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A bite-sized show about big ideas. From the people who make Planet Money, The Indicator helps you make sense of what's happening in today's economy. It's a quick hit of insight into money, work, and business. Monday through Friday, in 10 minutes or less.

The Indicator from Planet Money

Influence. The ability to persuade, motivate, or connect with other people. It's one of these skills that's hard to measure, but incredibly important in the office. However, some would argue that we often misunderstand how influence works. 

Today on the show, we talk to Steve Martin, Faculty Director of Behavioral Science at Columbia Business School, about the unspoken rules of influence in the workplace. 

Steve is author of a recently published book titled, "Influence at Work".

For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.

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How influence actually works

Back in 2016, the economy of Mozambique tipped into crisis. The culprit was a government corruption scandal linked to more than $1 billion that officials borrowed in secret. 

This was a high-profile example of hidden debt, but it's far from the only example. In fact, this kind of secret borrowing is a large and common problem among countries. 

Today on the show, a pair of economists share their new research on hidden debt and how it affects everyday people.

Related Episodes: 
Why a debt tsunami is coming for the global economy
What looks like a bond and acts like a bond but isn't a bond?

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The Tuna Bonds Scandal and the fishy business of hidden debt

The Federal Reserve's last Beige Book of 2024 is like Spotify Wrapped but for the economy. There's a little bit of everything inside — labor markets, inflation and even natural disasters. On today's show, we spotlight Western North Carolina's challenging recovery after Hurricane Helene, and check in with an Asheville malt manufacturer on the impact to local businesses. 

For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. 

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The brewing recovery in Western North Carolina

In 2012, Karam Shaar had to leave his home country of Syria due to the civil war. But he still wanted to make a difference. Through his economic analysis, he uncovered concerning patterns about how the Assad regime and its cronies were siphoning money from humanitarian aid. Today on the show, the story of how one Syrian exile contributed to the resistance while on the other side of the world. 

Related episodes: 
The cost of a dollar in Ukraine (Apple / Spotify) 

For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. 

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An economist's role in the fall of Syria's government

It's the most wonderful time of year, er, week, because it's that time when we look at the most fascinating economic numbers from the news. 

On today's Indicators of the Week: A messy grocery store breakup, a quantum leap in subatomic computing and an unexpected change to the Christmas tree market. 

Happy holidays! 

Related Episodes: 
The Efficient Christmas: Why Economists Hate Gifts 
We buy a lot of Christmas trees 
Can an old law bring down grocery prices? 

For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. 

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A supermarket beef, a quantum leap, and Christmas trees for cheap

The Economist's Simon Rabinovitch argues the U.S. economy has a set of structural advantages that have allowed it to perform remarkably well in the last couple of years compared to other developed countries. But could President-elect Donald Trump's second term in office put that edge at risk? Adrian Ma spoke with Rabinovitch for a recent episode of The Indicator. This episode is an extended cut of their conversation, previously released for Planet Money+ supporters. 

For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. 

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Why the US economy is still the envy of the world

President-elect Donald Trump's administration picks are shaping up to be a very affluent bunch. If all are confirmed, Trump's incoming administration would be the wealthiest in the nation's history with a combined net worth upwards of $300 billion.

Today on the show, we talk to a few experts about how massive amounts of wealth in high levels of government can impact policy. 

For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.

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There are a lot of billionaires in Trump's coming administration

In the not-so-distant past, serving as someone's job reference meant answering a few questions over the phone. Nowadays, that process is often more involved, with prospective employers asking references for written responses or to fill out a form online. What's behind this shift? On today's show, we check in on reference checks, and ask whether they still matter. 

Related episodes: 
Ghost jobs (Apple / Spotify) 

For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. 

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Do job references matter?

President-elect Donald Trump has called for a weaker dollar given it would be good for American exporters. But tariffs, a staple of his economic policy, would actually strengthen the dollar. Today on the show, we explain tariffs and currencies by following one bag manufacturer from New Jersey.

Related episodes: 
How Trump's tariffs plan might work (Apple / Spotify) 
Worst. Tariffs. Ever. (update) (Apple / Spotify) 

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Trump's contradictory trade policies

The "silver tsunami" of aging Americans is often seen as a potential way to alleviate the country's housing affordability woes. However, the data suggests that an influx of empty-nester homes coming on the market won't have much of an impact on the problem—because of a geographical mismatch. 

Today on the show, we speak to an economist who's looked into the silver tsunami's impact on the housing market and thinks this theory might be more of a red herring.

This episode was fact checked by Sierra Juarez 

Related episodes:
The graying of America
What would it take to fix retirement?
How big is the US housing shortage?
The highs and lows of US rents

For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.

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Can empty-nesters boost housing affordability?

Robots have been a thing for a long time, but they've never quite met expectations. While AI has changed the game for chatbots, it's not quite so clear for robots. NPR science desk correspondent Geoff Brumfiel spoke to our colleagues over on our science podcast Short Wave on how humanoid robots are actually developing with the help of artificial intelligence. It was a fascinating discussion and so we are sharing that conversation with you today on the Indicator. 

Related episodes: 
Is AI underrated? (Apple / Spotify) 
Is AI overrated? (Apple / Spotify) 
Dial M for Mechanization (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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It's actually really hard to make a robot, guys

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