Money Talks from The Economist

France has been cycling through governments with head-spinning speed. Part of what has brought each down is a contentious 2026 budget. Sophie Pedder, our Paris bureau chief, shares her exclusive interview with Roland Lescure, France’s finance minister. They discuss how he intends to get the budget passed at last, and what is at stake if he does not. Hosts: Mike Bird, Ethan Wu and Alice Fulwood. Guest: Roland Lescure.Transcripts of our podcasts are available via economist.com/podcasts.Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—subscribe to Economist Podcasts+.For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our FAQs page or watch our video explaining how to link your account.

The coronavirus pandemic, war in Europe and the perpetual problem that is Argentina have made the last few years some of the most tumultuous in the International Monetary Fund’s history. As the fund's chief economist, then as First Deputy Managing Director, Gita Gopinath was in the middle of the upheaval. Now she’s at Harvard and free to speak candidly about what it was like  to be in the IMF leadership, dealing with a tense and fractured geopolitical backdrop, as well as critics in the Trump administration. Hosts: Mike Bird, Ethan Wu and Alice Fulwood. Guest: Gita GopinathTranscripts of our podcasts are available via economist.com/podcasts.Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—subscribe to Economist Podcasts+.For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our FAQs page or watch our video explaining how to link your account.

This year’s Nobel prize in economics was awarded to Philippe Aghion, Peter Howitt and Joel Mokyr. Their work explains why, after millennia of stagnation, economic growth took off. In addition to his new Nobel we talk to Mr Mokyr about another rare accolade he earned this week—being described, in the pages of The Economist, as a “nice man”. We also speak to Mr Aghion about the work that earned him and his co-author, Mr Howitt, their share of the prize.Hosts: Alice Fulwood, Ethan Wu and Mike Bird. Guests: Joel Mokyr of Northwestern University and Philippe Aghion of the London School of Economics.Transcripts of our podcasts are available via economist.com/podcasts.Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—subscribe to Economist Podcasts+.For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our FAQs page or watch our video explaining how to link your account.

Until recently, tech bosses who invested their company's money too freely could expect to be punished by investors. Not so in the age of AI. Last year, $1trn was spent on AI hardware and software. Spending is still surging, to the delight of investors. The value of America’s stockmarket has risen by $21trn since the release of ChatGPT in 2022. But AI companies and services still only account for revenue in the low tens of billions of dollars. Could that mismatch turn the AI market boom to bust?Hosts: The Economist’s Mike Bird and Alice Fulwood. Guests: Byrne Hobart, author of “Boom: Bubbles and the End of Stagnation”, and Harris Kupperman of Praetorian Capital Management.Transcripts of our podcasts are available via economist.com/podcasts.Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—subscribe to Economist Podcasts+.For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our FAQs page or watch our video explaining how to link your account.

De Beers built an empire by convincing the world that “a diamond is forever”. But the supply chain it once dominated is under pressure from cheap lab-grown diamonds that are chemically identical to the mined stones De Beers has been peddling for 140 years. Threats ranging from tariffs to the weakened Chinese economy stalk the diamond industry too, and the iconic De Beers business is now up for sale. So, is there still room for natural diamonds and the companies that sell them, in a world awash with man-made gems?Hosts: Mike Bird and Alice Fulwood. Guests: diamond-industry analyst Paul Zimnisky; and Alexander Lacik, CEO of Pandora.Transcripts of our podcasts are available via economist.com/podcasts.Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—subscribe to Economist Podcasts+.For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our FAQs page or watch our video explaining how to link your account.

One man has profited more than almost anyone else from the war in Ukraine: Armin Papperger. He is the boss of Rheinmetall, one of Europe’s largest defence firms, which has seen its share price increase more than 2,500% in the past five years. This week, we speak to him about the business of war.Hosts: Alice Fulwood, Ethan Wu and Mike Bird. Guests: Armin Papperger and The Economist’s Vendeline von Bredow.Transcripts of our podcasts are available via economist.com/podcasts.Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—subscribe to Economist Podcasts+.For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our FAQs page or watch our video explaining how to link your account.

All is not well in private-equity land. Funds are struggling to flip businesses profitably. Deal volumes have slumped. And new capital has become harder to raise. Does that mean the corporate raiders have had their day?Hosts: Ethan Wu and Josh Roberts. Guests: Daniel Rasmussen of Verdad Advisers and Hugh MacArthur of Bain & Company.Transcripts of our podcasts are available via economist.com/podcasts.Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—subscribe to Economist Podcasts+.For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our FAQs page or watch our video explaining how to link your account.

Tyler Cowen is a professor of economics who has been described as “the man who wants to know everything”. He is Silicon Valley’s favourite economist—but his interests extend far beyond AI into the realms of art, literature and food. Alice visited him at his home in Virginia to find out whether he thinks LLMs will live up to their hype.Hosts: Alice Fulwood and Ethan Wu. Guest: Tyler CowenTranscripts of our podcasts are available via economist.com/podcasts.Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—subscribe to Economist Podcasts+.For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our FAQs page or watch our video explaining how to link your account.

It started over a century ago with instalment loans for big ticket items. But today, buy now, pay later can be used for almost anything, from Coachella tickets to your lunchtime burrito. This new form of consumer finance has attracted criticism for enticing younger borrowers with limited credit histories into debt. But despite critics' reservations, the market is booming. BNPL accounted for $342bn in spending around the world last year, up from $2bn a decade earlier—and major investment funds are getting in on the action. Is BNPL the future of consumer finance?Hosts: Mike Bird, Alice Fulwood and Ethan Wu. Guests: Max Levchin, co-founder and CEO of Affirm, and Vaibhav Piplapure, managing director at KKR’s asset-based finance team.Transcripts of our podcasts are available via economist.com/podcasts.Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—subscribe to Economist Podcasts+.For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our FAQs page or watch our video explaining how to link your account.