Ben Casselman
Ben Casselman tells the story of the U.S. economy through clear, data-driven reporting on inflation, jobs and the forces reshaping household finances. He is the chief economics correspondent for The New York Times and has reported on the economy for nearly 20 years. His coverage focuses on how economic policy, market shifts and price changes translate into everyday consequences for workers and families.
Inflation and household finances
Casselman’s recent work centers on explaining the persistence of inflation and what it means for the real cost of living. In “What Years of Inflation Have Done to American Prices,” he traces how nearly every major category of goods and services now costs more than it would have if prepandemic trends had continued, using granular price data to show where increases have been most acute and how many categories are still rising faster than before.
In “As Inflation Eats Up Pay Gains, Workers Fall Behind,” he connects academic research and government statistics to show how nominal wage gains have failed to keep pace with higher prices, documenting which groups of workers are losing ground despite a tight labor market. His reporting on inflation accelerated by conflict, including coverage of how the war with Iran pushed up prices, situates energy costs, supply disruptions and geopolitical risk inside a broader narrative about household budgets.
Casselman frequently writes on the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation measures and their policy implications. In coverage of the Personal Consumption Expenditures price index, he explains how inflation remained elevated even as revised data showed it was slightly cooler than previously believed, linking those revisions to the Fed’s decision to raise interest rates for the first time in several years. In “Inflation Remains Elevated as Energy Costs Push on Prices,” he walks readers through monthly changes in the index, emphasizing the role of energy and other volatile categories while clarifying the underlying trend that matters for policymakers.
Across these stories he uses charts, historical comparisons and straightforward language to untangle technical measures of inflation into clear takeaways about purchasing power and policy risk.
Jobs, wages and the labor market
Casselman also maintains a steady focus on hiring, unemployment and the evolving structure of work.
In “U.S. Hiring Jumps, an Encouraging Sign for the Economy,” he combines headline job gains, unemployment rates and wage figures to show how a strong payroll report can mask the reality that pay is still not keeping up with higher prices. Follow-up coverage such as “U.S. Hiring Continues at a Steady but Slower Pace” explains what a deceleration in job growth means for workers and employers, using trend data to distinguish normal cooling from deeper weakness. His piece on “Smaller Revision Points to More Accurate Jobs Numbers” examines annual benchmark revisions from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, highlighting how even small adjustments can change the perceived strength of the labor market.
Beyond month-to-month data, he looks ahead to the structure of the future job market. In work on “The job market in 2035: More nurses, fewer secretaries,” he explores occupational projections to show which roles are likely to grow and which will shrink, tying those trajectories to demographic change, technology and the demand for care work.
During the pandemic and its aftermath, he has written on how the coronavirus reshaped the American economy, including pieces on unemployment claims, the expiration of emergency support and the uneven recovery for different types of workers. Throughout his labor coverage, Casselman maintains a consistent emphasis on how macro trends translate into individual choices about employment, pay and security.
Interest rates, debt and financial markets
Interest rates, borrowing costs and market instability form another core strand of Casselman’s beat.
In “The Economy Got Used to Low Borrowing Costs. Their Exit Could Pose Risks,” he details how nearly two decades of ultralow interest rates reshaped household and corporate balance sheets, then shows how a rapid reset could expose vulnerabilities in the United States’ financial system. He connects rate moves to mortgages, corporate debt and government borrowing, emphasizing which sectors are most exposed as financing gets more expensive.
In coverage of the trade deficit, he steps back to show how record imbalances in goods reflect deeper patterns in production, consumption and policy.
Casselman is a regular explainer of market turmoil for general audiences.
On “The Bond Market Is Flipping Out. Here’s Why You Should Care,” he uses the surge in yields on the 10-year Treasury as an entry point to describe how bond market stress affects everything from credit card rates to corporate investment plans.
He often appears on audio formats to walk through these dynamics, serving as an on-air guide to why swings in rates and markets matter beyond Wall Street. His financial coverage consistently ties rate decisions and market behavior back to household borrowing, business investment and the durability of the expansion.
Data-driven coverage of policy and technology
Casselman’s defining technique is the use of data to clarify complex policy debates and emerging technologies. His professional descriptions highlight a specialty in stories that use and explain data, and he frequently collaborates with graphics teams on work that blends visualization and reporting.
Past projects have included interactive pieces on tax changes, time use during the pandemic and personalized inflation measures, all designed to make abstract numbers relevant to individual readers.
He applies the same approach to the economic implications of artificial intelligence and other technologies. Recent articles such as “Stocks and the Economy Are Increasingly Relying on the A.I. Boom” and “A.I.
Is Reshaping the Economy. Good Luck Measuring How.” explore how investment in A.I.-related companies is lifting markets and spending, while also examining why existing data make it difficult to pin down the true impact on jobs and productivity.
In “Nearly 200 Economists and Tech Leaders Warn of A.I.
Threats,” he reports on a letter calling for policymakers to better understand and respond to potential A.I. disruptions, situating those concerns within broader debates about regulation and innovation. Earlier in his career, he developed this data-focused style at FiveThirtyEight and The Wall Street Journal, where he covered topics including criminal justice, gun violence, elections and the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, earning a Gerald Loeb Award and contributing to Pulitzer Prize–recognized work.
Alongside his reporting, Casselman teaches economics journalism at the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism, reinforcing his role as both practitioner and educator in explaining the economy. Across inflation, labor, financial markets and technology, his work is distinguished by its combination of rigorous data analysis, clear explanations and a consistent focus on how economic forces touch everyday life.
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Abigail Summerville
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Adekunle Agbetiloye
Adekunle Agbetiloye is a senior reporter who connects capital flows, hard numbers and energy transition to the wider African economy. He works at Business Insider Africa, covering how money, technology and energy reshape economic growth, jobs and living conditions. His beat spans the African economy, technology, energy transition, climate change, startups and critical minerals, with a focus on concrete deals and data-led stories. He reports on African startup funding cycles, sovereign wealth funds, billionaire investors, multilateral and private investment programs, energy and power markets, Bitcoin mining, and economic policy choices. His work follows how governments finance spending, manage debt and respond to social pressure, and how sector snapshots and health and development metrics reveal links between macro indicators, corporate strategy and everyday costs.
Aimee Picchi
Aimee Picchi connects Social Security, retirement programs and economic policy directly to the financial security of ordinary Americans, showing how macro decisions hit household budgets. She is associate managing editor for CBS MoneyWatch at CBS News, covering business and personal finance with clear, accessible explanations of complex money issues. Her core beat is Social Security and retirement, interest rates and inflation, and how policy, markets and company strategies affect workers, retirees, savers and investors. She reports on benefit adequacy, looming Social Security cuts, COLA changes, Federal Reserve rate decisions, fuel costs, trade tensions and labor’s share of income, always framing coverage around pocketbook impacts. Her background includes retirement reporting fellowships, prior staff reporting on technology, media and business, an Institutional Investor book on affluent investors, and freelance work for national outlets. She also writes science fiction and fantasy and is a Nebula Award finalist.
Alex Harring
Alex Harring turns fast-moving market, economic and corporate developments into clear pre-market briefings that show what will matter when U.S. trading opens. He is a markets and economics reporter for CNBC’s digital platforms and writes Morning Squawk, a flagship daily newsletter that gives readers five key things to know before the stock market opens. His beat spans financial markets, investing, consumer trends and the U.S. economy, with coverage of central bank decisions, inflation, corporate strategy, sector moves and geopolitical shocks. He focuses on how policy, data and earnings shape equities, interest rates, currencies and investor positioning, linking price action with underlying drivers in real time and in reported features. Harring’s background reporting on corporate news, business and the economy across print, digital, broadcast and streaming informs his habit of connecting markets, companies and geopolitics in one frame.