PODCAST: A pizza vending machine and a taco hoax
Borrowing costs in Spain have reached the highest level since the country joined the Euro in 1999. We’re at another one of those make-or-break moments for Europe. Elections in Greece this weekend – could lead Greece to exit the Euro. Yesterday we visited Washington to speak with one of the most powerful people in the economic world — Robert Zoellick, the President of the World Bank. Today’s mid-day extra features our entire interview with Zoellick who talked climate change, the U.S. economy, and said that the world is entering a new and more precarious phase of the economic crisis.
The U.S. current account deficit widened more than expected in the first quarter to $137.3 billion, the largest gap since the fourth quarter of 2008, a government report said on Thursday. And there’s news this morning that consumer prices are down — the biggest drop in three years as gasoline got cheaper. But in a new sign of sluggish hiring, new claims for unemployment benefits rose last week.
In the U.S. Federal investigators are expanding their probe into Jeep Grand Cherokees that catch fire. 15 people have died. The investigation covers model years 1993 through 2004.
Technology is everywhere and earlier this spring I drove from the Atlantic to the Pacific to see if I could do it dealing only with machines and no humans. Robot check-in kiosks at hotels were part of it. I should have waited a few weeks. Coming to our shores now: a pizza vending machine. Kneads the dough, rolls it out, and cooks the pie in three minutes, 200 possible toppings, just press the buttons. They’re calling it” Let’s Pizza”, but may I humbly suggest Dough-bot.
Does the capacity for human cruelty know no bounds? According to public station KYUK in Alaska, in remote the remote town of Bethel, someone printed elaborate yellow flyers saying the town was getting a Taco Bell. It’s not. It appears to be a fiendish hoax.
The owner of the ‘Billionaires’ Club’ in Italy says he’s closing up shop after more than 10 years. According to the Telegraph Newspaper, Flavio Briatore is shutting the doors of his seaside resort where the rich and famous sip champagne and party. Briatore says his next venture is to become Italy’s Donald Trump hosting a local version of The Apprentice.
There’s a lot happening in the world. Through it all, Marketplace is here for you.
You rely on Marketplace to break down the world’s events and tell you how it affects you in a fact-based, approachable way. We rely on your financial support to keep making that possible.
Your donation today powers the independent journalism that you rely on. For just $5/month, you can help sustain Marketplace so we can keep reporting on the things that matter to you.
