President Biden has claimed the US economy is the ‘envy of the world’ and that his administration has added record job numbers, with around one million people hired since the turn of this year.

With inflation falling and the possibility of the Federal Reserve cutting interest rates, we find out if the rosy economic picture is being felt by those who are hiring or trying to get hired.

(Image: A sign on a wall recruiting for staff at a hotel in California in 2024 as a man walks by. Credit: Getty Images)

Presented and produced by Matt Lines

India has just finished its marathon elections and as the new government takes charge we take a look at one of its biggest challenges - rising youth unemployment.

With an average age of 29 years, India’s population is one of the youngest globally, but job creation for them hasn’t been easy in this fast growing economy.

The BBC’s Devina Gupta travels to Delhi to talks to students and first time job seekers about this growing job crisis and what can be done to solve it.

Presenter and producer: Devina Gupta

(Image: young men in Delhi waiting for the labour chow. Credit: Devina Gupta)

Exactly one year into his new job, we meet Ajay Banga, the President of the World Bank. He previously ran Mastercard, but following President Biden's nomination, Ajay Banga took on one of the most important roles in finance in June 2023. He tells us what steps he is putting in place to reform the organisation, how western governments are struggling to fund it to the same levels that it used to, and he warns inflation might not come down much further.

Presenter: Sam Fenwick Producer: Olie D'Albertanson

(Photo: Ajay Banga. Credit: Getty Images)

We found out why the dating guru swapped a career in investment banking to become a matchmaker.

Now famous for his role in the hit TV show ‘Married at First Sight’, Paul Carrick Brunson explains how his current career path wasn’t always written in the stars. But a combination of business acumen, the backing of his partner and a touch of luck led to a lucrative trade in matchmaking.

He explains his core business principles and gives his top tips for discussing money in a relationship.

(Image: Paul Carrick Brunson. Credit: Chris Bethell)

Presenter: Devina Gupta Producer: Sam Clack

It's been two months since the collapse of the key bridge in Baltimore, and the deadline to unblock the port's shipping channel is imminent. The US government has given a loose promise to make it happen by the end of May - but there are doubts that deadline will be met, causing more disruption to the local and global economy. How will businesses on sea and land find a way through more uncertainty?

Izzy Greenfield speaks to small businesses who are feeling the impact; from fewer customers to disruption to supply chains.

Baltimore used to rank first among US ports for autos and light trucks, handling a record 850,000 vehicles last year. Importantly, the port is where vehicles are processed and labelled to be sold domestically. We hear how the industry is seeing an immediate impact. And we learn about the struggles that transportation workers continue to face.

(Image: Baltimore bridge after it collapsed in March 2024. Credit: Getty Images)

Presented and produced by Izzy Greenfield

Most of us have noticed the prices of our weekly food shopping going up over the last few years, but some items have risen by astronomical amounts.

Extra virgin olive oil - a premium, unprocessed oil from the olive, has seen many customers' prices rise by 50% in the past year alone.

We explain why, as we hear from oil sommeliers and the people who buy and sell the product.

(Image: Olive oil being poured into a bowl. Credit: Getty Images)

Presented and produced by Rick Kelsey

Female-only co-working spaces started to grow during the #metoo movement. But some have struggled.

We speak to entrepreneurs who are running these spaces - and the women working in them.

Are they a viable alternative to going to the office?

(Picture: Oi Leng Lui, who founded the co-working space, The Hearth, in north London.)

Presented and produced by Dougal Shaw

Laura Chinchilla was the first woman to serve as president of Costa Rica and one of the first in Latin America.

We talk to her about what that journey to the top job in her country was like, and the challenges facing Latin America - from corruption to crime, the drugs trade, migration, the brain drain, poor governance and low economic productivity.

And we consider some of the potential solutions to those problems - solutions that could help Latin America bring prosperity to its people.

(Picture: Laura Chinchilla Miranda, former President of Costa Rica, speaking at a conference. Credit: Getty Images)

Presented and produced by Gideon Long

Across the region, there are examples of economic success stories: countries, companies and people that are getting things right, transforming their local economies and bringing prosperity to the region.

We go to Peru, where fruit producers are enjoying a blueberry boom.

We hear from Uruguay, which generates almost all its electricity from renewable energy, and we visit a factory Mexico that’s benefiting from “nearshoring” and the country’s proximity to the United States.

We talk to two female entrepreneurs – one from Chile and one from Colombia – on how the ecosystem for start-ups has evolved in their countries and the exciting possibilities the region has to offer.

Produced and presented by Gideon Long

(Image: Close-up on a worker loading baskets of blueberries on a truck at a plantation. Credit: Getty Images)

From soybean production to coffee exports to sugar cane, grains and tropical fruit - agriculture is powering the Brazilian economy.

We travel to a farm outside the capital Brasilia, and look at how the country could play a major role in providing the world with food security in the years ahead.

And we consider a major threat to agriculture – climate change, which is forcing Brazilian farmers to adapt to survive.

We talk to the Brazilian head of the International Coffee Organisation – on what her home country can do to deal with extreme weather events.

And away from agriculture, we consider Brazil’s heavy industry, and ask why it hasn’t made more of its rich musical heritage.

Produced and presented by Gideon Long.

(Image: Cultivation of sugarcane in the interior of the State of São Paulo. Huge areas are cultivated and after harvesting will come sugar, alcohol, drink and ethanol. Credit: Getty Images)

Go back 50 years and Latin America was generally wealthier than East Asia. But that has been reversed.

While the economies of East and South East Asia have taken off, enjoying a so-called "economic miracle", Latin America’s have experienced only tepid growth, despite the region’s enormous potential. Gideon Long asks why.

We go to Singapore, one of the most open and business friendly nations on earth, to visit a factory making credit cards using the latest computer chips. And we ask economists what Latin America can learn from the 'Asian Tigers'.

(Image: A photograph of a tourist boat in Singapore next to a drone view shot showing buildings in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Credit: Reuters/EPA)

Presented and produced by Gideon Long Reporter: Monica Miller

It's a region blessed with incredible natural resources, from copper to lithium to rich agricultural lands. It’s home to vibrant cultures, amazing music and creative and talented people.

And yet it has never fulfilled its enormous economic potential.

All too often it’s lurched from boom to bust, from hyperinflation to debt crises.

We ask why that is.

We consider corruption, crime, inequality, excessive bureaucracy and weak governance.

We look at Argentina’s long decline and Venezuela’s economic implosion, and ask what Latin America can do to bring greater prosperity to its people.

Produced and presented by Gideon Long

(Image: A man waves an Argentine flag during the demonstration. Members of the Argentine Workers' General Confederation and social organizations protested against new Argentine President Javier Milei's economic reforms, outside the Justice Palace in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Credit: Getty Images)