The oil-producing cartel known as OPEC+ will cut down output even further to combat sagging prices. We check in for more on the U.K. government’s tax cut reversal. We talk banking systems with Julia Coronado of MacroPolicy Perspectives. If you’re looking for a used car, be on the lookout for some vehicles that might have recent flooding history – in Florida.

That U.K. tax cut plan that had a lot of people shaken up? Not happening, apparently. What do we really know about the rise of Chinese president Xi Jinping?

From the BBC World Service: The British finance minister Kwasi Kwarteng has now abandoned one of his flagship economic policies after it roiled markets. Plus, why shares of banking giant Credit Suisse plunged nearly 10% in early trading. And, people in Tunisia have taken to the streets to protest the high cost of living and food shortages.

Technology is one way farmers are managing labor shortages, and the rising costs of seed and fertilizer.  “Precision ag,” as it’s known, is being used to get the most out of limited resources. Emil Moffatt of WABE reports from a family farm in central Georgia.

After seven years in the host’s chair, Trevor Noah is leaving “The Daily Show” to do more stand-up and touring. We’ll talk about the evolution of the late-night TV business. Plus, a case before the Supreme Court could determine what’s considered the “waters of the U.S.” And, we play a round of Half Full/Half Empty with a surprise guest emcee!

Here’s everything we talked about today:

• “Trevor Noah is leaving ‘The Daily Show’” from CNN
• New HHS Reports Illustrate Potential Positive Impact of Inflation Reduction Act on Prescription Drug Prices from the Department of Health and Human Services
• “Supreme Court to hear case on EPA’s Clean Water Act authority” from Roll Call
• Tweet thread from @JasonLeopold on an off-the-record conversation between then-President Barack Obama and reporters about incoming President Donald Trump

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The economy seems full of contradictions right now. The threat of a recession looms and inflation is rampant, but consumers are still spending. Economists often look to history when making predictions, but the past offers little guidance to make sense of our current economic moment. Plus, the challenges of moving to more storm-resilient infrastructure and the toll of rising energy costs on U.K. businesses.

The news will say consumers were “resilient” in August, but Christopher Low tells us there’s more to it than that. Senior economics contributor Chris Farrell helps explain President Biden’s income-driven repayment plan for student loans.

Floridians face a web of insurance concerns in the wake of Hurricane Ian. We break down the government shutdown-eluding bill the House is set to vote on today. A California bill makes union voting less harrowing for farmworkers.

From the BBC World Service: After a chaotic week for the British pound, Liz Truss meets representatives from the Office of Budget Responsibility. The economic watchdog will want to discuss the effects on the U.K.’s economy of last week’s proposed tax cuts. Later this week, Brazilians will go to the polls to elect their president, and a bunch of James Bond stuff goes up for auction.

For almost 200 years, the Braille system has turned the written word into raised bumps that blind people can read. But what about images? A device called an embosser pricks and crimps 3D dots and lines on paper to produce a tactile image, allowing people to perceive pictures through touch. Chancey Fleet is a technologist at the Andrew Heiskell Braille and Talking Book Library in New York City. She’s Blind and teaches low-vision and blind patrons to print their own images.

Hurricane Ian left behind vast destruction in Florida. But what’s actually making the situation worse is the state’s insurance crisis. We’ll explain. Plus, some people who thought their student loans would be forgiven are learning they won’t eligible for President Biden’s relief program after all. And, if you like Fat Bear Week, you’ll love Fat Bear Junior.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

• Hurricane Ian’s damage in Florida is part of a larger crisis from MSNBC
• “In a reversal, the Education Dept. is excluding many from student loan relief” from NPR
• Tweet from @LizAnnSonders of Schwab on the rising cost of the monthly house payment
• “After 14 years, Lehman Brothers’ brokerage ends liquidation” from Yahoo
• “Meet the Bears of Fat Bear Junior” from Explore.org

We’re in the middle of our fall fundraiser! For a limited time, donate $8 a month and we’ll thank you with the popular new Make Me Smart hoodie. Donate today.

Last year, dozens of container ships waited off the Californian coast — some for weeks — to  dock and unload all the goods consumers were demanding. But those backlogs have eased substantially. Today, we’ll take a trip to the Marine Exchange of Southern California to hear what’s changed since and what hasn’t. Plus, why jobless claims are dipping and what Hurricane Ian means for Florida’s fragile insurance industry.

“This Is Uncomfortable,” our podcast all about life and how money messes with it, returns for our seventh season on Oct. 6.

This season, we’re looking at some of the expectations we carry with us about how life should play out, and all the ways money can interfere with the best-laid plans and lead us to a totally different reality.

We’ll take a look at the roller coaster of married life, the secretive world of scam baiting, the competitive world of college esports, how we embrace the generosity of strangers and so much more.

Listen to the trailer above and follow “This Is Uncomfortable” wherever you get podcasts.

And to get even more Uncomfortable during the season, sign up for our newsletter. Each Friday morning we’ll bring you a note from Reema, new stories from listeners, tough money questions and recommendations from our team! Here’s the latest issue.

Diane Swonk discusses the economic impacts of the storm surges in Florida. House Democrats introduce a bill to halt stock trading by members of Congress. Monkeypox can also leave a financial mark on those infected.

First, we discuss what the damage figures from Ian, now a tropical storm, could entail. Salary ranges in job postings are giving candidates an edge. Walmart will begin offering fertility benefits.

From the BBC World Service: In her first media appearance since the British pound’s nosedive, the U.K. Prime Minister defended her plans despite widespread criticism and a rare intervention from the Bank of England. The Lebanese central bank revalued its official currency exchange rate, and in Germany, Porsche debuts on the Frankfurt stock exchange.

Mathematics can be a subject that’s a bit unrelatable for some. Perhaps you recall sitting in a math class at some point wondering, “When am I ever going to use quadratic equations?” But a new book wants us to reconsider math as something that gives us fundamental building blocks for not just the technology we use every day, but also the natural world around us. That book is called “The Big Bang of Numbers: How to Build the Universe Using Only Math.” Marketplace’s Kimberly Adams recently spoke with author Manil Suri about his book and what motivated him to write it for the mathematically uninterested.

The United Kingdom’s economy is hurting. But the plan to get it under control — cutting taxes and raising interest rates — is a bit of a head scratcher. We’ll explain why we can’t make this one make sense (well, I guess we can, but the answer is not great). Plus, guest host Reema Khrais answers questions about boycotts and the multilevel marketing world.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

• “Q&A: Here’s when boycotts have worked — and when they haven’t” from the Los Angeles Times
• “1 in 4 Americans Are Currently Boycotting a Product or Company” from LendingTree
• Meet the 400 Ph.D. economists who work at the Federal Reserve
• Listen: “This Is Uncomfortable” episode on multilevel marketing
• “How the Pandemic Stoked a Backlash to Multilevel Marketing” from The Atlantic

If you’ve got a question about the economy, business or technology, let us know. We’re at makemesmart@marketplace.org or leave us a message at 508-U-B-SMART.

With the midterm elections approaching, help us make everyone smarter about the economy. Donate today.

The U.S. dollar has been appreciating this year as investors take advantage of climbing interest rates. But the value of the dollar is forcing economies around the globe to pay the price. Today, we’ll delve into how a strong dollar is affecting imports, exports and the debts of foreign countries. Plus, the Bank of England makes a drastic move, and Hurricane Ian highlights power grid resilience.

Heavy hitters on Wall Street admitted to record-keeping violations and now face billions in fines. Susan Schmidt of Exchange Capital Resources discusses the British bond market with us. We tackle the question of whether colleges should be responsible for parts of student debt.

We try to explain why some Medicare premiums are actually going down. Explosions on the Nord Stream pipeline have some suspecting sabotage. We check in on the state of the SNAP program as the White House talks hunger and nutrition today.

From the BBC World Service: In a move usually directed towards emerging and developing markets, the International Monetary Fund has openly criticized the British government’s tax strategy unveiled on Friday. Since then, sterling has plummeted and the cost of borrowing increased, but the Treasury insists on going ahead with the plan. And in Germany there’s been muffled reactions to what is now thought to be an act of sabotage on the Nord Stream pipelines in the Baltic Sea.

The No. 1 social networking app on Apple’s U.S. app store right now is called BeReal, as in being your real self online. No filters, no carefully staged shots. The concept, and the format, are so popular, TikTok launched its own version — both on its home app and as a standalone — called TikTok Now. Marketplace’s Kimberly Adams speaks with Erica Bailey, a Ph.D. candidate at Columbia University Business School, who studies authenticity and marketing. On BeReal, Bailey said, you can only post once a day and only when you receive an alert, which can come at ANY time.

“We’re really talking about labor … who gets work gets to work in the entertainment industry. Who gets work as an actor. Who gets work as a director, as a producer,” said Adam Serwer, staff writer at The Atlantic. “And if you’re trying to push companies to be less diverse, in part, what you’re saying is you should not hire Black people, Hispanic people to do these jobs.”

On the show today, Serwer discusses the pressure media companies are under to conform to conservative politics, how it impacts the industry and what it says about this political moment.

In the Newsfix, more from the files of “this is what’s supposed to be happening.” This time, we’ll check in on the housing market and what high mortgage rates are doing to home prices. Then, women everywhere are feeling validated after a new study on COVID-19 vaccines and menstrual periods confirmed what many suspected.

Plus, Kai Ryssdal describes what it was like at Dodger Stadium when Albert Pujols made history with his 700th home run. Also, one writer explains what he got wrong about writing.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

• “Fear of a Black Hobbit” from The Atlantic
• “‘Rings of Power’ draws racist backlash and threats, but Amazon and Frodo stand behind it” from USA Today
• Check out this Rolling Stones article about legacy of Public Enemy’s “Fear of a Black Planet” album
• “Home prices cooled in July at the fastest rate in the history of S&P Case-Shiller Index” from CNBC
• “Women said covid shots affect periods. A new study shows they’re right.” from The Washington Post
• “Germany Suspects Sabotage Hit Russia’s Nord Stream Pipelines” from Bloomberg
• “Cardinals’ Albert Pujols hits 700th home run, becoming 4th player to reach the mark” from NPR

With the midterm elections approaching, help us make everyone smarter about the economy. Donate today.

Plenty of folks who began working from home during the pandemic are still there. Today, we’ll take a look at how much that WFH reality may be pushing up housing costs and what it means for the Federal Reserve’s inflation fight. Plus, how portfolio dips affect your spending, how women’s colleges are responding to financial pressures and what Gallup’s CEO thinks about happiness and work.

Today’s Case-Shiller national home price index shows a decline in home prices from June into July. Fed leaders get up front about their message about raising interest rates. After the British pound’s not-so-great day, we check in with the BBC’s Victoria Craig.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped more than 1 percent, which puts it in bear territory with other big indexes. In the home buying world, more people appear to be backing out of deals. And in Georgia, embryos can be claimed as dependents.

From the BBC World Service: The Bank of England will face questions on its response to yesterday’s decline in the value of sterling. The pound came back slightly after reaching record lows on Monday. And Apple CEO Tim Cook speaks to the BBC’s Zoe Kleinman about the lack of women in the tech sector – he’s at a forum dedicated to getting more women into the industry.

Last night NASA completed a first-of-its-kind mission to steer a spacecraft into an asteroid. The asteroid was not hurtling toward Earth, threatening to wipe out civilization, and the goal was not to blast it to smithereens, “Armageddon” style, but rather to give it enough of a bump to slightly change course. The Double Asteroid Redirection Test, or DART, took aim at a small asteroid called Dimorphos, which is about 11 school buses wide. It’s orbiting a bigger asteroid called Didymos, about 7 million miles from Earth. Marketplace’s Meghan McCarty Carino spoke with Nancy Chabot, DART mission coordination lead at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory, about the mission.

More seniors are aging at home, alone. Today, we’ll explain why the home care worker shortage just went from bad to worse and why we likely blew a chance to fix it. Then, how a 100-year-old law is getting in the way of Puerto Rico recovering from Hurricane Fiona. Plus, spooky airplane sounds. And what’s that really bright star in the sky? Grab your binoculars. You won’t want to miss this!

Here’s everything we talked about today:

• “Seniors are stuck home alone as health aides flee for higher-paying jobs” from The Washington Post
• “Storm-ravaged Puerto Rico calls on Washington to allow ship carrying fuel to dock” from NBC News
• “Women now outnumber men in the U.S. college-educated labor force” from Pew Research Center
• “People are fleeing Puerto Rico, Guam and every other U.S. territory. What gives?” from The Washington Post
• “Ghoulish moans are haunting the intercoms of American Airlines flights” from The Washington Post
• “Jupiter’s Exceptionally Close Opposition” from Sky & Telescope
• This tweet about the National Intelligence Manager for Aviation seal caught our attention
• Video: “DART’s Impact with Asteroid Dimorphos”

With the midterm elections approaching, help us make everyone smarter about the economy. Donate today.

The stock market is not the economy. But financial markets around the world are looking at economic conditions right now and not liking what they’re seeing. Today, we’ll unpack the threats to global economic growth, which experts warn won’t let up anytime soon. Also, investors bail on British bonds, HIPAA excludes health apps and workers who cleaned a coal ash spill fight for compensation — and their lives.

Doubts about Britain’s fiscal policy hang over the fall of its currency, the pound. On the side of the U.S., markets experienced a bit of a turnaround after a rugged week. Then, we check in on how the world of social media is trying to catch up to TikTok.

The British government unveils a tax cut plan as its currency drops in value. We then look into what happens when you send hundreds of millions of dollars to the wrong people by accident.

From the BBC World Service: Sterling bottoms out at a low not seen since the U.S. dollar was created 230 years ago. The markets saw a continued sell off of the British currency after huge tax cuts were unveiled by the U.K. treasury last week. And in Italy, Giorgia Meloni seals victory for the far right after touting tax cuts, immigration restrictions and Euroskeptic economic reforms.

Painters, musicians, writers — artists in virtually every medium — often struggle to make enough revenue to create their art because there are so many layers between them and the people who buy their work. We’re talking gallery commissions, record label contracts, even bookstore overhead costs. Increasingly, tech companies add another layer. And many argue that’s bad for the arts. Activist-journalist Cory Doctorow and law professor Rebecca Giblin addressed these issues in their book, “Chokepoint Capitalism: How Big Tech and Big Content Captured Creative Labor Markets and How We’ll Win Them Back.” It will be out Tuesday. Marketplace’s Kimberly Adams speaks with Doctorow about what chokepoint capitalism entails.

Central banks all over the world are on a interest-raising spree. We’ll explain why that raises the risk of a recession. Buckle up, folks! Plus, how a volcano eruption led to the discovery of a new island in the Pacific Ocean. And Kimberly Adams gives us a lesson in pawpaw fruit harvesting!

Here’s everything we talked about today:

• “A New Baby Island Has Just Been Born In The Pacific Ocean” from IFL Science
• “New 6-Acre Island in Pacific Ocean Has Been Seen From Space” from Newsweek
• Video: Disney Music “Lava” (Official Lyric Video from “Lava”)
• Tweet from economist @Neil_Irwin
• “Move Over, Açai—It’s the Pawpaw’s Time” from The New Yorker

Got a question for a our hosts? Email us at makemesmart@marketplace.org or leave us a voice message at 508-U-B-SMART.

The soft landing the Federal Reserve hopes for the economy appears increasingly out of reach. Stocks tumbled this week and fears of a global recession loom, but Fed Chair Jerome Powell isn’t looking to back off his inflation fight. Today, we’ll try to chart the rocky path ahead. Plus, a look at natural gas reserves, a check-in with publishers and booksellers, and a taste of the nonalcoholic beverage industry.

The Labor Department also notes what kind of fraud, and where. The SEC has charged Boeing with misleading investors after two deadly crashes. The worlds of commercial and residential construction carry differing experiences within the economy.

The SEC has charged Boeing and its ex-CEO for misleading investors in the wake of two deadly crashes. The Fed paints a harsher unemployment picture. Puerto Rico’s water system is reeling in the wake of Hurricane Fiona.

From the BBC World Service: After President Vladimir Putin announces mobilization of hundreds of thousands of reservists, Serbia experiences an influx of Russians hoping to avoid the war in Ukraine. U.K. Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng slashes taxes for high earners in a “mini-budget” the government says will boost growth. And is Italy lurching to the right? The BBC’s Mark Lowen travels to Sicily ahead of elections on Sunday.

A Texas law banning social media companies from applying certain content moderation policies was recently upheld by the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The 2021 law prohibits platforms from banning or restricting content based on the “viewpoints” of users. Now, tech companies will have to appeal to the Supreme Court if they want to avoid legal risk in the state. Marketplace’s Kimberly Adams spoke about this case on the show back in May, when the Supreme Court put the implementation of the law on hold while the case ran its course. Issie Lapowsky, chief correspondent at Protocol, helped Adams back then and joins her again for an update. She says tech companies are in a tough spot.

Today we’re getting caught up on Russia’s war in Ukraine. Putin’s announced he’ll draft 300,000 Russian reservists to fight in that conflict. Is this the moment we look back on as the moment he overreached? Then, the Food and Drug Administration issued new guidance on some drugs used to reverse opioid overdoses that would make the life-saving drugs more accessible. Also, we got an update from listeners about our SodaStream/beer query!

Here’s everything we talked about today:

• “‘A Lot of Panic’: Russian Men, Fearing Ukraine Draft, Seek Refuge Abroad” from The New York Times
• “Putin’s Order for 300,000 Fighters Drives Russians to the Streets in Protest” from Bloomberg
• “Opioid-Reversal Drug Access to Ease Under Relaxed FDA Rules” from Bloomberg Law
• Tweet from our listeners @ToddAlstrom and @ClsScience

Around this time of year, companies begin hiring seasonal workers. Yet some large companies are planning on fewer hires. Despite a tight labor market, companies are uncertain whether consumer spending will remain strong through the holidays and are anxious about a recession. Plus, the Bank of Japan tries to prop up the yen, school districts call for cybersecurity funding and U.S. oil reserves reach a four-decade low.

Executives from the nation’s largest banks are testifying before the Senate. We look at how the state of the housing market affects the home-flipping industry. The BBC checks out the effects of China’s zero-COVID approach on its economy.

We check in on the Federal Reserve following the interest rate rise. Melinda Gates tells us the world needs to check itself when it comes to some big goals.

From the BBC World Service: The Japanese government is snapping up its own currency for the first time in decades in a bid to stop the yen tumbling past 24-year lows. Elsewhere in Japan, Honda says it will continue to restrict production into a second month in October as it struggles with supply chain issues. And Beijing’s ongoing zero-COVID strategy comes up against local resistance in China.

When Hurricane Fiona recently hit Puerto Rico, the storm brought wind, water and major flooding to the island. Local authorities are still assessing the damage, but so far we know that some people died, others lost their homes and just about everyone lost electricity. Unfortunately, we’ve been here before. After Hurricane Maria in 2017, billions of federal dollars went to Puerto Rico, a U.S. territory. Marketplace’s Kimberly Adams speaks with Julio López Varona, co-chief of campaigns at the advocacy group Center for Popular Democracy, about whether that technology investment did anything.

The Federal Reserve continued its interest-rate-raising spree today to help curb inflation. The other thing the Fed has been working on is unwinding its “quantitative easing” program. One listener wants to know how that works. We’ll explain. Plus, why can members of Congress buy and sell stocks so freely? Isn’t that a conflict of interest? We’re wondering the same thing.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

• “To understand the Fed’s bond-buying dilemma, picture a lake” from “Marketplace”
• “Despite their influence and extensive access to information, members of Congress can buy and sell stocks with few restrictions” from The New York Times
• “72 members of Congress have violated a law designed to prevent insider trading and stop conflicts-of-interest” from Business Insider
• “Democrats Eye a Major Shift in How Corporations Are Taxed” from The New York Times
• “Why the U.S. is struggling to modernize the electric grid” from CNBC

Keep sending your questions. We’re at makemesmart@marketplace.org or leave us a voice memo at 508-U-B-SMART.

That is how Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell characterized price stability while discussing the central bank’s interest rate hike Wednesday. The move pushes its benchmark rate to 3% or higher from zero in just six months. Today, we’ll explain what the Fed will be looking for to show that inflation is under control. Plus, what corporate layoffs tell us about the economy and how Germany is responding to its energy crisis.

The Fed announces its plan for interest rates today, and it’s widely expected to raise them. We discuss many things inflation with David Kelly of J.P. Morgan. Oil and gas prices spiked this morning on the heels of Vladimir Putin’s announcement to mobilize reservists for the war in Ukraine.