Stocks rally on Greece
US stocks rallied for a second day yesterday as Greece backed away from a proposed referendum that threatened its membership in the euro.
The European Central Bank also provided a happy surprise early to investors with an interest rate cut, a sign of a more aggressive approach to confront weak growth in the region.
“There’s just this extraordinary focus on Greece, the fast money in the market is interpreting the news out of Europe,” said Eric Kuby, chief investment officer at North Star Investment Management in Chicago.
Stocks associated with growth led, with energy the best-performing sector. Equity performance has been highly correlated with the euro, which gathered steam throughout the day. The S&P energy index rose 2.5 per cent, while the technology index gained 2.4 per cent.
The Dow Jones industrial average was up 208.43 points, or 1.76 per cent, at 12,044.47. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index was up 23.25 points, or 1.88 per cent, at 1,261.15. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 57.99 points, or 2.20 per cent, at 2,697.97.