Jobless Claims Drop; Mortgage Rates Mixed

New applications for jobless benefits for the workweek ended Saturday declined by a seasonally adjusted 16,000 claims to 388,000, the lowest point since early May, the Labor Department said. Many economists expected an increase in claims.

Separately, the average interest rate on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages held steady at 7.11%, unchanged from last week, Freddie Mac said. Fifteen-year mortgages declined to 6.63% from 6.65%. On one-year adjustable-rate mortgages, lenders were asking an average initial rate of 5.77%, up from 5.74%.