The Murphy administration has unveiled a program to diversify the state’s pension fund managers. The $250 million initiative will target investments in emerging funds managed by minorities and women. There’s some evidence those emerging funds generate better returns. Returns for the current fiscal year are under 1% based on preliminary numbers. You can read more about this here.
President Biden Thursday rejected calls by some Democrats to reduce student loan debt by $50,000 per borrower. But the president said he’s considering more debt forgiveness and will make a decision on that in a few weeks.
A new push is underway for Congress to provide more relief to the restaurant industry. On Thursday the Independent Restaurant Coalition held an all-day virtual rally on Instagram, featuring celebrity chefs, politicians and others. The group has been saying more restaurants are in danger of closing without federal aid. The House has passed legislation to provide $42 billion to restaurants but the bill faces an uphill battle in the Senate.
For the first time since the pandemic, the U.S. economy experienced a decline in growth. U.S. gross domestic product fell in the first three months of this year. That’s typically a troubling sign, but economists say businesses and consumers are still spending and the economy should bounce back from the drop.
