’s buying Warner Bros. Discovery in a deal worth more than $82 billion. The deal still has to be approved by regulators, and some lawmakers are...

From the BBC World Service: Major airports in India have descended into chaos after the airline IndiGo either canceled or delayed hundreds of flights for the fourth consecutive day. IndiGo says there have been technical...

These days, Americans are drinking less alcohol. While that may be a positive from a health perspective, it’s not great news for California grape growers. Industry groups predict that 2025 will be the smallest harvest...

The Transportation Security Administration announced earlier this week that passengers without a REAL ID or other acceptable documents (like a passport or tribal ID) will have to pay a $45 fee for the extra screening...

From the BBC World Service: European antitrust regulators have just launched an investigation into Meta over its rollout of artificial intelligence features on WhatsApp for European users. This move marks the latest...

The Trump administration has been clear about its desire for deep federal funding cuts to university research. So, some institutions of higher learning are looking to other sources of revenue, including backing startups...