Retailers and other consumer companies rose amid hopes that weak economic data would dissuade the Federal Reserve from further aggressive rate hikes.

The average rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage fell to 5.3%, mortgage-finance giant Freddie Mac said, down from a week earlier, but still far higher than levels at the start of the year.

Initial jobless claims, a proxy for layoffs, fell 5,000 to a seasonally adjusted 256,000 in the week ended July 23 from the prior week's upwardly revised level, the Labor Department said, underscoring the resilience of the jobs market even as economic growth slipped for the second straight quarter.

In another sign of robust demand for travel services after a long hiatus, Royal Caribbean Cruises rallied after the cruise line said it was set to return to profitability in the third quarter.

Discount carrier JetBlue Airways agreed to buy Spirit Airlines for $3.8 billion in a deal that would create the fifth-largest U.S. carrier, shortly after Spirit's merger deal with Frontier was terminated.

Marlboro maker Altria Group slashed the value of its investment in Juul Labs by about 70% following the Food and Drug Administration's decision to order the e-cigarette company off the U.S. market.


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

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

07-28-22 1708ET