Big Take

Since the start of his second term, US President Donald Trump has imposed sweeping tariffs – especially on China, where most toys are made.  On today’s Big Take Asia Podcast, host Oanh Ha talks with Rick Woldenberg, CEO of fourth‑generation toymaker Learning Resources, about his company’s battle against tariffs in stores and in court – and what it reveals about the tru...

The US-China trade war has upended global manufacturing, forcing companies like Chicago-based Learning Resources to fundamentally change how and where its products are made, even as it challenges the tariffs in court. On today’s Big Take Asia podcast, K. Oanh Ha heads to India, where the toymaker has begun shifting production of its popular children’s toys. We examine how the company i...

President Trump’s trade threw American businesses, which source everything from aircraft parts to baby strollers from China, into chaos. Over this year, some companies challenged the president’s tariffs in court — including Illinois-based toymaker Learning Resources, whose case is now before the Supreme Court.  On today’s Big Take Asia Podcast, host K. Oanh Ha is joine...

This month, the think-tank the Groundwork Collaborative, Consumer Reports and the news nonprofit More Perfect Union released a report finding that Instacart had been using an AI tool to run algorithmic price experiments on shoppers around the country. As a result, shoppers were being charged different prices for the exact same items from the exact same stores. At a time when inflation has driven g...

From OPEC powerhouses and US shale producers to countries like Guyana, global producers are drilling more oil and driving down prices. And with the potential for a ceasefire in Russia and pressure on Maduro in Venezuela, even more oil could flood the market in 2026. On today’s Big Take podcast, host David Gura sits down with Bloomberg oil trading reporter Alex Longley and Opinion columnist J...

Lynsey Addario’s life work means  taking great risks to tell other people’s stories. She is a Pulitzer Prize winning war photographer who has been abducted twice while documenting conflicts from Afghanistan to Ukraine and Sudan. There aren’t many women in her field. In a new National Geographic documentary called “Love+War,” currently streaming on Disney+, she le...

As AI-generated images ping pong around the internet, the Walt Disney Company has been mostly playing defense, using litigation to protect its intellectual property. But last week, Disney announced a $1 billion deal with OpenAI, licensing more than 200 of its iconic Disney characters for use on OpenAI’s video platform, Sora. On today’s Big Take podcast, host Sarah Holder talks with Blo...

The trucking industry has long been dominated by older white men. But as those truckers steer toward retirement, who will replace them?  On today’s Big Take podcast, host Sarah Holder hits the road with Bloomberg’s Jaewon Kang, who’s been exploring how one company is trying to transform its trucking workforce. And we hear from MIT’s Chris Caplice, DAT Freight and Analy...

Treating cancer is a massive business. In 2024 alone, cancer treatments generated at least $200 billion in worldwide sales for the pharmaceutical industry, more than the obesity drug rush. But a Bloomberg News analysis showed that fewer than half of treatments reviewed — some of which have painful side effects — have been shown to extend patients’ lives. On today’s Big Take...

The Philippines is no stranger to typhoons, but this year’s storms exposed something far uglier: a vast corruption scandal. On today’s Big Take Asia Podcast, host K. Oanh Ha speaks to Bloomberg’s Andreo Calonzo and Rosalind Mathieson about how billions of dollars earmarked for flood control vanished and what the crisis means for the country’s political and economic stabilit...

All year, the jobs market, consumer sentiment, AI and inflation flashed warning signs about the economy — but 2025 managed to avoid a recession. On today’s Big Take podcast, host Sarah Holder talks with Bloomberg’s Stacey Vanek Smith and Moody’s Analytics Mark Zandi to understand what this year’s wonky economy can tell us as we head into 2026 and what to watch for in...

Depending on who you talk to, AI is the key to remaking industries and jobs – or a bubble ripe to pop. And if you’re an investor, you’re already exposed. So what’s the best strategy for investing in AI now? On today’s Big Take podcast, host Sarah Holder and Bloomberg personal finance reporter Suzanne Woolley talk to experts – ARK Invest’s Cathie Wood, Fide...

From rising costs to shifting markets, American farmers are struggling to make ends meet. Now, the White House is stepping in. On today’s Big Take podcast, David Gura sits down with Bloomberg agriculture Reporter Erin Ailworth and a fifth-generation farmer to discuss President Trump’s $12 billion farm aid plan. What prompted the move, which sectors will be eligible and how ongoing tens...

On Wednesday, the Federal Open Market Committee cut rates by 25-basis points. It was the scenario a lot of close watchers of the Federal Reserve expected — but what comes after this Fed Meeting is an open question. With President Trump poised to name Chair Jerome Powell’s replacement by early 2026, both markets and the Federal Reserve itself could start to look to Trump’s nominee...

The US tariff war with China sent American companies scrambling to find alternative manufacturing hubs. India looked promising until the White House upended everything.  On today’s Big Take Asia podcast, K. Oanh Ha heads to India, where she goes inside two toy factories scrambling to adapt to Washington’s shifting trade policies. How sky-high tariffs are undercutting India’s...

After last month’s passage of the Epstein Files Transparency Act, the US Department of Justice is on the clock to release an enormous cache of documents related to convicted sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein. So what could be in the files? And what might the government hold back?  On today’s Big Take, host David Gura is joined by Bloomberg investigative reporter Jason Leopold, who sp...

News broke overnight that Netflix is acquiring Warner Bros. Discovery in a cash-and-stock deal valued at $82.7 billion.  It’s a deal raising eyebrows in the entertainment industry, from Netflix competitors including Paramount — and reportedly even the White House.  On today’s Big Take, host David Gura sits down with Screentime writer and entertainment reporter Lucas Sha...

Excel. If you work in corporate America, that word either inspires laser-focused productivity or pure dread. Over the last 40 years, the spreadsheet software has become synonymous with the best — and worst — of late-stage capitalism. It’s seeped into popular culture and, along the way, made Microsoft one of the world’s most valuable companies. But in a world of AI and new c...

Back in October, Bitcoin reached a record high. Just a few weeks later, its price had plunged, taking out over $1 trillion dollars in assets along with it. On Tuesday, it rallied. But dips across the crypto market have left investors and analysts wondering what to make of the swings. On today’s Big Take podcast, Bloomberg executive editor stacy-marie ishmael and host David Gura take the temp...

Hong Kong’s worst fire disaster in decades has stirred up public anger over negligence, safety standards and official accountability. On today’s Big Take Asia podcast, host K. Oanh Ha talks to Bloomberg’s Shawna Kwan and Jenni Marsh about the devastation, the political fallout and how the public outcry is causing unease in Beijing. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy informat...

On Monday, Trump envoy Steve Witkoff flew to Moscow, while Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy visited France. Witkoff is expected to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin to try and sell him on the latest version of a peace deal, which has Ukrainian input. But after a phone call between Witkoff and a Russian counterpart, Zelenskiy is trying to shore up support among European allies &mdas...

Goldendoodles, bernedoodles, labradoodles, cockapoos, everywhere you look, it seems like doodles — those fluffy, adorable poodle mixes — are taking over sidewalks, cafes and TikTok feeds. But the ubiquity of the muppet-like canines has also come with some doggy drama. On today’s Big Take podcast, host Sarah Holder and producer David Fox head to New Jersey to meet a breeder who&rs...

Weeks before the Trump administration is expected to name its pick for the next US Federal Reserve chair, current White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett leads a group of five finalists. Whoever prevails will have the significant job of guiding the US through challenging economic times, while balancing the Fed’s long-standing independence against a hands-on president. On today’s Big...

After a rare public comment on Taiwan from Japan’s new prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, relations between the two nations are at a historic low — and Beijing is ramping up its economic retaliation. On today’s Big Take Asia podcast, host Oanh Ha talks with Bloomberg’s James Mayger and Isabel Reynolds about the political calculation behind Takaichi’s move, the historical...

On Monday, a federal judge threw out the criminal cases filed by the Department of Justice against former FBI director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James. When President Trump took office in January, he made it clear that retribution against his perceived political enemies was a key part of his second-term agenda.  The cases against Comey and James were a high profile par...