Indices kicked off the week with gains on Monday, stepping up on a variety of economic news. Additionally, West Texas Intermediate crude added 61 cents to settle at $56.37 per barrel. The positive news continued Tuesday with stocks gaining on better-than-expected quarterly results from the likes of Coca-Cola and Harley-Davidson as well as news of renewed trade talks with China. CNBC reported American trade negotiators will head to China for face-to-face talks. On another note, National Association of Realtors data showed existing home sales slipped by 1.7% in June to an annual rate of 5.27 million units versus expectations of a lesser dip of 0.2% to 5.33 million units. Moves were mixed Wednesday as the Dow Jones Industrial Average shed some points while the S&P 500 Index and NASDAQ Composite climbed to new record levels. Stocks traded lower the following day amid a variety of quarterly details from companies such as Amazon and Alphabet. In economic news, the Labor Department report showed Initial Jobless Claims fell by 10,000 to 206,000 in the week ended July 20. Indices closed in green territory on Friday. The day started with the Commerce Department releasing second-quarter GDP, which accelerated at a slightly-better-than-expected 2.1%, down from a 3.1% reading in the first quarter. At the end of the day, the Dow was 51 points higher, while the S&P 500 and NASDAQ ended the trading session at new record levels.