Sep 14, 2022

A grocery bill gut punch

A woman shops for chicken at a supermarket in Santa Monica, California, on September 13, 2022. Apu Gomes/AFP via Getty Images

Food just keeps getting more expensive because it just keeps getting more expensive to make food. Plus, why wages are stagnant in the U.S. and how headlights are improving.

Segments From this episode

For producers, inflation is easing just a bit, Labor Department reports

by Justin Ho

Sep 14, 2022

Producer prices reflect costs throughout the production process. Prices for raw materials are starting to ease.

Price increases have begun to slow in earlier parts of the production process.

Scott Olson/Getty Images

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Food is more expensive because it's getting more expensive to make food

by Sabri Ben-Achour

Sep 14, 2022

Farmers are paying more for equipment and supplies. Drought in the Great Plains has hurt corn and wheat. The Ukraine war also plays a role.

Extreme drought has hurt corn production in the U.S. this year.

Michael Reaves/Getty Images

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Many Chinese homebuyers are paying mortgages on homes they may never live in

by Jennifer Pak

Sep 14, 2022

With real estate firms in financial distress, thousands of people are left with unfinished condos. Some are trying to fight back.

Last year, musician Chen Peng took Marketplace to the development in Zhengzhou where he bought a two-bedroom condo. The development remains unfinished today.

Charles Zhang/Marketplace

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Adaptive headlights will soon make night driving brighter without blinding others

by Kai Ryssdal

Sep 14, 2022

The technology, new to the U.S., can potentially make driving at night safer, says David Aylor of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

Adaptive beam headlights use a forward-looking camera to detect other vehicles and "create a shadow in the area of that car," says David Aylor of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

Feng Li/Getty Images

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Household income stayed flat in 2021, census data shows

by Samantha Fields

Sep 14, 2022

Wage increases have been eaten by high inflation.

Despite talk about pay increases and a hot labor market, wages have remained stagnant for years when you account for inflation.

Mario Tama/Getty Images

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The traditional business card is getting a tech makeover

by Kai Ryssdal and Sarah Leeson

Sep 14, 2022

Manually inputting contact info is becoming a thing of the past. Instead, networkers are adopting QR codes and chips.

Traditional business cards are falling by the wayside as networkers adopt digital options.

Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

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Remembering Jim Russell

Jim Russell, who created “Marketplace” in 1989, died on Sep. 13 at the age of 76. Today, we’ll take a few moments to remember the man who made this program possible.

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Music from the episode

Cashmere Tree Theater

Dawn Rise Colton Bryan

Poison Beyonce

Do It Chloe X Halle

sweet spot Sweeps

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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