The average interest rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage is 4.02%, down from 4.03% one week ago, according to Freddie Mac. The average interest rate for a 15-year fixed-rate mortgage is 3.27%, unchanged from one week ago.

New orders for manufactured goods in March, up eight of the last nine months, increased $0.8 billion or 0.2% to $478.2 billion, the U.S. Census Bureau reported. This followed a 1.2% February increase. Transportation equipment, also up three consecutive months, drove the increase, $2.2 billion or 2.6% to $83.6 billion. New orders for manufactured nondurable goods decreased $1.3 billion or 0.5% to $238.7 billion.

The price of the 10-year Treasury note was down 10/32, increasing its yield to 2.354%. The price of the 30-year Treasury bond decreased 16/32, bringing its yield up to 2.995%.

ON THIS DATE: In 1494, Christopher Columbus sighted Jamaica on his second trip to the Western Hemisphere. He named the island Santa Gloria. In 1798, U.S. Secretary of War William McHenry ordered that the USS Constitution be made ready for sea. The frigate was launched on October 21, 1797, but had never been put to sea. In 1862, the Battle of Puebla took place. It is celebrated as Cinco de Mayo Day. In 1865, the Thirteenth Amendment was ratified, abolishing slavery in the U.S. In 1891, Music Hall was dedicated in New York City. It was later renamed Carnegie Hall. In 1925, John T. Scopes, a biology teacher in Dayton, Tennessee, was arrested for teaching Darwin’s theory of evolution. In 1936, Edward Ravenscroft received a patent for the screw-on bottle cap with a pour lip. In 1955, the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany) became a sovereign state. In 1961, Alan Shepard became the first American in space when he made a 15 minute suborbital flight. In 1966, Willie Mays broke the National League record for home runs when he hit his 512th.

And now it’s time for FRIDAY FILES!

In Taraz, Jambyl, Kazakhstan, at a gas station a man was seen trying to put diesel into a canister strapped onto the roof of his van. Because it was difficult to see, he took out a lighter, which ignited the fumes causing a mini explosion, and burning flames began flowing out of the nozzle. According to the UK’s Metro, the panicked man then dropped the nozzle, which sprayed burning fuel over the ground and other vehicles as he tried to flee for safety.

In Kiselyovsk, Russia, workers had been tasked with inflating a three-ton tire, but had forgotten about it—leaving it to over inflate. The UK’s Mirror reports the huge tire suddenly exploded into the air and landed on a car—leaving the vehicle completely flattened.

In York, South Carolina, a man has been arrested for burglary and petit larceny. The Rock Hill Herald reports a man broke into his neighbor’s house and made a sandwich. A police report lists the stolen goods as a drink of clear moonshine, a Clover Valley kosher whole dill pickle, a scoop of Newk’s pimento cheese and two slices of bread. The homeowner alerted authorities after home surveillance detected motion. He had installed the cameras after noticing things going missing. The suspect, who is renting property from the homeowner, admitted to entering the home on other occasions.

Have a great weekend!