Stocks Closed Higher on Greece Hopes

U.S. stocks closed higher on Monday, as investors cheered signs of progress in the Greece debt negotiations. The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 103.83 points, or 0.58%, to 18,119.78. The S&P 500 gained 12.86 points, or 0.61%, to 2,122.85. The Nasdaq Composite rose 36.97 points, or 0.72%, to 5,153.97.

The Eurogroup of euro zone finance ministers concluded a meeting in Brussels on Monday and will meet again later in the week on the Greek debt crisis. Meanwhile, European Union leaders were set to end an emergency meeting later in the day.

U.S. home resales surged to a 5-1/2-year high in May as first-time buyers stepped into the market, the latest indication that housing and overall economic activity were gathering steam in the second quarter. The National Association of Realtors said on Monday existing home sales increased 5.1 percent to an annual rate of 5.35 million units, the highest level since November 2009.

Crude oil rose on speculation U.S. inventories fell for an eighth week, the longest stretch of declines in seven years.  West Texas Intermediate for July delivery, which expired Monday, gained 7 cents to $59.68 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Energy Transfer Equity’s $51bn bid for fellow pipeline company Williams has raised the prospect of a clash of business models, with the two groups at odds over the best structure for operating energy infrastructure in the US.