The "little treat" economy

“Marketplace Morning Report” host Kimberly Adams is back in the “Make Me Smart” podcast feed to share some reporting from a trip to southwest Alabama. It’s a deep dive on rural health care access — about 700 rural hospitals nationwide are at risk of closure, according to the Cent ...  Show more

Could dimming the sun be the key to cooling things down before the climate crisis worsens? Some scientists say yes, that we can cool the earth by launching tons of sulfur dioxide into the stratosphere. It’s a type of solar geoengineering that was once seen as preposterous, meant ...  Show more

Across the United States, consumers are continuing to spend, but they’re not opening their wallets too wide. Joining us are McKinsey partners Colleen Baum and Tamara Charm who say retailers that offer personalized promotions, same-day delivery, and “buy now, pay later” plans are ...  Show more

The US consumer has powered the global economy in recent years, but are signs of strain starting to form? Goldman Sachs Research’s Chief US Economist David Mericle, and Kate McShane and Bonnie Herzog, co-business unit leaders of US consumer, discuss the outlook for consumer spend ...  Show more

As the holiday shopping season kicks off — against a backdrop of high inflation and slowing economic growth — will consumers continue to remain a bright spot in the U.S. economy? In the latest episode of Exchanges at Goldman Sachs, Goldman Sachs Research’s David Mericle, chief U. ...  Show more

The average consumer is hungry — to go out, that is. Sales at restaurants and bars are up nearly 25% since last January, but that spending surge coincides with dimming consumer confidence. What can all that going out tell us about the economy more broadly? Also on the show: bans ...  Show more