Latest from Katie Barnfield

• Jan 16, 2023

  Wages aren’t keeping up with inflation, hitting low-income workers the hardest

  

  Wages aren’t keeping up with increasing prices, according to new data on wage growth. That’s meaning economic hardship across the board, especially in low-income households that have costs for essentials skyrocket. That disparity between wages and prices is also affecting workers of color more, due to having lower savings rates and fewer liquid assets on average. And, Mexico has passed a new ban on smoking in all public places. 

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• Jan 16, 2023

  High energy bills are here to stay

  

  From the BBC World Service: The boss of one of the world’s biggest energy firms, Equinor, is warning households not to expect energy bills to return to pre-pandemic prices. Anders Opedal was speaking to the BBC as he headed to the World Economic Forum in Davos, which starts today. Meanwhile Mexico has banned smoking in all public places, giving it some of the toughest rules in the world. Plus there are complaints about price rises in Croatia, just over two weeks after it adopted the Euro as currency.

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• Jan 13, 2023

  Largest-ever settlement reached over mortgage redlining

  

  Yesterday, the Department of Justice reached a settlement with the California-based City National Bank over accusations of mortgage “redlining” in Latino and Black neighborhoods in Los Angeles County. The settlement is the largest in U.S. history, clocking in at $31 million. The storm in California is helping the drought situation, but there’s now talk of improving the state’s stormwater storage system. And, the BBC’s Ben Chu reports on the dire economic and political situation in Sri Lanka. 

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• Jan 13, 2023

  An oil giant predicted climate change … then downplayed it

  

  A new study finds that Exxon, the multinational oil giant, conducted in-house research as early as the 1970s that accurately predicted climate change, only to publicly downplay the issue. This, as some states sue the company and other fossil fuel producers over allegedly misleading the public for decades. China’s government is looking to regulate some of its most successful tech firms by buying so-called “golden shares,” which allow shareholders more control over company decisions. And, states and communities are scrambling to meet the federal government’s deadline on new broadband internet funding. 

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• Jan 13, 2023

  China seeks greater control of tech giants

  

  From the BBC World Service: China is moving to take “golden shares” in local units of some of its biggest tech firms including Alibaba and Tencent. It comes as Beijing continues to seek greater control of companies that have boomed in recent years, and crucially the content they supply to millions of users. Plus, the Swedish mining company LKAB says it has found Europe’s largest known deposit of rare earth minerals in northern Lapland. But mining can be controversial in the region. We hear from a town in the Arctic north which is deeply divided over a British company’s plans for a new iron ore mine.

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• Jan 12, 2023

  Inflation tapers a bit, but what’s behind that?

  

  Inflation tapered off a bit at the end of December, according to the latest data from the Consumer Price Index released this morning. That was in line with predictions and spells good news for many economists, including policymakers at the Federal Reserve, but what was really behind the slowdown? Susan Schmidt helps break down this morning’s numbers. The World Bank released a report this week predicting a sharp global economic downturn in the next year, which would hit developing nations particularly hard. And, for our Econ Extra Credit series, we delve into the seminal “Pumping Iron” bodybuilding documentary with journalist Oliver Lee Bateman. 

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• Jan 12, 2023

  Something driving the strong job market is…entrepreneurship?

  

  The U.S. labor market has been stalwart in adding strong numbers of jobs seemingly month after month for a while. One thing that’s driving those numbers, despite the Federal Reserve’s best efforts to tame inflation, is entrepreneurship. KPMG Chief Economist Diane Swonk tells us how dynamism in the economy among small businesses and entrepreneurs is adding more jobs. The owners of Subway, the widespread fast-food chain, are reportedly seeking to sell the company in a deal that could fetch billions of dollars. And, state government budgets are being helped by inflation. 

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• Jan 12, 2023

  Weighed down by debt

  

  From the BBC World Service: The International Monetary Fund says it’s increasingly concerned that many low-income countries are at risk of default, caught out by the rise in interest rates. We take a look at what has happened in two countries that have already defaulted – Lebanon and Sri Lanka. Plus, in France large-scale strikes by medical staff including family doctors have become a regular feature since Christmas. Funding reforms are now being introduced to break what President Macron called a “sense of endless crisis”.

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• Jan 11, 2023

  The White House issues a new student loan relief proposal

  

  The Biden administration unveiled this week a new proposal to extend relief to lower and middle-income student loan borrowers. This, as the administration’s original plan to cancel a certain amount of student debt remains in judicial limbo. Plus, Amazon is planning to launch its new “Buy with Prime” service, which would be implemented on e-commerce websites as a quicker payment option. And, Russian competitive gamers are fleeing the country amid the War in Ukraine and finding new prospects in Serbia, the BBC’s Guy De Launey reports. 

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• Jan 11, 2023

  One of America’s biggest ports is trying to woo back shippers

  

  The Port of Los Angeles, which frequently ranks as the busiest in the U.S. alongside its sister port in Long Beach, has lost traffic recently due to concerns among shippers about ongoing labor negotiations between dockworkers and their employers. We talk to the Port of LA’s Executive Director about how they’ve been affected by the labor situation. Plus, the South Korean company Hanwah Q CELLS announced it will invest around $2.5 billion into U.S. solar manufacturing, starting with a manufacturing plant in Georgia. And, Japanese clothing giant Uniqlo said it would raise wages in Japan by up to 40 percent, reports the BBC’s Mariko Oi. 

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