The Open Bell
The Open Bell is an independent financial news show — a daily podcast and newsletter for people who are affected by markets, policy, and the economy.
Every episode follows the same process: research, a written script, a quality check, and a final review — every morning, before anything goes out. Alex is the on-air voice of that process. The tools behind the research and scripting are AI; the editorial judgment and the responsibility for what airs are ours.
We tell you this because trust is the actual product here, not an afterthought — and a daily show only earns it by being straightforward about how it's made. The standard doesn't change because the tools did.
New episodes Monday to Saturday. Not investment advice — for informational purposes only.
Episodes
48 episodes
The Open Bell — Ep. 054 — 4 Sept 2026
Today on The Open Bell: Iran hit Kuwait with missiles and drones overnight, oil surged, and then gave back roughly half the gain in the same session once it became clear the White House is quietly moving toward talks, which tells you everything a...
The Open Bell — Ep. 053 — 3 Sept 2026
Today on The Open Bell: US forces have struck Iranian targets around the Strait of Hormuz, Iran is hitting back, and Brent crude is up more than 5% in a single session to nearly $95 a barrel, because roughly one in every five barrels of oil on ea...
The Open Bell — Ep. 052 — 2 Sept 2026
Today on The Open Bell: The US struck Iranian Revolutionary Guard positions across the Strait of Hormuz yesterday, oil jumped 5.2% in a single session, and if you're wondering what that means for the price of filling up your car, the answer is: n...
The Open Bell — Ep. 051 — 1 Sept 2026
Today on The Open Bell: US forces have now struck Iranian positions in the Strait of Hormuz twice since July, Iran has fired back at American bases in Jordan, and oil is above $86 a barrel, which means this isn't a distant geopolitical story anym...
The Open Bell — Ep. 050 — 31 Aug 2026
Today on The Open Bell: The new Fed Chair used his first Jackson Hole speech to tell the world that another rate hike is back on the table, and the September odds just jumped to 60%, which is a long way from the cuts everyone was pricing in six m...
The Open Bell — Ep. 049 — 28 Aug 2026
Today on The Open Bell: The Fed is openly split heading into Jackson Hole, with at least one regional president pushing for rate hikes while the rest of the world waits for Friday morning's speech from the chair, and if you own a home, a pension,...
The Open Bell — Ep. 048 — 27 Aug 2026
Today on The Open Bell: The Fed's preferred inflation measure just came in hotter than expected, 3.7% year-over-year, and suddenly the question of whether the Fed raises interest rates again isn't as settled as markets thought it was last week. ...
The Open Bell — Ep. 047 — 26 Aug 2026
Today on The Open Bell: Nvidia just reported $93 billion in a single quarter, roughly 95% more than a year ago, and then told investors to expect even more, which raises a genuine question: at what point does "AI demand" stop being a growth story...
The Open Bell — Ep. 046 — 25 Aug 2026
Today on The Open Bell: The US just threatened to cut off from the global dollar system any bank, anywhere on earth, that keeps doing business with Iran, and gave them a countdown clock to comply before the consequences hit. South Korea's stock ...
The Open Bell — Ep. 045 — 24 Aug 2026
Today on The Open Bell: The US government is now paying more to borrow money for 30 years than it has since before the first iPhone shipped, and the Treasury's attempt to calm the bond market lasted about 48 hours before the yield crawled right b...
The Open Bell — Ep. 044 — 21 Aug 2026
Today on The Open Bell: Walmart just posted its weakest US sales growth in six years, low-income shoppers are pulling back hard under the weight of fuel costs, and the company's own leadership won't promise the next quarter looks any better. The...
The Open Bell — Ep. 043 — 20 Aug 2026
Today on The Open Bell: The US Treasury just doubled its long-bond buyback cap to $4 billion a quarter, and whether you call it market management or something closer to the government quietly buying its own debt at record prices, it worked, becau...
The Open Bell — Ep. 042 — 19 Aug 2026
Today on The Open Bell: The US-Iran ceasefire expired yesterday with nothing to show for it, and Iran is now threatening to choke off the Strait of Hormuz, the waterway that carries roughly one barrel in every five of the world's oil supply. US ...
The Open Bell — Ep. 041 — 18 Aug 2026
Today on The Open Bell: Iran's latest threats to the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow channel that carries roughly one in five barrels of oil shipped globally, are keeping crude above $84 a barrel, and that number doesn't stay in the Gulf forever — i...
The Open Bell — Ep. 040 — 17 Aug 2026
Today on The Open Bell: The US and Canada have 48 hours to cut a deal before a 50% tariff lands on roughly 20 billion dollars' worth of Canadian exports, and if they don't, the price of things like cheese, wine, and new cars goes up for real peop...
The Open Bell — Ep. 039 — 14 Aug 2026
Today on The Open Bell: Inflation came in cooler in July and the White House is taking a bow, but real wages are still negative, meaning prices are still rising faster than most people's pay, and that's been true every single month this year. Ja...
The Open Bell — Ep. 038 — 13 Aug 2026
Today on The Open Bell: The Strait of Hormuz has been nearly shut for six months now and the IEA says the world is heading into the third quarter short by 1.8 million barrels a day, which is the kind of number that doesn't stay in the energy mark...
The Open Bell — Ep. 037 — 12 Aug 2026
Today on The Open Bell: The July inflation number just came in hotter than expected, and the reason is pretty direct: the collapse of US-Iran peace talks sent oil prices climbing, and that cost has now worked its way into your grocery receipt and...
The Open Bell — Ep. 036 — 11 Aug 2026
Today on The Open Bell: Iran's foreign minister just ruled out direct talks with Washington and renewed demands over the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway that 20% of the world's oil supply passes through, and crude is already up 5% this week...
The Open Bell — Ep. 035 — 10 Aug 2026
Today on The Open Bell: The US economy shed jobs in July for the first time since February, and the bizarre part is that markets loved it, because bad news for workers still reads as good news for rate cuts and stocks closed at record highs on Fr...
The Open Bell — Ep. 029 — 31 Jul 2026
Today on The Open Bell: The US economy slowed sharply in Q2 and inflation is finally cooling, but both things are happening for the same reason, which is that oil prices fell, which is itself a consequence of the Middle East conflict, so the "goo...
The Open Bell — Ep. 028 — 30 Jul 2026
Today on The Open Bell: The Fed held rates steady again, but three of its own members wanted a hike, the bond market threw a fit, and long-term borrowing costs are now at levels most people haven't seen since the mid-2000s — so "on hold" is doing...
The Open Bell — Ep. 027 — 29 Jul 2026
Today on The Open Bell: Iran fired ballistic missiles at US troops in the Middle East overnight, every one was intercepted, and oil prices surged more than 4% anyway, because markets don't price what happened, they price what comes next. The Fed...
