The Best One Yet - 🍌 “This Pod is Bananas” — Bananas’ inflation-eater. TikTok’s ban vote. Women’s worldwide job record.

Episode Date: March 11, 2024

There is 1 product that has defied inflation more than any other: The Banana — Bananas have remained the most affordable fruit in America for 3 reasons, and 1 of them is turning brown (literally).TikTok’s worst week ever: Congress is voting on whether to force TikTok to split from China — But the surprise on the ballot this election year may be Gen Z TikTokers.And the percentage of women working just hit an all-time high *worldwide* — And it all comes down to one key: Childcare.Plus, for your consideration, we present… TBOY Awards. “And the TBOY goes to…”Subscribe to our newsletter: tboypod.com/newsletterWant merch, a shoutout, or got TheBestFactYet? Go to: www.tboypod.comFollow The Best One Yet on Instagram, Twitter, and Tiktok: @tboypodAnd now watch us on Youtube Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is Nick. This is Jack. Welcome back. It is Monday, March 11th. And today's pod is the best one yet. Jack and I whipped up a T-boy. The top three pop business news stories you need to know today. Jack, big week, my friend.

Yeah, he's, Jack and I are flying over to New York City right now. Is it called the Weiss Hotel or the White Hotel? Either way, we're staying in Brooklyn. I think it's called the Weath Hotel. No, it's white. That's white. That's white. Nick and I have an announcement to make, and let's just put it this way.

We'll be all the way up when we do. T-boy Tuesday, stay tuned, Yetis. In the meantime, Jack, three fantastic stories today. What do we got, man? For our first story, Congress just voted unanimously to force TikTok to separate from China or else it's banned. But Yetis, this is the first presidential election where Gen Z may vote for TikTok. For our second story, there is one thing whose prices worldwide have barely changed in decades. Bananas.

Bananas, the humble banana. is defeating inflation, so Jack and I are going to tell you how. And our third and final story. The percentage of women in the workforce just hit an all-time high worldwide. And the number one reason for this record moment, it all comes down to child care. But Yeties, before we hit that wonderful mix of stories to kick off the week. What a mix of stories from Monday? Love it, Jack.

So last night was the Oscars, and I got to say, everyone looked fantastic on the red carpet. Oh, good. So good. Good. What are you wearing? Who are you wearing? What weren't you wearing? But yet is Nick and I, we have one issue with the Academy. Last night, they had the wrong envelopes. Last night, they handed out the wrong awards. Fortunately, here at the Best One Yet podcast, we have the real winners.

So Jack and I are here to present this year's T-Boy Awards. We are recognizing excellence in business. And we'd like to thank the Academy. Can we get some drug roll music? The first award for tonight's show is Best Director. to Jensen Huang of NVIDIA. Jensen Wong of NVIDIA has led the surge of NVIDIA stock, and he can come right up and accept your reward, Jensen. He added $1 trillion in value just in 2024 so far.

Well, the next award is for Best Drama, which goes to Open AI. The Shakespearean comeback story of Sam Altzman was won for the ages. Yes, it was. And the Best Hair and Makeup Award goes to Sam Bankman-Fried. Each day he wakes up in prison, his hairdo has a different style. Well, Jack, best costume design goes to the Abercrombie and Fitch male model. This is my favorite. They're actually wearing clothes now, which is the key to the stock going up, apparently. Best international film goes to O-Zempec.

The Miracle Weight Loss Drug is from Denmark, but everyone in the U.S. has seen it. Ozampic, Danish by Birth, American by Blood. Okay, Nick, what about best performance in a musical? Well, Jack, that award is going to the audience at AMC theaters who's been watching the Taylor Swift concert movie and dancing in the aisles. Best lead actor goes to Ben the Bitcoin. His Bitcoin role just hit in all time high. Step on down, Ben. And best leading actress goes to... Yes, Jack. That $40 Stanley Tumblr. The Stanley Mug. She is literally everywhere right now.

Chances are you have one in your left hand and your right hand right now. She's so good. She's so good. She earned it, Jack. But of course, we can't close out the T-Boy Awards without mentioning who we lost in the past year. As in memoriam. Jack, Yeti's, besties. Can we please have a moment of silence for? For bedbath and beyond. For Wework. For Twitter. And for the Apple Car. Congratulations to all the winners out there. The Oscars? Yeah, that's cute. Jack and I would also like to take a moment here and thank our mothers, our wives.

Now, the thing we love most about the T-Boy Awards every year. Our producers, our audience. Our listeners. Our editors. No, we got two more. We have some more thank you. We got some more time. We need more time.

They're taking us off. We got to go. Yadis, we've got to hear our three stories. Fifteen years before this song, two boys from the Northeast met in the dorm. They had an idea that caused a cultural storm. It's the best one yet, but the best is a norm. Jack Nick, that's it. I don't even think they need to practice.

50% that's a fat tip Tea boy city on your at list If you know you know cause we're ready to go We can't wait no more So just start the show Start the show First a quick word from our sponsor For our first story

Congress just voted unanimously To force TikTok to break up with China Or get banned Was that dramatic enough Jack? But Nick, this is The prize on the ballot for this year's presidential election, Gen Z TikTok voters. Yeties, there was a shockingly quick development that went down last week and Jack and I got to update you on it. A House committee, a key House committee, voted unanimously to force TikTok to change their ownership or else they get banned in the United States.

This House committee voted 54-0 against. And the bill would require that TikTok separate from its Chinese ownership, bite dance, or else it faces a nationwide ban. Yeah, when it comes to political science, this is the equivalent of going viral. Now, why would politicians want to ban TikTok? Well, Jack, it's because a third of Americans under the age of 30 regularly get their news from TikTok. And since China controls TikTok, China controls the news and information we consume, which

means China can influence the decisions we make. That's why TikTok is already banned at some universities. Like the University of Texas. And that's why TikTok is already banned for many government workers. Like the CIA. And for some states too. Like Missouri. But yeties, we know what you're thinking.

People have been talking about a TikTok ban for four years. Nothing's happened on a serious measure. Well, this news is the first serious move that we've seen toward an actual national TikTok ban. Now, Republican leaders plan to bring this bill to a full floor vote this week. Which means this week could be TikTok's worst week yet. So, Nick, how did TikTok respond to this huge threat about their biggest market? Jack, I'm so glad you asked. TikTok responded by issuing the biggest push notification in U.S. history.

Last week, everyone who has TikTok notifications turned on on their phone received a push notification from TikTok. And here's what it said. TikTok is now at risk of being shut down. Call your U.S. representative now. And if you open the TikTok app, you saw an ad that said the same thing. Plus the phone number of your representative based on your zip code. Which resulted in perhaps the biggest political mobile. in the history of the politics.

Everyone who works in policy tries so hard to, like, activate potential voters and TikTok just did it more than anything ever has. Congress got so many calls from angry constituents about this TikTok ban. They had to take their phones off the hook. Disconnect the landline! And yet, this issue, the potential ban of TikTok,

is the one issue that's uniting Republicans, Democrats, and the president right now. To force TikTok to separate from China. And since all the people, politicians seem united on this issue, they can all have cover from political consequences. Because of all politicians are voting for the same thing, then none of them can be punished by voters for. This week, the full House of Representatives with the United States is going to vote to potentially ban TikTok. And then Jack, I just got a push notification. Time for our takeaway. So Jack, what's the

takeaway for our buddies over a TikTok? This is the first presidential election where TikTok is on the ballot. Jack and I have said before that TikTok may be too lit to prohibit. What we meant was that voters love TikTok so much, politicians may be afraid to ban it. So by that same logic, if you're a politician who's pro TikTok, then TikTok users may vote for you. And that seems to be the calculus that Donald Trump reached on Friday last week. Yeah, because back in 2020, the former President Trump was the first to call for a TikTok ban. But last week on Friday, he flip-flopped, saying he is now. against a TikTok ban.

And why is that exactly, Jack? Because four years ago, when he was anti-Tick-Tac, Gen Z was 16 years old. They couldn't vote yet. But today, Gen Z is 20, and they can vote. So as Congress decides this week, whether or not to ban TikTok, this is the new factor they must consider.

This is the first presidential election that Gen TikTok can vote. For our second story, bananas have proven to be the most inflation-proof food in America. So we're going to talk about the unique economics of B-A-N-A-N-A-A-N-S. Jack and I have told you about some inflation-proof products out there, haven't we, Jack? Costco's $1.50-cent hot dog and soda combo. Arizona's 20-ounce-99-ccent canned iced tea.

Elf Beauties $3 lipstick. But Jack, the most inflation-resistant product by far, what is it? The banana. The banana isn't just beating inflation in America. It's eating inflation. To quote Gwen Stefani, I ain't no holler back girl. B-A-N-A-N-A-N-E-S, Jack, can we talk about the numbers? The average price of food right now in America is 22% higher than it was four years ago.

Okay, but the average price of bananas? It's the same as it was four years ago. Apples, lemons, all the other fruit in that little basket on your kitchen table, all those prices rose. Avocados! Their prices have soared there are extra lately. But in this era of inflation, bananas have not inflated. In fact, these bananas have cost less than 65 cents a pound in the United States.

since the 2000s. Bananas cost about the third the price per pound as apples or oranges. And that is why Trader Joe's has sold bananas for 19 cents each for over 20 years, maybe even forever, Jack. But yet he's for 63 years. America has been the biggest importer of bananas on earth. We have an appetite for bananas which confuses Jack and me, doesn't it? With all that demand from America, how are banana prices so low?

Why has the banana beaten inflation when we are demanding? so many bananas here in America. There's actually three key reasons to the low prices of bananas. And the three reasons are unique to this banana dilemma. Is dilemma the right word? It just kind of sounded like banana. So it's not the right word. No, it's not the right word. The first reason banana prices are so low is classic supply and demand. Demand is high, but supply is even higher. At any given moment, there's a hundred bananas available for each one American. That's a lot of banana bro, Jack. There's a hundred times more bananas in this country right now. Then there are Americans.

You give me enough peanut butter. We'll consume it, Yetis. But number two reason banana prices can stay low, it's because of politics. There are no tariffs on the bananas that we import. Bananas are our most freely tradable fruit. The U.S.-China relations, they're tough right now. But our relations with Colombia, with Ecuador, with Costa Rica, they are tasting fantastic. We are buddy-buddy when it comes to bananas.

In fact, we actually get half of our bananas. One out of two bananas you eat come from Guatemala. For spring break, I went to Costa Rica once. I got stuck behind a banana truck. They were everywhere in Costa Rica. And here's the ironic part. The bananas were overflowing, spilling onto the road. It's a metaphor for the banana economy we're talking about right now.

No, it's a metaphor for Mario Car because a banana makes the car slip and slat off the road. But Jack, the number three reason why banana prices have beaten inflation, what is it? Our takeaway. So, hey, Mr. Talleyman, can you tell? Tally me a takeaway. Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies over selling bananas? The low-priced banana is the perfect example of leverage. Eddie is a top reason why banana prices stay so low. It's their spoil speed. They happen to be the most perishable of all the fruits.

Compared to other fruits, bananas spoil the quickest, which gives the buyer the leverage. And here's why, Yeti, sellers have to sell bananas before they go bad. But buyers don't have to buy bananas at all. There's plenty of other fruit they can choose from. So the supplier faces a countdown clock. They've got one week to sell that yellow banana before it becomes a brown banana. And that unique, quick perishability of bananas gives the buyer, which is America in this case, it gives the buyer the advantage. And when buyers have the advantage, the price stays down and that is leverage.

So the banana, for over 25 years, it has defeated inflation. And a big reason is that banana spoil so fast. Banana prices, they're so low because buyers have leverage. Now a quick word from our sponsor. For our third and final story, the share of women in the workforce just hit record high levels, not just in the U.S., across the world. Because the biggest winner of remote work is families with kids. Jack, let's whip out the econ updates on Friday. We got our monthly jobs report for February.

Where were we seeing? The United States added 275,000 net jobs in February, while unemployment ticked up to 3.9%. Now, interesting thing here, Yeti's, the reason unemployment rose, even though tons of jobs were added? It's because people joined the workforce. People joined the workforce, especially women. The percentage of women in the United States workforce is far exceeding pre-pandemic levels. Get the latest data from Moody's today. 73% of women over the age of 16 are working or looking for work.

For men, it's higher than that. It's 83%. But that 10 percentage point gap is the smallest in U.S. history. Now, Yetis, here's why Jack and I were fascinated about this story. Last summer, we declared that the pandemic caused she session in the United States was over. But now we have to update that headline. The she session is over for the whole world. All of planet Earth, Yeti's workforce participation weights for women have blown past pre-pandemic levels, not just in the United States. They're higher in the EU, Japan, Australia, and dozens of Latin American and Asian countries, too.

You just open up a map and throw a dart. Odds are women's participation in that country is like at its highest point ever, higher than before the pandemic. Now, Moody's economists cite three reasons why women are gaining jobs faster than men across the world. The first reason for this is that men already were working at higher rates than women. So as the economy was growing, there were simply more available women on the sideline looking to get a job. And the second reason for more women participating in the workforce is wah-won. inflation. Families globally are feeling a budget pinch, so women are having to get jobs to help pay

the bills. But the third reason we thought was the most interesting. So we made the third reason our takeaway. Jack, what's the takeaway for all our buddies who are everyone in the economy? The pandemic hurt female employment, but remote work has helped it. Yet he's the core reason why women's participation in the workforce is historically lower. The answer is child care. Women are also working. It's just unpaid work because it's for the family and for kids. And it was the same when the pandemic hit. Schools and child centers closed and women took the brunt of that. Women left jobs at higher rates during the pandemic than men did. That's why they called it the she session. That was the she session. But as things have returned to normal,

remote work flexibility is one thing that's remained. And that is what helped women and is still helping women, juggle both caretaking responsibilities and paid work. course, remote work isn't perfect, like CEOs believe that it harms productivity and innovation. And young people may lose mentorship opportunities that can only happen in person. But the data shows that remote flexibility for men and for women helps women be able to work while still having children cared for. The pandemic hurt female employment, but remote work has helped it. Jack, can you whip up the takeaways for us to kick off the week?

The House of Representatives votes this week on whether to force TikTok to break up with China or else it gets banned in the U.S. This is the first election when Gen TikTok can vote. For our second story, bananas have defied inflation. Food prices are up 22% last four years, but banana prices are flat. Because the banana spoil speed gives buyers the leverage. And our third and final story, women's workforce participation hasn't just recovered from the pandemic. It's blown past it.

Worldwide, the pandemic hurt female workers, but the pandemic's remote work revolution. has helped them. But Yetis, this pod's not over yet. Here's what else you need to know today. First, America is making a big move to get aid to suffering Gazans. The U.S. military is building a floating pier off the coast. With land routes blocked into Gaza, the U.S. can only deliver aid by air or by sea. Although the pier will take 30 to 60 days to build, it will eventually get more humanitarian aid to Gazans.

Second, the SAT, it's going digital. America's top standardized test to get into college just announced an online version. It's 45 minutes shorter. It's supposed to be less stressful and apparently it's also harder to cheat on. But you're still going to do it in the cafeteria with a proctor walking up and down the aisles. It's just going to be on a screen instead of on paper. And finally, a hiring update if you're looking for a job, NASA wants you. NASA is hiring for a new space mission. NASA is finally returning to the moon beginning in 2026.

So there are lunar job openings. podcast on the Moon Jack? What do we think? Now that's a remote job. Now, time for the best fact yet. This one whipped up by Jack and me because we noticed it while watching the Oscars last night and we just, we had to share it with the Yetis. Trivia. Who is the highest paid actor or actress in Hollywood last year? Well, it wasn't Tom Cruise and it wasn't Margot Robbie and it wasn't Gosling Smile. It was Adam Sandler. Adam Sandler ranked in 73 million bucks last year, which is 14 million more than any other actor. And that's Adam's cut.

Like, it's after money went to his agents, his manager, and his lawyers. Now, interesting thing, most of the money for Adam Sandler comes from Netflix, who he signed a four-year, $250 million deal with. All of Adam Sandler's classics, like Billy Madison and Happy Gilmore, they're on Netflix. But he's also making new movies for Netflix. Adam Sandler, he's making more money in Hollywood right now than he ever made with the PGA tour. We hope he gets paid with those huge checks. Yeties, you look fantastic to kick off the week.

And if you haven't yet, follow us a T-Boy pod because Jack and I have got an announcement coming to Instagram straight from New York City. Make sure you turn your notifications on because we're going to do a push notification like TikTok did. We're going live on Instagram tomorrow to announce something big. Let's just say it's going to be 100 stories tall.

I think I just gave it away. Yeah, I think you do. Yet he's Jack and I all see in Manhattan. We're building a skyscrap. And before we go, a happy birthday to Abby Binaday. From the Philippines, turning 21 at North. Northeastern University.

Just as I pass. And then, Kida, from Dublin Island, has got a birthday and a second season of that fantastic podcast. And Lara Becker has turned 25 years old celebrating in New Jersey, baby. Happy birthday to Megan Williams in Huntington Beach, California. And Megan hasn't missed a day of this pod in four years. Not too shabby, Megan. And happy 15th birthday to Therun Raya Varapu in sunny San Diego.

And just a shout out to Yeti Martin Cahill, walking his puppy hammers. over in Scotland. This pod squad is enjoying the show, trading stocks, living on the lovely Scottish aisle of mole. And to anyone else, celebrate something today,

make it a T-boy. Celebrate the wins. This is Jack. I own stock of Netflix, and Nick and I both own stock of Apple. We both own one Bitcoin, whose name is Ben. Right now,

they're about 100 bananas for every American on sale. I think it's per year, isn't it? Nope. And that's why it's a dilemma, Jack. Dude, I'm pretty sure it's per year. Nope, nope, nope, no, no, no, no, no.

So you're saying we eat 100 bananas per day? Yep, yep, yep, yep, yep. I'm not an orangutan.