Aug 25, 2022

2 measures provide 2 very different views of the economy

Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

While gross domestic product shrank in the second quarter, gross domestic income increased. That's creating a puzzling picture of where the economy stands.

Segments From this episode

Gross domestic income (GDI), explained

by Sabri Ben-Achour

Aug 25, 2022

GDI should be close to GDP, theoretically. It's not.

Measure all spending in an economy and all income in an economy, and they should be roughly the same. New figures show that's not the case right now.

Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images

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What was the main driver of inflation from 2019-21?

by Nancy Marshall-Genzer

Aug 25, 2022

A New York Fed economist says 60% of inflation was driven by demand for goods, and 40% was from supply-side issues that magnified that higher demand.

Without the supply chain bottlenecks we've experienced, we might have seen 6% inflation at the end of last year, instead of 9%, a New York Fed economist posits.

Mario Tama/Getty Images

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As streaming subscriptions fall, media giants turn to theme parks, live events for lost revenue

by Kai Ryssdal and Sarah Leeson

Aug 25, 2022

Pent up demand for in-person experiences may make up for slipping subscriber numbers.

The interest in live events and theme park tickets has skyrocketed as the industry receives pent up demand from the pandemic.

(Photo Walt Disney World Resorts via Getty Images)

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Inflation means teachers who buy their own supplies have to spend more or ask for help

by Stephanie Hughes

Aug 25, 2022

Prices for school supplies like notebooks, glue, and labels have increased 11% from a year ago.

Lakeshore Learning, a teaching supply store, in Towson, Maryland, was doing a brisk business on a recent weekday.

Stephanie Hughes / Marketplace

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Home affordability is up — by a smidge

by Mitchell Hartman

Aug 25, 2022

The Mortgage Bankers Association reports the average monthly payment on a new mortgage in July was $1,844, down $49 from June, as mortgage rates and loan amounts edged lower.

So home affordability — a ratio of average income to average monthly mortgage payment — has improved slightly in recent months.

Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

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My Economy

This Connecticut contractor says rising demand has left him “overwhelmed”

by Richard Cunningham

Aug 25, 2022

Bruce Ridenour has been a contractor for 40 years and said local contractors in Danbury, Connecticut don't have bandwidth to handle all the new demand.

“As the work comes more and more, faster and faster, it just comes more and more to those of us who are left,” Bruce Ridenour said.

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Music from the episode

Perth Beirut

Peel Back Ensemble Entendu

Favorite Song Sinkane

Stay a While Cactus Channel

Autumn Sweater Yo La Tengo

Chartreuse Capital Cities

The team

Nancy Farghalli Executive Producer

Maria Hollenhorst Producer II

Andie Corban Producer I

Sean McHenry Director & Associate Producer II

Richard Cunningham Associate Producer I

Dylan Miettinen Associate Digital Producer

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