SHORT BIO
Erika Beras is a former reporter at Marketplace. She has covered wealth & poverty, aging and other beats for Marketplace's programs.
Latest Stories (345)
Solar energy heats up despite tariffs
by
Erika Beras
Mar 14, 2019
In 2018, the Trump administration imposed tariffs of 30 percent on imported solar panels and set quotas to limit solar imports. This caused a slump in the solar energy industry. But two new reports show that last year wasn’t as bad as the industry feared, and predicts a boom in new solar installations this year. […]
Gap and Old Navy wrangle over customer data
by
Erika Beras
Mar 1, 2019
It isn't clear who should get what.
Is interconnected exercise the next big thing?
by
Erika Beras
Feb 28, 2019
Peloton, the seven-year-old maker of interconnected exercise machines, could go public in the coming year.
Pharma executives in the hot seat over drug prices
by
Erika Beras
Feb 26, 2019
Senior leaders of big pharmaceutical companies are in D.C. Tuesday to testify before a Senate committee.
Walmart reports a great holiday quarter
by
Erika Beras
Feb 19, 2019
Booming e-commerce, robust toy sales, and grocery pick-up and delivery powered the retailer to one of its strongest quarters in years.
Auto makers wait to see if Trump will impose tariffs
by
Erika Beras
Feb 18, 2019
Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross sent a confidential report to President Trump on Sunday evening, detailing findings about the national security risks involved in importing foreign cars and auto parts. Ross’s department initiated the investigation last spring at Trump’s request, and Car makers are anticipating broad tariffs of up to 25 percent on assembled cars and […]
Auto loan delinquencies rise for younger drivers
by
Erika Beras
Feb 14, 2019
New car sales have been high for the past few years, and that means there are a lot more car loans out there. There are a lot more delinquent ones, too. According to a report from the New York Federal Reserve, 7 million borrowers are at least 90 days late on their payments, the highest […]
2 weeks after the shutdown ended, many federal employees still wait for pay
by
Erika Beras
Feb 8, 2019
The partial government shutdown ended two weeks ago, but thousands of workers still haven’t received their back pay. Restarting an organization as immense as the federal government after an extended shutdown takes time and can be fraught with unexpected delays. Federal payroll processing has been delayed by email backlogs, software glitches and an overwhelming number […]
Tobacco sales can be hard to quit
by
Erika Beras
Feb 8, 2019
Big pharmacy chains like Walgreens and Rite Aid market a healthy lifestyle, while also selling cigarettes and other tobacco products.
After the shutdown, debt may linger for federal employees
by
Erika Beras
Feb 7, 2019
Missing two paychecks led many of them to take on debt to pay bills. Odds are they'll be paying it off for a while.