Marketplace Morning Report

The "de minimis" tax exemption on packages under $800 shipped to the U.S. came to an end in August. It's a move that's boosted business for logistics companies but has hit some smaller businesses at home and abroad hard. This morning, we'll learn outline the effects the change has had. Also on this morning’s show: an Nvidia licensing deal and the factors driving up precious metal prices.

Now that Christmas presents are unwrapped, many of you — you know who you are — will head to stores to return gifts and get what you actually want. But increasingly, retailers are charging for those returns. Then, a couple of months ago, more than 5 million shoppers embraced a boycott of three major retailers: Amazon, Home Depot, and Target. From "This Is Uncomfortable," we'll learn about the impact it had on shoppers.

From the BBC World Service: There's one word that's dominated the headlines this year: tariffs. Countries around the world have been grappling with the U.S. import taxes central to President Donald Trump's trade policy, so how are countries faring? We check in on Mexico, China, and others. Plus, the Trump administration eliminated the tax exemption for parcels under $800 this year. We investigate how the move is playing out four months on.

Gas prices are at the lowest level since 2021, according to AAA, as millions of Americans are traveling for the holidays. The average price of gas has been below $3 a gallon for most of the month. Plus, from "Marketplace Tech," ChatGPT has become the new WebMD. And from the Marketplace podcast "How We Survive," we learn what an invisible longitudinal line has to do with farmers, the economy, and the global food supply.

That's been the case for Thomas and Mariah Pisha-Duffly, a Portland foodie power couple with multiple James Beard Award nominations under their belt. Today, we chat with the Pisha-Duffys about their holiday meal planning, which focuses less on extravagance and more on family and serves as a departure from the stressors of the restaurant industry. But first, as you unwrap your Christmas presents, we check in on the supply chains that brought them to you.