The S&P 500 crossed the 4,000 threshold for the first time yesterday as Wall Street built on a solid March following the rollout of President Joe Biden’s infrastructure plan.  The Stock and Bond Markets are closed today in observance of Good Friday.

A measure of U.S. manufacturing activity soared to its highest level in more than 37 years in March, driven by strong growth in new orders, the clearest sign yet that a much anticipated economic boom was probably underway.  The Institute for Supply Management (ISM) said on Thursday its index of national factory activity jumped to a reading of 64.7 last month from 60.8 in February. That was the highest level since December 1983.  A reading above 50 indicates expansion in manufacturing, which accounts for 11.9% of the U.S. economy. 

A group of Democrats in the Oregon legislature wants their peers to look closely at who gets the largest housing subsidy in the state and consider scaling them back.  They are proposing changes to the mortgage interest deduction in order to reduce the tax break, they want to remove the deduction for second homes and for primary homes of people with an adjusted gross income of more than $250,000.  The legislature’s continued interest in cutting popular tax write-offs was enough to get the Oregon Association of Realtors to send mailers in the Portland area, urging people to reach out to their representatives and tell them they did should “protect the dream of home ownership. ”