The stock markets in the United States rallied driven by investors’ optimism regarding the debt negotiations in Europe and reports on mergers & acquisitions.
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Paul Zemsky, head of multi-asset strategies at Voya Investment Management told Bloomberg, “We got better news from the Fed because of the lower dots and now we’re hearing positive developments from Greece and that sideline cash is being put to work. I’m pretty optimistic about this week with the recent developments in Greece.”
Economy Minister Giorgios Stathakis unveiled the terms of the new proposals of Greece to end the deadlock on its debt talks with its international lenders. The Greek government’s proposal includes new taxes on businesses and the wealthy as well as increases in VAT rate on certain products.
Greece also agreed with the target budget surplus of 1% GDP this year, 2% next year and 3% in 2017, which were recommended by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the finance ministers in the European region.
[drizzle]The Eurozone finance ministers welcome Greece’s proposals, and they hopeful that a deal could be reached within days. European Council President Donald Tusk commented that the latest proposals from Greece were the “first real proposals in many weeks”.
“This evening, I want all cards on the table. That doesn’t mean I want to negotiate technical details, but it means I want to end this political gambling,” said Tusk.
On the other hand, Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said, “We are coming to these discussions aiming to strike a financially sustainable agreement.” He made his statement prior to the meeting with EC President Jean-Claude Juncker.
Meanwhile, French President Francois Hollande said they are doing everything they can to keep Greece in the Eurozone. He said, “If we can’t reach a full accord tonight we must at least lay the basis for an accord in the coming days.”
U.S. Markets
- Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) – 18,119.58 (+0.58%)
- S&P 500- 2,122.87 (+0.61%)
- NASDAQ- 5,153.97 (+0.72%)
- Russell 2000- 1,292.13 (+0.58%)
European Markets
- EURO STOXX 50 Price EUR- 3,596.07 (+4.06%)
- FTSE 100 Index- 6,825.67 (+1.72%)
- Deutsche Borse AG German Stock Index DAX- 11,460.50 (+3.81%)
Asia-Pacific Markets
- Nikkei 225- 20,428.19 (+1.26%)
- Hong Kong Hang Seng Index- 26,080.85 (+1.20%)
- Shanghai Shenzhen CSI 300 Index- 5,610.17 (+0.24%)
Stocks in Focus
The stock price of Cigna increased 4.73% to $162.60 per share. The company rejected the $54 billion acquisition offer from Anthem. The board of directors of Cigna said the offer was inadequate and was not in the best interest of shareholders.
The shares of Williams Companies surged 25.9% to $60.86 per share. The company turned down the $48 billion proposal of Energy Transfer Equity. Williams Companies said the offer significantly undervalues the company.
The stock value of Epizyme climbed 25.30% to $26 per share. The clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company show positive results from the ongoing Phase 1 study Tazemetostat in patients suffering from non-Hodgin lymphoma. Epizyme reported that nine out of 15 patients taking tazemostat experienced objective response including two patients enjoying a complete response.
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