America’s economy feels strange right now — some say it’s booming, others swear it’s breaking. But why does the mood feel so gloomy when the data looks so strong? That’s exactly what happens when FT’s chief economics commentator Martin Wolf sits down with Nobel laureate Paul Krugman to tackle what’s now being called Trump’s ‘vibecession.’
As Donald Trump nears the first anniversary of his second presidency, the two renowned economists dig into the contradictions shaping today’s U.S. economy — and democracy. Are ordinary Americans finally feeling the sting of Trump’s revived tariff policies? Could artificial intelligence be quietly freezing the labor market? Or is there a deeper unease — the sense that political division and rising plutocracy are eroding public confidence? This is where it gets controversial.
In this opening episode of a four-part weekly series, Wolf and Krugman dissect not just the numbers but the national mood. Surprisingly, Krugman admits he’s less gloomy now than a few months ago — a shift that raises new questions about how perception and policy interact. If data shows steady growth but citizens still feel recessionary pressures, who’s right — the economists or the everyday people?
You can listen to this thought-provoking conversation in full by streaming or downloading the MP3 episode directly (https://feeds.acast.com/public/streams/621e1a5bf5df83377cc948b8/episodes/6928770b6009aa978cbfda8f.mp3).
Follow the series on The Economics Show (https://www.ft.com/the-economics-show), available on Apple Podcasts (https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-economics-show/id1746352576), Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/show/64rPqCkSSBkuSJpkMLRe9i), Pocket Casts (https://pocketcasts.com/podcast/the-economics-show/d6405f80-f444-013c-e7f9-02cacb2c6223), or on your favorite podcast platform.
You can also explore deeper by reading Martin Wolf’s latest analyses on the Financial Times website (https://www.ft.com/martin-wolf), subscribing to Paul Krugman’s Substack for his essays and insights (https://paulkrugman.substack.com/), or watching both economists’ personal cultural codas — Wolf’s here (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sXCkU6J3tiM) and Krugman’s here (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VGX7RxsTNmo).
The episode is produced by Mischa Frankl-Duval, with executive production by Manuela Saragosa and original music and sound design by Breen Turner. A full transcript is available on FT.com (https://www.ft.com/content/dea39a4d-a12d-45d5-b28d-f58deb9b5c68), and you can view the show’s accessibility guide here (https://www.ft.com/accessibility#podcast-transcriptions).
So what do you think? Is the American economy truly thriving — or just feeling broken? Could it be that public emotion, not economic fundamentals, is shaping the story? Share your take in the comments — the debate is just getting started.
