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Slack.com slash DHQ. 31.381 trillion dollars. That is where we are. From American public

media, this is Marketplace.

In Los Angeles, I'm Kyle Rizdole. It is Thursday. Today, the 19th of January. Good as always

to have you along, everybody. Today is indeed debt limit day. The aforementioned nearly

$32 trillion. And we will get there on the program today in due course. But honestly,

there are more immediately pressing economic challenges right now, chief among them everything

in this economy that depends on the cost of money, which is everything. So that is where

we begin today. The Federal Reserve and how the Guardians of Interest rates are thinking

about their next move, which will be upon us February 1st. As Marketplace's sub-rebenitial

reports, a whole lot depends on how the Fed is thinking about that next move. Whether

it's Federal Reserve, board governors or investors on Wall Street, they're all living with the

same numbers. And yet, there are differing views on what to do with interest rates. Stephen

Blitz's chief US economist at TS Lombard. If they stop too soon, you get more inflation.

If they go too long, they create a recession.

Fact is, we don't know if what the Fed has already done has fully shown up yet in the

economy. It takes months. Imagine trying to drive a car with a delay in both the gas pedal

and the brake. So that's the argument for small rate hikes from here on out. Don Kohn

...