The Indicator
The Indicator appears in Indicators of 2025 and What to Watch in 2026 as the short-form economics show paired with Planet Money for a year-end crossover. The source uses The Indicator’s format for fast economic storytelling: each participant selects a statistic that can stand for a larger economic pattern.
In this episode, the show context matters because the indicators are not treated as full forecasts. Consumer Sentiment Indicator, Effective Tariff Rate Shock, CAPE Ratio Valuation Signal, Federal Funds Rate As Policy Signal, Electricity Affordability Indicator, and K-Shaped Consumer Spending are all used as compact entry points into broader debates about mood, trade policy, valuation, Fed independence, affordability, and inequality.
Connections
- NPR and Planet Money - network and crossover show context.
- Kenny Malone, Greg Rosalsky, Darian Woods, Waylon Wong, Stephen Passaha, and Cooper Katz-McKim - participants in the source.
- Consumer Sentiment Indicator, Effective Tariff Rate Shock, and CAPE Ratio Valuation Signal - 2025 indicator contest branch.
- Federal Funds Rate As Policy Signal, Electricity Affordability Indicator, and K-Shaped Consumer Spending - 2026 watchlist branch.