For decades, dollars have been the world's common financial language. Central banks everywhere hold dollars as a way to safely store their wealth. Countries, businesses, and people use it to trade; around 90% of all foreign exchange transactions involve dollars. It's the world's money, the world's "reserve currency."
But what if that is changing? What if the world stops seeing the dollar as safe?
Today on the show, what is a "reserve currency"? Why is it the dollar? And if the dollar falls from favor, what will replace it?
This episode of Planet Money was produced by Emma Peaslee with help from James Sneed. It was edited by Marianne McCune with fact checking help from Sierra Juarez. It was engineered by Kwesi Lee. Alex Goldmark is our executive producer.
The Dollar Trap by Eswar Prasad
Exorbitant Privilege by Barry Eichengreen
Our Dollar. Your Problem by Ken Rogoff
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Music: NPR Source Audio - "Virtual Machine," "Fake Blood" and "Successful Secrets"
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1A - The News Roundup For May 9, 2025
There's a new Pope in town, the first American. We discuss what we know about the new pontiff.
This week, President Trump says he wants the world to see the United States as a "luxury store." But who can afford it?U.S. ports say the trade war is already slowing traffic. We get to the latest on trade talks.
Also, more on the right to due process and fresh U.S. intelligence that undercuts arguments about the president's power to remove those in the U.S. without legal status to prisons overseas.
The latest as tensions escalate between India and Pakistan. Israel ramps up its war in Gaza. Vice President Vance calls out the Kremlin for stalled efforts to agree a peace deal with Ukraine.
And during his visit to the White House, Canada's newly elected prime minister tells President Trump what's up for debate and what's not for sale.
The News Roundup covers the biggest stories from this week.
Want to support 1A? Give to your local public radio station and subscribe to this podcast. Have questions? Connect with us. Listen to 1A sponsor-free by signing up for 1A+ at plus.npr.org/the1a.
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This week, President Trump says he wants the world to see the United States as a "luxury store." But who can afford it?U.S. ports say the trade war is already slowing traffic. We get to the latest on trade talks.
Also, more on the right to due process and fresh U.S. intelligence that undercuts arguments about the president's power to remove those in the U.S. without legal status to prisons overseas.
The latest as tensions escalate between India and Pakistan. Israel ramps up its war in Gaza. Vice President Vance calls out the Kremlin for stalled efforts to agree a peace deal with Ukraine.
And during his visit to the White House, Canada's newly elected prime minister tells President Trump what's up for debate and what's not for sale.
The News Roundup covers the biggest stories from this week.
Want to support 1A? Give to your local public radio station and subscribe to this podcast. Have questions? Connect with us. Listen to 1A sponsor-free by signing up for 1A+ at plus.npr.org/the1a.
Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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State of the World from NPR - Investigating One of the Deadliest Moments of the War in Gaza
Since Israel's military went to war against Hamas in Gaza more than a year and a half ago, it has conducted thousands of strikes in the territory. One attack last year stands out. Israel struck a five-story building housing an extended family of well over 100 people. The military says they were targeting an enemy spotter on the roof. NPR reporters and producers set out to chronicle this attack, to know how many people were killed and injured and to understand what it means to the family of survivors.
Click here to see NPR's visual investigation of this attack.
For more coverage of all sides of this conflict, go to npr.org/mideastupdates
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Click here to see NPR's visual investigation of this attack.
For more coverage of all sides of this conflict, go to npr.org/mideastupdates
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Up First from NPR - Scene From Vatican City, Life Of Pope Leo XIV, China Trade Talks
People traveled to the Vatican from all over the world to witness the election of a new pope. What more do we know about the life of the Chicago-born pontiff who also holds Peruvian citizenship? Also, negotiators from the US and China will meet this weekend in Switzerland for talks about the trade war between the two countries.
Want more comprehensive analysis of the most important news of the day, plus a little fun? Subscribe to the Up First newsletter.
Today's episode of Up First was edited by Daniel Burke, Ryland Barton, Padmananda Rama, Janaya Williams and Alice Woelfle. It was produced by Kaity Kline, Nia Dumas and Christopher Thomas. We get engineering support from Neisha Heinis. Our technical director is Carleigh Strange.And our Executive Producer is Jay Shaylor.
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Want more comprehensive analysis of the most important news of the day, plus a little fun? Subscribe to the Up First newsletter.
Today's episode of Up First was edited by Daniel Burke, Ryland Barton, Padmananda Rama, Janaya Williams and Alice Woelfle. It was produced by Kaity Kline, Nia Dumas and Christopher Thomas. We get engineering support from Neisha Heinis. Our technical director is Carleigh Strange.And our Executive Producer is Jay Shaylor.
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NPR's Book of the Day - In ‘Romantic Friction,’ ‘The Fact Checker’ the publishing world is fodder for fiction
In their new novels, authors Lori Gold and Austin Kelley draw from personal experiences in the publishing and magazine industries. First, Gold's Romantic Friction follows Sofie Wilde, a popular fantasy romance author and self-proclaimed outcast. At a book event, she finds out about a new author who's billed herself as "the next Sofie Wilde" – and is using AI to write books pulled directly from Sofie's. In today's episode, Gold speaks with Here & Now's Tiziana Dearing about the author's feelings about AI's role in publishing, the rabid fandom of romance readers, and books that go viral. Then, we hear from Kelley about his new novel The Fact Checker, in which a fact checker ends up on a quest for a missing source. In today's episode, Kelley joins NPR's Scott Simon for a conversation about the book and the author's time as a fact checker with The New Yorker.
To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookoftheday
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The Indicator from Planet Money - Prepping for a rainy day and higher used car prices
It's ... Indicators of the Week! Our weekly look at some of the most fascinating economic numbers from the news.
On today's episode: China bulks up for a financial chill, how much to save for a rainy day, and the price of used cars goes up.
Related episodes:
America's small GDP bump, China's big stimulus dispersal, and a Monkey King (Apple / Spotify)
How nonprofits get cash from your clunker (Apple / Spotify)
IRS information sharing, bonds bust, and a chorebot future (Apple / Spotify)
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On today's episode: China bulks up for a financial chill, how much to save for a rainy day, and the price of used cars goes up.
Related episodes:
America's small GDP bump, China's big stimulus dispersal, and a Monkey King (Apple / Spotify)
How nonprofits get cash from your clunker (Apple / Spotify)
IRS information sharing, bonds bust, and a chorebot future (Apple / Spotify)
Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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Short Wave - Could AI Go Green?
Google, Microsoft and Meta have all pledged to reach at least net-zero carbon emissions by 2030. Amazon set their net-zero deadline for 2040. To understand how these four tech companies could possibly meet their climate goals amid an artificial intelligence renaissance, Short Wave co-host Emily Kwong discusses the green AI movement. Speaking with scientists, CEOs and tech insiders, she explores three possible pathways: nuclear energy, small language models (SLMs) and back-to-the-future ways of keeping data centers cool.
Listen to Part 1 of Short Wave's reporting on the environmental cost of AI here.
Have a question about AI and the environment? Email us at shortwave@npr.org — we'd love to hear from you!
Listen to every episode of Short Wave sponsor-free and support our work at NPR by signing up for Short Wave+ at plus.npr.org/shortwave.
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Listen to Part 1 of Short Wave's reporting on the environmental cost of AI here.
Have a question about AI and the environment? Email us at shortwave@npr.org — we'd love to hear from you!
Listen to every episode of Short Wave sponsor-free and support our work at NPR by signing up for Short Wave+ at plus.npr.org/shortwave.
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Consider This from NPR - This American pope
The cardinals have elected a new pope: Robert Prevost, a cardinal born in Chicago. He has taken the name Leo XIV. He is the first American pope in the history of the Catholic Church.
NPR's Scott Detrow has been in Rome all week. He talks through what we might expect from Pope Leo XIV with NPR religion correspondent Jason DeRose, and former, longtime NPR Rome correspondent Sylvia Poggioli.
For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.
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NPR's Scott Detrow has been in Rome all week. He talks through what we might expect from Pope Leo XIV with NPR religion correspondent Jason DeRose, and former, longtime NPR Rome correspondent Sylvia Poggioli.
For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.
Email us at considerthis@npr.org.
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Consider This from NPR - This American pope
The cardinals have elected a new pope: Robert Prevost, a cardinal born in Chicago. He has taken the name Leo XIV. He is the first American pope in the history of the Catholic Church.
NPR's Scott Detrow has been in Rome all week. He talks through what we might expect from Pope Leo XIV with NPR religion correspondent Jason DeRose, and former, longtime NPR Rome correspondent Sylvia Poggioli.
For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.
Email us at considerthis@npr.org.
Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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NPR's Scott Detrow has been in Rome all week. He talks through what we might expect from Pope Leo XIV with NPR religion correspondent Jason DeRose, and former, longtime NPR Rome correspondent Sylvia Poggioli.
For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.
Email us at considerthis@npr.org.
Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices
NPR Privacy Policy
Consider This from NPR - This American pope
The cardinals have elected a new pope: Robert Prevost, a cardinal born in Chicago. He has taken the name Leo XIV. He is the first American pope in the history of the Catholic Church.
NPR's Scott Detrow has been in Rome all week. He talks through what we might expect from Pope Leo XIV with NPR religion correspondent Jason DeRose, and former, longtime NPR Rome correspondent Sylvia Poggioli.
For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.
Email us at considerthis@npr.org.
Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices
NPR Privacy Policy
NPR's Scott Detrow has been in Rome all week. He talks through what we might expect from Pope Leo XIV with NPR religion correspondent Jason DeRose, and former, longtime NPR Rome correspondent Sylvia Poggioli.
For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.
Email us at considerthis@npr.org.
Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices
NPR Privacy Policy