03:33 PM EDT, 07/31/2026 (MT Newswires) -- Consumer stocks were mixed late Friday afternoon, with the State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLP) decreasing 0.3% and the State Street Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLY) rising 3.3%.

In sector news, US consumer sentiment jumped in July amid broad-based gains across demographic groups, while year-ahead inflation expectations eased, final results of a survey by the University of Michigan showed Friday. The main sentiment index increased nearly 12% sequentially to 55.2 this month. The gauge for current economic conditions jumped to 54.8 from 47.7, while the index of consumer expectations advanced 9.3% to 55.4, according to the survey.

New York Attorney General Letitia James and New York Governor Kathy Hochul sued Kalshi on Friday, alleging its prediction market platform operates as an illegal gambling business under state law. The lawsuit claims Kalshi allows users, including those under 21, to place bets on uncertain events without a state gaming license, violating New York gambling laws.

In corporate news, Newell Brands' ( NWL ) Q2 earnings unexpectedly rose year over year on the back of tariff refunds, while the consumer products manufacturer returned to revenue growth for the first time in more than four years. Its shares jumped past 11%.

California Governor Gavin Newsom has expressed concerns about the effect on state employment should the state's lawsuit result in the blocking of Paramount Skydance's ( PSKY ) acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery ( WBD ) , The Wall Street Journal reported. The governor's office has encouraged Attorney General Rob Bonta's office to find an out-of-court resolution, the report said. Paramount shares rose 1.5%, and Warner added 2.9%.

General Motors ( GM ) intends to launch an in-vehicle AI system later this year, CNBC reported Friday, citing an interview with Anna Santos, GM's director of product management of voice and AI/machine learning. GM shares were up 0.3%.

T-Mobile US ( TMUS ) executives have informed Deutsche Telekom, its controlling shareholder, that they no longer support a proposed $300 billion merger between the two companies, Semafor reported. T-Mobile US ( TMUS ) shares were down 0.5%.