Speaking of the Economy

Speaking of the Economy is the podcast of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. In each episode, we'll hear from the Richmond Fed's economists and other experts at the Bank and in the communities we serve about the economic issues they are exploring.

Economic Mobility Across Rural America 10/21/2026

Economic Mobility Across Rural America Raj Chetty discusses his research on economic mobility and variations in how readily people can climb the income ladder, especially in rural communities. Chetty, an economics professor at Harvard University and director of Opportunity Insights, gave the keynote address at the in September 2026. Full transcript and related links: https://www.richmondfed.org/podcasts/speaking_of_the_economy/2026/speaking_2026_10_21_IRA_chetty /episode/index/show/speakingoftheeconomy/id/43360269

Post-Pandemic Job Juggling 10/14/2026

Post-Pandemic Job Juggling Kyle DeMaria and Urvi Neelakantan talk about their recent research on people who work multiple jobs and what this segment of the labor market says about the overall economy. DeMaria is a regional economist and advisor for workforce pathways and Neelakantan is a senior policy economist, both at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Full transcript and related links: /episode/index/show/speakingoftheeconomy/id/43235603

Invest in What's Next 10/07/2026

Invest in What's Next Sarah Gunn describes an online tool developed by the Federal Reserve to help students explore their post-high school career and education options and choose the path that is best for them. Gunn is district outreach manager for community development at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Full transcript and related links: /episode/index/show/speakingoftheeconomy/id/43035133

The Creative Consumer 09/23/2026

The Creative Consumer Andy Bauer and Renee Haltom share what they have learned through conversations with Fifth District businesses about consumer spending and how it has responded to cost increases and other economic headwinds. Bauer and Haltom are regional executives at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Full transcript and related links: /episode/index/show/speakingoftheeconomy/id/42994063

Measuring AI Adoption 09/09/2026

Measuring AI Adoption John Haltiwanger talks about his work with the U.S. Census Bureau to improve the tracking of AI usage by workers and their employers. Haltiwanger, a professor of economics at the University of Maryland, shared this research during the held at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Full transcript and related links: /episode/index/show/speakingoftheeconomy/id/42828415

The Rise in Long-Term Unemployment 09/02/2026

The Rise in Long-Term Unemployment Katarína Borovičková and Claudia Macaluso discuss their research on the long-term unemployed, including the factors like AI adoption that could be affecting the movement of people into and out of this employment status and the broader economic implications of these labor market flows. Macaluso and Borovičková are senior economists at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Full transcript and related links: /episode/index/show/speakingoftheeconomy/id/42620890

How Apprenticeships Feed the Workforce Pipeline 08/19/2026

How Apprenticeships Feed the Workforce Pipeline Michael Newsome talks about what he has learned about apprenticeships from discussions with business and education leaders. As an illustration, Melissa Stowasser shares how Trident Technical College partnered with smaller employers to develop an apprenticeship program for the Charleston, S.C., region. Newsome is community development regional manager for workforce pathways in North Carolina and South Carolina at the Richmond Fed, while Stowasser is vice president for community and continuing education at Trident. Full transcript and related links: /episode/index/show/speakingoftheeconomy/id/42467635

Artificial Intelligence and the Entry-Level Worker 08/12/2026

Artificial Intelligence and the Entry-Level Worker Erik Hurst discusses his research on the potential impacts of AI adoption on the labor market, in particular entry-level workers and their human capital development over time through the acquisition of new skills and knowledge. Hurst is the Roman Family Distinguished Service Professor of Economics and John E. Jeuck Faculty Fellow at the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business. Full transcript and related links: /episode/index/show/speakingoftheeconomy/id/42390825

Economic Progress in Virginia's Shenandoah Valley 08/05/2026

Economic Progress in Virginia's Shenandoah Valley Jay Langston discusses how rural communities in western Virginia have diversified the region from agriculture into pharmaceutical and other forms of manufacturing. Key ingredients of this economic progress include developing the local workforce, building relationships between local and state economic development organizations, and addressing quality-of-life issues. Langston is executive director of the Shenandoah Valley Partnership. Full transcript and related links: /episode/index/show/speakingoftheeconomy/id/42305490

The Challenges and Opportunities of Rural Economic Development 07/15/2026

The Challenges and Opportunities of Rural Economic Development Daniel Davis talks about the barriers that rural communities face in fully realizing their economic potential and how economic development professionals have addressed those barriers. He also shares insights on this topic from the speakers at an Investing in Rural America webinar in June 2026. Davis is group vice president for regional economics at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Full transcript and related links: /episode/index/show/speakingoftheeconomy/id/42039800

Helping Hands 07/08/2026

Helping Hands John Bailey Jones and Jason Kosakow discuss their research on how family members and friends give their time and money to help each other and how these transfers benefit households. Jones is vice president of microeconomic analysis and Kosakow is survey director, both at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Full transcript and related links: /episode/index/show/speakingoftheeconomy/id/41983655

Navigating Today's Supply Shocks 07/01/2026

Navigating Today's Supply Shocks John O'Trakoun discusses the supply shocks resulting from the recent conflicts in the Middle East and how businesses and consumers have responded to these shocks. O'Trakoun is a senior policy economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Full transcript and related links: /episode/index/show/speakingoftheeconomy/id/41830945

Explaining the K-Shaped Economy 06/17/2026

Explaining the K-Shaped Economy Urvi Neelakantan describes how employment, income growth and consumption can differ between groups of households and reviews recent trends in this divergence of economic outcomes. Neelakantan is a senior policy advisor at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Full transcript and related links: /episode/index/show/speakingoftheeconomy/id/41662445

Do CDFIs Overcome Market Failures? 06/10/2026

Do CDFIs Overcome Market Failures? Surekha Carpenter and Borys Grochulski discuss how community development financial institutions work to help underserved communities that lack adequate access to credit and what factors determine their success in filling market gaps. Carpenter is a senior research analyst and Grochulski is a senior economist, both at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Full transcript and related links: /episode/index/show/speakingoftheeconomy/id/41585500

The Rise of Stablecoin and the Demand for Dollars 06/03/2026

The Rise of Stablecoin and the Demand for Dollars Marina Azzimonti discusses how digital currency like stablecoin and physical currency like the U.S. dollar are tied together, how the demand for one affects the other, and how this relationship plays out in global financial markets. Azzimonti is a senior economist and research advisor at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Full transcript and related links: /episode/index/show/speakingoftheeconomy/id/41494905

What CFOs Say About AI Adoption 05/20/2026

What CFOs Say About AI Adoption Sonya Waddell and John Graham share their research on the adoption of artificial intelligence in the workplace, based on the expected and realized effects reported by the financial executives who participate in the CFO Survey. Waddell is a vice president and economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond and Graham is a finance professor at the Fuqua School of Business at Duke University and director of the CFO Survey. Full transcript and related links: /episode/index/show/speakingoftheeconomy/id/41333035

Redevelopment in Western North Carolina 05/13/2026

Redevelopment in Western North Carolina Matt Martin and Erika Bell recall their visit to western North Carolina to learn more about revitalization efforts in response to long-term changes in the regional economy as well as the aftermath of Hurricane Helene. Martin is a regional executive at the Charlotte office of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond and Bell is the community development regional manager for North Carolina and South Carolina at the Richmond Fed. Also in this episode, Scott Webber, town manager of Spindale, N.C., shares how he has worked with community partners to support redevelopment in the region. Full transcript and related links: /episode/index/show/speakingoftheeconomy/id/41220250

Anatomy of a Business Cycle 05/06/2026

Anatomy of a Business Cycle Claudia Macaluso explains how economists identify the points of expansion and contraction in the national economy and how the current business cycle differs from past cycles. Macaluso is a senior research economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Full transcript and related links: /episode/index/show/speakingoftheeconomy/id/41008610

The Connection Between Health and Employment in Rural Communities 04/15/2026

The Connection Between Health and Employment in Rural Communities Surekha Carpenter and Bethany Greene discuss the connections between the health of workers and the health of labor markets in rural communities. Carpenter is a senior research analyst and Greene is a regional economist, both at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Full transcript and related links: /episode/index/show/speakingoftheeconomy/id/40870135

What Are You Working On? 04/08/2026

What Are You Working On? For the 200th episode of Speaking of the Economy, four economists at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond share their current research and how that work connects with the Fed's mission: Nicholas Trachter on the growth in firm size, Urvi Neelakantan on the relationship between going to college and investing in the stock market, Russell Wong on the impact of AI on employment, and Horacio Sapriza on the ability of central bank communications to stabilize financial markets. Full transcript and related links: /episode/index/show/speakingoftheeconomy/id/40744975

Tariffs: What We Have Learned One Year Later 04/01/2026

Tariffs: What We Have Learned One Year Later Renee Haltom shares what the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond has learned from its business contacts and regional surveys about the impact of trade policy changes since last April. Haltom is a regional executive and vice president of sensing, engagement and publications at the Richmond Fed. Full transcript and related links: /episode/index/show/speakingoftheeconomy/id/40666600

Tracking Pathways to Success at Community Colleges 03/18/2026

Tracking Pathways to Success at Community Colleges Stephanie Norris and Davy Sell review the latest results of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond's Survey of Community College Outcomes, which examined the variety of ways that these colleges served different types of students and communities in the Fifth District as well as in five states outside of this region. Norris is a regional economist and Sell is a regional analyst, both at the Richmond Fed. Full transcript and related links: /episode/index/show/speakingoftheeconomy/id/40498245

Affordable Housing Development in Rural Virginia 03/11/2026

Affordable Housing Development in Rural Virginia Suzanne Holland talks about the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond's recent visit to Martinsville to learn about the economic challenges and opportunities in the city and surrounding communities in southern Virginia. Kate Keller describes one issue in the region — the shortage of affordable housing — and the unique approach to the problem taken by her organization, the Harvest Foundation. Holland is a senior outreach specialist at the Richmond Fed and Keller is president of the Harvest Foundation. Full transcript and related links: /episode/index/show/speakingoftheeconomy/id/40382240

What Happens When Consumers Buy Now and Pay Later? 03/04/2026

What Happens When Consumers Buy Now and Pay Later? Zhu Wang discusses the emergence of "buy now, pay later" installment loans and shares his research on the potential impacts of this payment option on the credit risks of individuals and the stability of financial markets. Wang is vice president for research in financial and payment systems at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Full transcript and related links: /episode/index/show/speakingoftheeconomy/id/40280540

Understanding the Economy as Data Revisions Happen 02/18/2026

Understanding the Economy as Data Revisions Happen Thomas Lubik reviews how widely used macroeconomic data like GDP is compiled and updated, and how the revision process strikes a balance between decisionmakers' needs for timeliness and accuracy. Lubik is a senior advisor in the Research department of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Full transcript and related links: /episode/index/show/speakingoftheeconomy/id/40142620

Predicting PCE Using the Richmond Fed's Regional Surveys 02/11/2026

Predicting PCE Using the Richmond Fed's Regional Surveys Pierre-Daniel Sarte and Sonya Waddell discuss the pricing data that the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond gathers from its monthly surveys of regional business activity and how that data can be used to inform inflation forecasts. Sarte is a senior advisor and Waddell is a vice president and economist, both at the Richmond Fed. Full transcript and related links: /episode/index/show/speakingoftheeconomy/id/40063335

Regional Impacts of a Shrinking Federal Government 02/04/2026

Regional Impacts of a Shrinking Federal Government Andy Bauer and Amy Liu discuss the direct and spillover economic effects of the recent reductions in federal employment and spending on the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia. Bauer is a regional executive at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond and Liu is a non-resident senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and co-author of the DMV Monitor. Full transcript and related links: /episode/index/show/speakingoftheeconomy/id/39982345

The Demise of the Penny 01/21/2026

The Demise of the Penny Zhu Wang and Russell Wong discuss the shutdown in the production of pennies in the U.S. and their research on how the penny's demise is expected to impose costs on consumers. Wang is vice president for research in financial and payments systems and Wong is a senior economist, both at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Full transcript and related links: /episode/index/show/speakingoftheeconomy/id/39759600

Keeping Up on the Economy with Anna Kovner 01/14/2026

Keeping Up on the Economy with Anna Kovner Anna Kovner, director of research at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, reviews the significant, rapid changes in trade policy, immigration policy, and the size of the federal workforce in 2025. She also discusses how the Richmond Fed has assessed the economic impact of these changes through its research and outreach programs. Full transcript and related links: /episode/index/show/speakingoftheeconomy/id/39717890

What's the Fed Doing with its Balance Sheet Now? 01/07/2026

What's the Fed Doing with its Balance Sheet Now? Huberto Ennis provides an updated view of the Federal Reserve's management of its balance sheet and the flow of reserves between banks, which were the focus of a recent conference held at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Ennis is group vice president for micro, macro and financial economics at the Richmond Fed. Full transcript and related links: /episode/index/show/speakingoftheeconomy/id/39620280

Speaking of the Economy

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