About this episode

The episode discusses the reasons behind the U.S. having the highest inflation in the G7 and explores various economic issues including AI spending and fertilizer prices.

Though the latest inflation reports show price growth cooled a bit in June, U.S. inflation remains higher than its peer nations, which include the U.K., Canada, France, and Japan. President Trump’s tariffs are partially to blame. But so is hefty capital expenditure by AI giants. Can anything counterbalance all that spending? After that: Kai explains the utility of Beige Book “soft” data, IBM posts mediocre earnings, farmers fret over fertilizer prices, and student borrowers weather five years of policy whiplash. Every story has an economic angle. Want some in your inbox? Subscribe to our daily or weekly newsletter. Marketplace is more than a radio show. Check out our original reporting and financial literacy content at marketplace.org — and consider making an investment in our future. Read the stories in today’s episode: Why is inflation in the U.S. worse than other developed countries? IBM and other old-school tech companies feel the AI pinch Fertilizer costs worry farmers as Iran conflict continues Student loan policy changes give borrowers whiplash For these entrepreneurs, it's all in the details

People in this episode

Host: Kai

Topics covered

• inflation
• economic policy
• AI spending
• fertilizer prices
• student loans
• Beige Book data

Keywords

• inflation
• U.S. economy
• AI giants
• fertilizer costs
• student loans
• Beige Book
• economic data

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: IBM

Places: U.S., U.K., Canada, France, Japan, Iran

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