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BBC World Service


The daily drama of money and work from the BBC.


Business Daily

Can your smartphone bring you spiritual fulfilment? 

We look at the growth of religion-based apps, as the “faith tech” industry sees rapid growth. 

Much of the tech charges a fee to use it, but not everyone is convinced.

Produced and presented by Rob Young 

(Image: The "Text With Jesus" chatbot app which has thousands of paying subscribers. It lets people ostensibly ask questions of Mary, Joseph, Jesus and nearly all 12 apostles. Credit: Getty Images)

God in your pocket

Indonesia’s president has now been in power for a year but having won the election on policies to support the lower classes, the economy is struggling.
 
That struggle led to violent protests across the country making global headlines. 

We speak to businesses, young people and families about the changes they’ve seen in the past year and discuss whether the new government can fulfil their economic pledges. 

Presenter: Sam Fenwick
Producer: Hannah Mullane

(Image: Students eat food supplied by the Indonesian government's free meal programme at an elementary school in Darul Kamal, Aceh province on 13 October 2025. Credit: Getty Images)

What's going on with Indonesia's economy?

The country has dropped tariffs on a wide range of US products, a major U-turn in the trade war. 

It comes after Prime Minister Mark Carney said he had reached a “new economic and security relationship” with US President Donald Trump. 

But with almost 40% of small Canadian businesses warning they might not survive another year under tariffs, and the province of Ontario losing tens of thousands of jobs, what will this shift mean for the economy? 

We break down why Canada is changing course and what it could mean for businesses and consumers. 

Presented by Sam Gruet
Produced by Megan Lawton

(Image: US President Donald Trump, right, and Mark Carney, Canada's prime minister, shake hands during a meeting in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington DC on 7/10/25. Credit: Getty Images)

Has Canada lost its trade war with the US?

Thailand has one of the highest levels of consumer debt in the world as a proportion of its GDP. We hear from people who have borrowed and cannot pay back. They are struggling to get regular work to make payments and cover interest. 

We also speak to a private money lender - are they helping people or making the problem worse?

Producer/presenter: Ed Butler

(Photo: Jie Ae Nattarin, a money lender in Thailand wearing her trademark headband)

Thailand’s debt spiral

The South African grew up under the racist apartheid system as one of 14 children. 

He looked set for a life in farming, until a chance event took him down a different path – ultimately becoming CEO of the multinational banking group, Investec. 

Presenter: Leanna Byrne
Producer: Elisabeth Mahy

(Image: Fani Titi. Credit: Investec)

Business Daily meets: Fani Titi, Investec CEO

Passengers are suffering more disruption as technology at airports, airlines and air traffic control is failing.

But why is aviation software becoming more prone to failure and vulnerable to cyber-attacks, and what is the solution to preventing delays?

Presented and produced by Russell Padmore

(Image: Passengers wait at Heathrow Airport in London, as European airports experienced disruption due to a cyberattack on the check-in and boarding system in September 2025. Credit: Getty Images)

Should we expect more airline delays?

For the first time in nearly seven years, federal operations have been drastically curtailed as the US government shuts down. 

As it enters a second week, we look in detail at how the collapse in funding for government services is affecting America at large - from the Federal worker fearing for his job, to the wider concerns of slowing growth and rising inflation. 

What does this say about the state of the world’s largest economy?

Produced and presented by Ed Butler

(Image: "Closed" signage in front of the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC, US, on 5 October 20205. Credit: Getty Images)

The cost of a shutdown

Women and girls in Afghanistan have been excluded from much of the working world, as well as from the chance to get an education. 

Many are finding ways to bring in an income for their families, but a 48-hour internet shutdown threatened this recently.

We hear the experiences of shopkeepers, tech workers and charity bosses in the country.

If you'd like to get in touch with the programme, our email address is businessdaily@bbc.co.uk

Producer/presenter: Hannah Bewley

(Photo: Afghan women in burkas walk along a road in the Argo district of Badakhshan province, 28 August, 2025. Credit: Getty Images)

Afghanistan: Women disconnected

Thailand’s Pichaya Soontornyanakij, widely known as Chef Pam, was this year named the best female chef in the world by a panel of more than 1,000 gastronomists assembled by 50 Best, a food and drink sector brand. She’s the first Asian woman to win that award. 

Gideon Long meets her at her Michelin-starred restaurant in Bangkok, in a building which has deep personal meaning for her and which she and her family have lovingly restored. 

She takes him on a tour of the gastronomic delights of Bangkok’s Chinatown and tells him about her Thai-Chinese heritage and the challenges of the restaurant business. 

If you'd like to get in touch with the programme, our email address is businessdaily@bbc.co.uk

Presented and produced by Gideon Long 

(Image: Thai chef Pichaya Soontornyanakij at her restaurant in Bangkok.)

Business Daily meets: Thailand's Chef Pam

Earlier this year, President Donald Trump signed an executive order stopping subsidies for renewable energy sources like wind and solar power. He has called attempts to boost green energy in the US the "Green New Scam". 

We head to Middletown, Ohio, where a hydrogen-powered furnace for the steel mill, which was subsidised under the Biden administration, has been cancelled under President Trump. Supporters of the new furnace say it would have made a much cleaner plant in the town and created many jobs. 

We hear from residents, community leaders, and economists, and ask - what happens when industry clashes with politics?

If you'd like to get in touch with the programme, our email address is businessdaily@bbc.co.uk

Presenter: Erin Delmore
Producer: Nathalie Jimenez

(Picture: Cleveland-Cliffs Middletown Works in Middletown, Ohio, in 2024. Credit: Getty Images)

Trump's green retreat

The humble wine cork, once the main way to stop a bottle of wine, had its market share decimated in the 1990’s when screw caps were favoured. However, the problem of 'corked' wine has been almost completely solved and cork is recognised as a more sustainable, if slightly less convenient material for wine makers to use.

In this episode we visit the world’s largest cork producing region in Portugal to find out more about how the cork industry has hit the good times once again. We explore which wines taste better with cork and how supermarkets are cutting down on wine packaging. 

Presenter / producer: Rick Kelsey
Additional reporting: Alastair Leithead
Image: Cork production; Credit: Getty Images

The return of the wine cork

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