"Running out of that buffer"

May 28, 2026The personal savings rate just hit a several-years low. Plus: Solar geoengineering, souvenier tees, office space, and protein powder.

Justin Sullivan/Getty ImagesSegments From This EpisodeTwo big data releases came out Thursday: The PCE price index for April and GDP revisions for the first quarter of the year. Laura Veldkamp at Columbia Business School and Tara Sinclair at George Washington University explain what these reports say about the state of the economy. shih-wei/Getty ImagesThe latest release from the Bureau of Economic Analysis shows the personal saving rate has dropped to its lowest point since June 2022.

Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times via Getty ImagesMore office space is being converted or demolished than is being built. But high-end office buildings are in high demand.

Andreas Rentz/Getty ImagesEllen Cushing, a staff writer at The Atlantic, wrote about the potential protein powder shortage.

Jill Replogle/LAistHuntington Beach, California, faces a structural budget gap where recurring expenses exceed recurring revenue. One answer may lie in the city’s trademarked slogan: Surf City USA.