Trumponomics

New York subway riders and commuters, already mired in a miserable year, are bracing for a summer like no other amid rising delays, service cuts and overcrowding. It all underscores the perils of under-investment in rail systems that should be key drivers of growth. What the heck is going on? Can anything be done? Two guests think they have the answers: Jim Venturi, creator of the ReThinkNYC plan to overhaul regional transport links, and Tracy Gordon, senior fellow at the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center. Scott hosts along with Bloomberg City Hall reporter Henry Goldman.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Surprise! Japan's economy is no longer down and out. Instead, it may just be the next big growth surprise. Almost three decades since the collapse of Japan's stratospheric property bubble, bank lending is back, the jobless rate is below 3 percent and corporate profits have never been fatter. Technology and AI are again leading the way, compensating for the nation's shrinking population. Investor Peter Tasker joins Dan and guest co-host Chris Anstey to share his reasons for optimism. Along the way, Tasker reminisces about Japan's go-go years in the 1970s and '80s -- how his fictional anti-hero Mori survived all those long years of economic stagnation.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Central banks tend to be more comfortable pulling levers of economic policy than being on the front line of crimefighting. For the monetary gurus of Indonesia, those two worlds have collided. Central bankers say the mafia is driving up the price of chili peppers, the Southeast Asian nation's favorite spice. This is one situation where raising interest rates -- the common tool to fight rising prices -- won't be enough. Dan and Scott talk with Karlis Salna, an economics reporter in Bloomberg's Jakarta bureau, to get the story.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Millions of middle-class Americans face an unexpected reality in today's era of economic growth: their paychecks vary so much that paying bills and saving for the future is exhausting and challenging month after month. This week on Benchmark, Dan and Scott speak with Jonathan Morduch and Rachel Schneider, whose book, "The Financial Diaries," vividly illustrates the financial struggles of more than 200 U.S. families.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What on earth is going on in Brazil? Less than a year after impeaching one president for fiddling fiscal accounts, her successor is on the ropes amid allegations of graft. Dig a little deeper and the real problem is a recession deeper than any the country has ever experienced. With Brazil one of the world's 10 largest economies -- and Latin America's largest -- it matters beyond the nation's borders. Sao Paulo native Vivianne Rodrigues, who runs Latin American political news at Bloomberg, joins Dan and Scott to explain what gives. We also hear that the gas station in Brasilia at the center of the scandal doesn't actually have a car wash!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Donald Trump's road to 3 percent growth might run through New Zealand. The faraway nation is the only developed economy that's been expanding at such a torrid pace, thanks to the one factor that Trump railed against on the campaign trail: immigration. How did the land of "Lord of the Rings" become such a desired destination, and how are all those people squeezing into such a small country? Joining Dan and Scott is Tracy Withers, who has spent almost two decades covering the economy of his native land as a Bloomberg reporter in Wellington.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A major puzzle in the U.S. economy is why wage gains have been relatively subdued in the last couple of years, even as all signs point to a tight job market where employers are having trouble filling positions. One reason is that labor unions just don't have the clout they used to in America. While there are occasional victories, the situation is a far cry from the glory days of the 1970s, and it's also helping reshape the political landscape. Jared Bernstein, former chief economist to Vice President Joe Biden and an expert on labor economics, joins Scott and guest co-host Patricia Laya to explain.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The world's easiest place to do business, the second-largest container port and the biggest center for commodities trading. There's a lot more to Singapore than a ban on chewing gum, which is mostly honored in the breach. Smaller than Rhode Island, settlements around modern-day Singapore rose and fell centuries ago on the China maritime trade. Think of it as an Oceanic version of the Silk Road. And as China's economic power expands, the little entrepot is well positioned to keep rising. John Curtis Perry, author of "Singapore: Unlikely Power" tells all to Dan and Scott.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Israel's economy is so innovative that it's forcing otherwise hostile Arab neighbors to look at ways they could also benefit -- and the result could eventually be a gradual normalization of relations, if all continues to go smoothly. One example: trade and collaboration in technology and intelligence are flourishing below the radar between Israel and a host of Arab states. Sure, there are a lot of caveats, and whether this will affect relations with Palestinians or Iran is another question, but just the fact that Israelis and Saudis are quietly getting along in one way is a start. Jonathan Ferziger, a reporter for Bloomberg in Tel Aviv, joins Dan and Scott to tell the story.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Here's an economic statistic you don't see very often: Top-flight surfing breaks can drive growth. Fresh from his 11-year-old daughter's surfing lesson just outside Sydney, Mike Heath asks guest Sam Wills to run through experiments that he says confirm the theory, especially during El Niño years. Stay tuned as Dan pines for the apartment he left behind in Bondi Beach two decades ago.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.