Speaking of the Economy

Andy Bauer, Renee Haltom, and Matt Martin share what they are hearing about economic conditions from their business contacts in the Fifth District. They also discuss variations in conditions by sector and region as well as how businesses currently view labor markets and price levels. Bauer, Haltom, and Martin are regional executives at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Full transcript and rela...

Surekha Carpenter and Taylor Pessin share their initial learnings about community development financial institutions that responded to the 2025 CDFI Survey, which is conducted every other year by the Federal Reserve. Carpenter is a senior research analyst and Pessin is an intermediate research analyst, both on the Regional and Community Analysis team at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Full t...

Thomas Lubik discusses how inventories are tracked at the firm and aggregate levels and what fluctuations in these levels over time tell us about the health of the overall economy. Lubik is a senior advisor at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Full transcript and related links: https://www.richmondfed.org/podcasts/speaking_of_the_economy/2025/speaking_2025_10_15_inventories

Bethany Greene describes the flow of federal funds into Fifth District communities as transfer payments, from healthcare and Social Security benefits to unemployment insurance payments. In particular, she discusses regional variances in communities' reliance on this funding, especially those in rural areas. Greene is a regional economist at the Charlotte branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richm...

Doug Borland and Stephanie Mehlhouse share insights from the 2024 Survey and Diary of Consumer Payment Choice, which was compiled by the Federal Reserve to provide a comprehensive picture of payment preferences and behavior in the United States. Borland is assistant vice president of cash services and Mehlhouse is a senior cash manager, both based at the Charlotte office of the Federal Reserve Ban...

Mary Donnan and Victor Farmer discuss two projects in the Fifth District that illustrate the challenges of economic development in rural communities and the importance of philanthropic organizations in addressing those challenges. They also reflect on how the Richmond Fed's Community Investment Training program helped move the projects forward. Donnan is executive director of the Alleghany Foundat...

Claudia Macaluso shares what she has learned about young people who are not employed, in school, or undergoing training, and what potential interventions could bring these disconnected youth into the workforce. Macaluso is a senior research economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Full transcript and related links: https://www.richmondfed.org/podcasts/speaking_of_the_economy/2025/speakin...

Zach Edwards and Felipe Schwartzman share what they have learned about how much businesses have been passing along higher prices for their inputs — especially due to higher tariffs in 2025 — to the prices they charge their customers. They also discuss how this cost pass-through could affect overall inflation. Edwards is a research analyst and Schwartzman is a senior economist, both at the Federal...

John O'Trakoun discusses recent trends in the pricing of rental housing and what rents tell us about overall inflation as well as housing markets on the national and local levels. O'Trakoun is a senior policy economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Full transcript and related links: https://www.richmondfed.org/podcasts/speaking_of_the_economy/2025/speaking_2025_08_13_rent_inflation

Sergio Correia discusses his research on the causes of bank failures and his use of a novel set of historical data to evaluate two different but intertwined potential causes — insolvency of the bank and a run on deposits. Correia recently joined the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond as a senior economist. Full transcript and related links: https://www.richmondfed.org/podcasts/speaking_of_the_econom...

At the Richmond Fed's sixth annual Investing in Rural America Conference, three communities in Virginia and North Carolina shared how they have used on-demand microtransit to address the lack of public transportation options that create barriers for residents without cars. Full transcript and related links: https://www.richmondfed.org/podcasts/speaking_of_the_economy/2025/speaking_2025_07_23_rural...

Andy Bauer and John Bailey Jones discuss the factors that have shaped the demand for and supply of labor in recent years. They also talk about the barriers to labor force participation in Maryland, including lack of affordable child care and housing. Bauer is vice president and regional executive for the Baltimore branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond and Jones is vice president of microe...

Marina Azzimonti discusses the complexities of measuring the regional and sectoral impacts of tariffs and reviews the rapid series of changes to U.S. trade policy since the beginning of 2025. Azzimonti is a senior economist and research advisor at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Full transcript and related links: https://www.richmondfed.org/podcasts/speaking_of_the_economy/2025/speaking_2025...

Davy Sell and Anthony Tringali discuss the housing needs of community college students and the challenges these institutions face in meeting the demand for affordable options. Sell is a research analyst and Tringali is a research associate at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Full transcript and related links: https://www.richmondfed.org/podcasts/speaking_of_the_economy/2025/speaking_2025_06_1...

At the Richmond Fed's sixth annual Investing in Rural America Conference, childcare providers and experts shared the challenges of providing affordable, quality early care and education in rural communities, as well as solutions they have developed.  Full transcript and related links: https://www.richmondfed.org/podcasts/speaking_of_the_economy/2025/speaking_2025_06_11_rural_childcare

Grey Gordon and Felipe Schwartzman discuss the creation and evolution of the Federal Reserve's monetary policy framework and the Fed's current review of the framework. Gordon and Schwartzman are senior economists at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Full transcript and related links: https://www.richmondfed.org/podcasts/speaking_of_the_economy/2025/speaking_2025_06_04_fed_framework

Joseph Mengedoth provides an overview of the economic contributions of agriculture in the rural parts of the Fifth District . Mengedoth is a regional economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Full transcript and related links: https://www.richmondfed.org/podcasts/speaking_of_the_economy/2025/speaking_2025_05_21_farming

Nicolas Morales, Horacio Sapriza, and Chen Yeh take listeners behind the scenes on how they work with detailed, confidential datasets about businesses and individuals. They also discuss how they gain insights on topics like immigration, credit markets, and labor productivity while safeguarding privacy rights. Morales is an economist, Sapriza is a senior economist and policy advisor, and Yeh is a s...

Stephanie Norris and Matthew Wells discuss their recent research on workforce development programs at community colleges that are aimed at helping the incarcerated re-enter the workforce after they are released. Norris is a senior research analyst and Wells is a senior economics writer, both at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Full transcript and related links: https://www.richmondfed.org/pod...

Zach Edwards and Daniel Weitz discuss the concerns that chief financial officers across the country reported about their own companies and the national economy in the latest CFO Survey. Edwards is a research analyst on the Regional and Community Analysis team at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond and Weitz is a csurvey director at the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta. Full transcript and related...

John O'Trakoun and Adam Scavette discuss their new approach to gauging the health of the economy and the likelihood that a recession is taking place before other indicators would detect it. O'Trakoun is a senior policy economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond and Scavette is a community development economic advisor at the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia. Full transcript and related l...

Pierre-Daniel Sarte and Thomas Lubik discuss their research on the components of productivity growth, how that growth has varied over time and across industries, and how much it will benefit from the use of artificial intelligence. Sarte and Lubik are senior advisors in the Research Department at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Full transcript and related links: https://www.richmondfed.org/p...

Job Boerma shares a model for how poor mental health affects the economic decisions of consumers and the economy as a whole. Boerma, an assistant professor in economics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, presented his research at a recent CORE Week at the Richmond Fed. Full transcript and related links: https://www.richmondfed.org/podcasts/speaking_of_the_economy/2025/speaking_2025_03_26_econ...

Chen Yeh provides an update on the longevity and broader impacts of the surge in start-ups during the COVID-19 pandemic. Yeh is a senior economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Full transcript and related links: https://www.richmondfed.org/podcasts/speaking_of_the_economy/2025/speaking_2025_03_19_startup_surge_update

Vanity McDaniel and Jennifer Stadler provide a snapshot of how consumers pay for goods and services today and reflect on the latest technology trends in the U.S. payments system, including contactless payments, digital wallets, "buy now, pay later," instant payments, and the use of artificial intelligence. McDaniel is a senior payments business advisor at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond and S...