About This Episode

The global middle class is expected to swell by more than 1 billion people over the next decade, with the biggest increases in China and India. While millions are being lifted out of poverty as a result, the booming middle class is also consuming more global resources. As a result, prices for everything from steel to gasoline to food are soaring. On Friday, June 20 at 8:30 pm (check local listings), NOW reports from Pune, India, where college graduates are getting tech jobs, traditional families are flocking to the new mall, and professionals are hoping their new-found economic might will make their country an even bigger global player. But can America’s middle-class – and the rest of the world – afford this unprecedented shift in the global economy? The world is buying like never before, but who's paying the price? Next on NOW on PBS. The NOW website a t offers more details on the exploding Indian middle class, an interactive quiz on American consumption, and exclusive personal insight from NOW Correspondent Paul Beban.