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BBC World Service


The daily drama of money and work from the BBC.


Business Daily

Economic unease is growing among Russian workers as fuel shortages and Ukrainian drone strikes disrupt key sectors of the economy. Ed Butler examines the pressures facing businesses, workers and consumers, from damaged refineries to attacks on Wildberries warehouses. As concerns grow over prices, jobs and supply chains, what do these disruptions reveal about the resilience of Russia's wartime economy?

Presenter: Ed Butler
Producer: Victoriya Holland

(Picture: A queue at a petrol station due to fuel shortage following a spate of Ukrainian attacks on oil refineries, amid the Russia-Ukraine conflict, in the Russian Black Sea resort of Anapa, Russia, July 8, 2026. Credit: REUTERS/Sergey Pivovarov)

The cost of war: Inside Russia's economic unease

Across Asia, a growing number of young people are becoming hikikomori, a term used to describe individuals experiencing severe social withdrawal. They shut themselves away at home, retreating from work, school and even family life for months, sometimes years.Some countries, including South Korea, are trying an unexpected approach: government-backed AI chatbots designed to help socially isolated young people reconnect with society. But can artificial companions help tackle loneliness, or could they deepen it?

This bonus episode comes from Asia Specific, another BBC World Service podcast hosted by Mariko Oi. It discusses issues including social isolation and mental wellbeing. Listeners who identify with these experiences are encouraged to seek local support.

Bonus: Could AI chatbots help Asia's socially isolated youth?

Mark Carney and Donald Trump go tit-for-tat as the list of goods subject to tariffs between the US and Canada continues to grow. But will higher import taxes on products crossing the border make cost-of-living pressures even worse for Canadians and Americans? Takara Small in Toronto and Andy Uhler in Austin join Will Bain to discuss the highlights and lowlights of the week's business news, including the much-hyped launch of Apple's first foldable smartphone and the return, at least in cinemas, of convicted fraudster Elizabeth Holmes.

Presenter: Will Bain
Producer: Josh Martin

(Photo: US President Donald Trump speaks with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney at a working lunch with leaders of G7 and the Middle East, in Evian-les-Bains, France, 16 June, 2026. Credit: Evelyn Hockstein/Reuters)

Taking stock: Bad blood, bad neighbours and the return of Elizabeth Holmes

This week on Power Players, Will Bain is joined by BBC Business Editor Simon Jack to explore the future of energy giant BP. The past six years have seen significant boardroom churn, while the company has sent mixed messages to investors after scaling back plans to become a greener energy business. We examine whether the company's new leaders can restore confidence and set a clearer strategy.

Producer: Rebecca Smyllie

You can email the team: businessdaily@bbc.co.uk

(Picture: A British Petroleum gas station with the BP oil refinery in background in Whiting, Indiana, U.S., July 23, 2026. Credit: REUTERS/Nicole Jao)

Power Players: Can new BP leadership steady the ship?

Many entrepreneurs would be happy to sell one great idea to a larger business, cash out and put their feet up. Not Marcia Kilgore. The Canadian swapped small-town Saskatchewan for the wealthy clients of Manhattan, New York and sold her first venture, Bliss Spa to luxury giant LVMH. She then went on to found another three multimiilion-dollar enterprises. 
What did she learn along the way, how does she back herself when imposter syndrome strikes and what is next on her list.

(Photo: Marcia Kilgore stands in a London street, wearing blue jeans and a pink shrt, she has cropped short hair and is smiling. Credit: Marcia Kilgore)

Presenter: Hannah Mullane
Producer: Victoriya Holland

Founders: Marcia Kilgore on still fighting imposter syndrome despite Beauty Pie success

The number of students going to university globally has more than doubled in the last 20 years. 269 million students around the world are enrolled in higher education, if those students were a country, it would be the 5th most populous in the world. At the same time youth unemployment is growing and there’s a slowing of that graduate premium - the extra money you'll earn because of your degree - so is it still worth it? 

(Photo: Graduates from abroad fling their graduation caps into the air during a graduation send-off party following the second commencement ceremony of the 2025 academic year at Seokdang Museum of Dong-a University in the southeastern port city of Busan, South Korea, 20 August 2026.Credit: EPA/Shutterstock)

Presenter: Hannah Mullane
Producer: Matt Lines

Follow the money: Is a university degree worth the investment?

There's a general fear that artificial intelligence could make huge swathes of workers redundant, but are those fears unjustified? Rob Young asks what history can tell us about big technological leaps and how they changed the world of work at the time. 
And how much of the rate of change comes down to customer preference - would you rather deal with a bot or a person?
Presented and produced by Rob Young.

(Photo: A square computer chip, with its circuitry illuminated in pink and white light and has the text Powered by AI on it as a logo is seen during the opening day of the IFA trade fair in Berlin, Germany, 4 September 2026. Credit:EPA/Shutterstock)

Who's afraid of the AI job-snatchers?

There has been a lot of talk about rising bond yields, from Japan to the UK and the US, and alongside this government debt is growing all around the world. That all plays into a feeling that many people have that life is about to get more expensive and that in many places interest rates are set to rise.

Rahul Tandon is joined by David Kuo, co-founder of The Smart Investor in Singapore and German business journalist Ellen Frauenknecht.

(Photo: Passersby stand before a stock market indicator board in Tokyo, Japan, 2 September, 2026. Tokyo stocks plunged as Japanese government bond yields rose to its highest level in 30 years and escalating attacks between the United States and Iran. Credit: Franck Robichon/EPA/Shutterstock)

Presenter: Rahul Tandon
Producer: Matt Lines

Taking Stock: Is everything about to get more expensive?

We dig into the finances behind "the beautiful game" after English football's Premier League just spent £3.57bn ($4.7bn) billion on new players. What is behind football's richest competition and is its success sustainable?

(Photo: Stamford Bridge, London, England, 30 August, 2026. Chelsea's Cole Palmer celebrates scoring their fourth goal with Morgan Rogers. Credit: David Klein/Reuters)

Presenters: Will Bain and Rahul Tandon
Producer: Rebecca Smyllie

Power players: Can Premier League transfer spending keep breaking records?

Allison Ellsworth, founder of ​Poppi soft drinks, started the beverage business as a kitchen experiment, with a Soda Stream and apple cider vinegar. She speaks to Leanna Byrne about pitching for funding on TV programme Shark Tank while nine months pregnant, relaunching during Covid lockdowns and becoming the number one soda on Amazon in the US and her $1.95 billion exit with PepsiCo.

Presenter: Leanna Byrne

Producer: Niamh McDermott and Victoriya Holland

You can email the team: businessdaily@bbc.co.uk

(Photo credit: Allison Ellsworth)

Founders: Allison Ellsworth, co-founder of Poppi soft on the cider vinegar soft drinks that had PepsiCo paying $1.95bn

Off the coast of Sierra Leone, Sherbro Island has been earmarked for an ambitious transformation: a new centre for international business and investment, designed to rival cities like Singapore or Hong Kong. The BBC’s Ed Butler travels to the island to investigate the project and speaks to developer Siaka Stevens, who is leading the effort alongside supporters including film-star Idris Elba, about the vision and what it will take to deliver it. But how realistic is the ambition, and can it become more than a promise?

Presenter/producer: Ed Butler
Editor: Stephen Ryan

Each Monday on Business Daily, we take you around the globe to the heart of the stories and meeting those living through them.

You can email the team: businessdaily@bbc.co.uk

Sherbro Island: can Sierra Leone build a global business hub?

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