Business Daily

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How is the world feeling the impact of rising oil prices? Mar 12, 2026

Show notes

Ever since the US and Israel began their war against Iran, economies around the world have been coping with the impacts of energy prices and food security.

South Korea has introduced an energy price cap, universities have closed in Bangladesh and India has been granted access to sanctioned Russian oil to ease pressures.

We hear where is being impacted the most and how quickly, and if this will see the world move away from its reliance on imports.

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

Presenter: Rahul Tandon Producers: Matt Lines and Sarah Rogers Additional reporting: Sarah Rogers

Business Daily is the home of in-depth audio journalism devoted to the world of money and work. From small startup stories to big corporate takeovers, global economic shifts to trends in technology, we look at the key figures, ideas and events shaping business.

Each episode is a 17-minute, daily deep dive into a single topic, featuring expert analysis and the people at the heart of the story.

Recent episodes explore the weight-loss drug revolution, the growth in AI, the cost of living, why bond markets are so powerful, China's property bubble, and Gen Z's experience of the current job market.

We also feature in-depth interviews with company founders and some of the world's most prominent CEOs. These include Google's Sundar Pichai, Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales, and the CEO of Canva, Melanie Perkins.

(Picture: Motorists wait in line to purchase fuel at a petrol station in the Mohammadpur area of Dhaka, Bangladesh, amid concerns over global oil supply disruptions linked to escalating tensions in the Middle East. Credit: Getty Images)

Kidnapping for ransom Mar 11, 2026

Show notes

We look at the rising threat of kidnap for ransom. In West Africa, it's a growing criminal industry.

But how should any of us respond if or when the worst happens to us and a loved one is taken?

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

Presented and produced by Ed Butler

Each episode is a 17-minute, daily deep dive into a single topic, featuring expert analysis and the people at the heart of the story.

(Picture: Security officers stand guard next to a bus carrying freed worshippers at the Government House in Kaduna on the 5th of February 2026. More than 160 Christian worshippers were initially feared kidnapped during coordinated attacks on three churches in Kurmin Wali, Kajuru area, on the 18th of January. Credit: Getty Images)

Why are more people suing businesses? Mar 10, 2026

Show notes

From humble beginnings in England in the 12th century, to landmark civil rights court cases in the US in the 1960s, class actions are now rarely out of the headlines.

They’re a means of bringing together large groups of people – sometimes millions – under the umbrella of a collective claim for damages.

Their popularity has spread from the US back to Europe and beyond, which is becoming a concern for businesses fearful of finding themselves in multi-million-dollar litigation cases. Now, there are growing calls for legislation to curb their rise.

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

Presenter: Ed Butler Producer: Craig Henderson

Each episode is a 17-minute, daily deep dive into a single topic, featuring expert analysis and the people at the heart of the story.

(Picture: High angle view of lawyers researching at a table in a board room. Credit: Getty Images)

The book that built the modern economy Mar 09, 2026

Show notes

250 years ago, on the 9th of March 1776, a book was published that didn’t just explain the economy, it changed it. The Wealth of Nations, written by "the father of economics" Adam Smith, sparked debates that still rage today, shaping everything from global trade to how much you earn.

Rob Young looks at an original copy from 1776, assesses Smith's importance, and speak to economists about the state of Adam Smith's free market today.

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

Presenter: Rob Young Producer: David Cann

Each episode is a 17-minute, daily deep dive into a single topic, featuring expert analysis and the people at the heart of the story.

Recent episodes explore the boom in weight-loss drugs, why bond markets are so powerful, China's property bubble, and Gen Z's experience of the current job market.

We also feature in-depth interviews with company founders and some of the world's most prominent CEOs. These include Google's Sundar Pichai, Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales, CEO of Canva Melanie Perkins, and the CEO of Starbucks, Brian Niccol.

(Picture: A first edition of The Wealth of Nations, in two leather bound volumes, with gold lettering on the spine.)

Finding peace through chocolate Mar 06, 2026

Show notes

Rahul Tandon talks to a man whose family chocolate business – founded by his father in Syria in the 1980s - was destroyed by war. His family was ripped apart and he had to flee, via a refugee camp in Lebanon, to Canada where he resettled and re-launched the business.

Today, it’s thriving, enjoying global sales. The company is called Peace by Chocolate, and our guest, Tareq Hadhad, is its founder and CEO.

Presenter: Rahul Tandon Producer: Ahmed Adan

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

Each episode is a 17-minute, daily deep dive into a single topic, featuring expert analysis and the people at the heart of the story.

Recent episodes explore the boom in weight-loss drugs, why bond markets are so powerful, China's property bubble, and Gen Z's experience of the current job market.

(Picture: Tareq Hadhad. Credit: Tareq Hadhad)

Can the Gulf stay open for business? Mar 05, 2026

Show notes

From Hollywood adverts fronted by Idris Elba to glittering skylines and global events, Gulf countries have spent decades pitching themselves as stable hubs for international investment.

But as conflict spreads across the Middle East, investors are watching the region more closely.

In this edition of Business Daily, Sam Fenwick investigates whether the Gulf’s carefully built reputation for stability can hold — and what rising geopolitical tensions could mean for foreign investment, business confidence and the region’s economic ambitions.

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

Presenter: Sam Fenwick Producers: Sarah Rogers, Gideon Long, David Cann and Rebecca Smylie

Each episode is a 17-minute, daily deep dive into a single topic, featuring expert analysis and the people at the heart of the story.

Recent episodes explore the AI boom, why bond markets are so powerful, China's property bubble, and Gen Z's experience of the current job market.

(Picture: A green motorway sign points the way to Dubai as smoke rises in the background. Credit: Getty Images)

Are weight-loss drugs reshaping business? Mar 04, 2026

Show notes

In the final episode of our series on the weight-loss drug boom, we explore how the global surge in demand for obesity medications could be reshaping the business landscape. From established companies rethinking their business models, to start-ups seeking to capitalise on shifting consumer habits, the ripple effects are already being felt across several industries.

We also examine what the future may hold for the weight-loss market and the wider economy, as this sector continues to grow and evolve.

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

Producer/presenter: Hannah Mullane

Each episode is a 17-minute, daily deep dive into a single topic, featuring expert analysis and the people at the heart of the story.

Recent episodes explore the AI boom, why bond markets are so powerful, China's property bubble, and Gen Z's experience of the current job market.

(Photo: Close-up of a woman's hand shopping for yoghurt along the dairy aisle in supermarket, reading the nutrition label on the pot. Credit: Getty Images)

The worldwide weight-loss revolution Mar 03, 2026

Show notes

GLP-1 weight-loss drugs such as Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro and Zepbound are reshaping the treatment of obesity around the world. But even when these medicines are judged “cost-effective”, access often depends on who can afford to pay. In the second episode of our Business Daily series on the global weight-loss economy, Sam Fenwick examines how different countries are funding — or rationing — access to these high-priced injections. In England, the state's National Health System says the drugs offer good value for money, and yet rollout is being phased in slowly because of cost and capacity pressures. In the United Arab Emirates, most patients rely on private insurance or pay out of their own pockets. And in India, where obesity is rising fast, affordability remains a major barrier, although lower-cost generics may soon change that. If these medicines can prevent diabetes, heart attacks and strokes, they might save health systems money in the long run. But right now, governments, insurers and patients are grappling with the same question: Can we afford the weight-loss revolution?

Produced and presented by Sam Fenwick

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

Business Daily is the home of in-depth audio journalism devoted to the world of money and work. From small start-up stories to big corporate takeovers, global economic shifts to trends in technology, we look at the key figures, ideas and events shaping business.

Each episode is a 17-minute deep dive into a single topic, featuring expert analysis and the people at the heart of the story.

Recent episodes explore the growth in AI, the cost of living, why bond markets are so powerful, China's property bubble, and Gen Z's experience of the current job market.

(Photo: A man gets his waist measured. Credit: Getty Images)

Weight-loss drugs. Who pays? Mar 02, 2026

Show notes

GLP-1 weight-loss drugs such as Ozempic, Wegovy, Zepbound and Mounjaro are reshaping the treatment of obesity — and transforming the global pharmaceutical market.

Originally developed to treat type-2 diabetes, these injectable medicines — including semaglutide and tirzepatide — are now widely prescribed for weight loss, with growing evidence they can also reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke.

But in the United States, access to GLP-1 drugs often depends on insurance coverage — and on who can afford to pay.

In this first episode of a three-part Business Daily series on the global weight-loss economy, Sam Fenwick examines the real cost of obesity drugs in the U.S. healthcare system.

How much do GLP-1 medications like Ozempic, Wegovy, Zepbound and Mounjaro actually cost? Are they cost-effective in the long term? And can insurers and employers afford to provide them to millions of Americans living with obesity?

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

Produced and presented by Sam Fenwick

Each episode is a 17-minute deep dive into a single topic, featuring expert analysis and the people at the heart of the story.

We also feature in-depth interviews with company founders and some of the world's most prominent CEOs.These include Google's Sundar Pichai, Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales, CEO of Canva Melanie Perkins, and the CEO of Starbucks, Brian Niccol.

(Picture: Person standing on weighing scales. Credit: Press Association)

How a spiked drink led to a startup Feb 27, 2026

Show notes

Today - from a teenage DIY invention, to US national TV, to changing legislation, and now global sales. What started as a way to protect a friend who’d been drugged at a college bar became a product made from an old hair scrunchie and her mum’s stockings.

Shirah Benarde tells us how she set up NightCap, a business that’s grown from a bedroom prototype, to securing investment on the Shark Tank show in the US, to a global safety brand in just a few years.

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

Presenter: Sam Fenwick Producer: Ahmed Adan

Each episode is a 17-minute, daily deep dive into a single topic, featuring expert analysis and the people at the heart of the story.

Recent episodes explore the weight-loss drug revolution, the AI boom, why bond markets are so powerful, China's property bubble, and Gen Z's experience of the current job market.

(Picture: Founder of NightCap, Shirah Benarde. Credit: Shirah Benarde)

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