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Kai Ryssdal

Host and Senior Editor

SHORT BIO

Kai is the host and senior editor of “Marketplace,” the most widely heard program on business and the economy — radio or television, commercial or public broadcasting — in the country. Kai speaks regularly with CEOs of Fortune 500 companies, startup entrepreneurs, small-business owners and everyday participants in the American and global economies. Before his career in broadcasting, Kai served in the United States Navy and United States Foreign Service. He’s a graduate of Emory University and Georgetown University. Kai lives in Los Angeles with his wife and four children.

Latest Stories (5,837)

In a time of war, "sustainability of the government is No. 1," says former Ukraine finance minister

Mar 21, 2022
Ukraine’s economy is being strangled, says Natalie Jaresko, citing the need for international support as well as Russian reparations.
Ukraine will need hundreds of billions of dollars for reconstruction, said Natalie Jaresko, shown speaking in Washington, D.C. "The first source of that should be reparations from Russia."
Kenny Holston/Getty Images

The marketing CEO trying to bridge the pay gap for Black influencers

Mar 17, 2022
Compensation in the influencer space is like the "wild, Wild West," says LaToya Shambo of Black Girl Digital. Her company wants to change that.
"I'm definitely seeing a lot of brands step up," says LaToya Shambo, CEO of Black Girl Digital.
Courtesy LaToya Shambo

Federal Reserve lifts interest rates a quarter point

Mar 16, 2022
Citing high inflation and the tight labor market, Fed Chair Jerome Powell announces the first rate hike since 2018.
Powell: The Fed is "committed to bringing inflation back down and also sustaining the economic expansion.”
Tom Williams-Pool/Getty Images

How the war in Ukraine could impact U.S. food prices

Mar 16, 2022
A grain wholesaler explains why a war in Europe is driving up grain prices around the world.
With so much uncertainty, the “risk premium” on U.S. food is going up, according to Eric Wilkey, president of Arizona Grain Inc.
David Rogers/Getty Images

Stress persists 2 years into the pandemic economy

Mar 11, 2022
We talked with two people who were out of work in March 2020 about how the pandemic has affected their personal economies.
Life has changed: People continue to grapple with new economic conditions, including higher prices.
Jeenah Moon/Getty Images

How has the war in Ukraine affected global hunger?

Mar 10, 2022
Even if globally significant crops in the Ukraine and Russia are eventually harvested, the chief economist of the UN World Food Programme warns they may not make it out of either country.
Some 50% of the UN World Food Programme’s grain comes from areas of Ukraine and Russia.
Genya Savilov/AFP via Getty Images

Could Russia return to a Soviet-era command economy as Western sanctions tighten?

Mar 9, 2022
Russia has been transitioning to a market economy. But its war on Ukraine and the sanctions that have followed could turn back the clock.
Red Square in Moscow. "A lot of private businesses are essentially being squeezed off from any financing," said Chris Miller at the Fletcher School at Tufts University. "And what's going to remain is largely the state-owned part of the economy."
AFP via Getty Images

Why do we care about "core" inflation?

Mar 9, 2022
The core measure strips out food and energy prices, two of the biggest contributors to inflation today.
Food prices were up 7% year over year in January, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, but core inflation takes food and energy out of the equation.
Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images

The war in Ukraine means more chaos for global shipping

Mar 8, 2022
Companies are rerouting around conflict zones and costs are on the rise, explains Ryan Petersen, CEO of Flexport.
Ryan Petersen, CEO of Flexport, said the air cargo business is "dramatically cut short right now in capacity."
John Moore/Getty Images

How does isolating Russia affect global aviation?

"We have gone backward probably about 30 years in a blink of an eye," says Jon Ostrower, editor of aviation industry website The Air Current.
"Global aviation relies on two fundamental pillars that cannot be ignored: peace and stability," says Jon Ostrower of The Air Current.
Jason Redmond/AFP via Getty Images