Shares of retailers and other consumer companies rose as investors bet that congressional negotiations will yield an economic stimulus bill by the end of the week.

"Now it seems like the White House has kind of flinched on unemployment benefits which is very meaningful for the economy and most Americans that are unemployed," said Oliver Pursche, an independent market strategist.

"There's continued outperformance on earnings, while the bar was very low. I think the combination of good news on additional benefits and earnings along with some positive news yesterday on vaccines and treatments for coronavirus," has given stocks a lift.

Consumer stocks rose despite a report of slowed private-sector jobs growth, from Automatic Data Processing.

Koninklijke Ahold Delhaize shares rose after the Dutch owner of grocery chains such as Stop & Shop and Giant Food raised its growth projections for the year as it reported market-beating net profit for the second quarter due to "unprecedented" demand in both the U.S. and Europe.

The Institute for Supply Management Services sector survey showed an increase in the July index to 58.1, up one percentage point from the June reading of 57.1. 



  Write to Rob Curran at rob.curran@dowjones.com