US stocks closed higher on Monday after the Greek parliament’s approval of tough austerity measures paved the way for a new financial rescue of the country.
At the closing bell the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 72.81 points (0.57 per cent) at 12,874.04.
The broad-based S&P 500 added 9.13 points (0.68 per cent) to 1,351.77, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 27.51 (0.95 per cent) to 2,931.39.
After last week’s stall in Athens talks sent stocks tumbling, the Greek parliament’s agreeing to radical budget cuts late on Sunday appeared to open the way for the 130 billion euros ($A161.28 billion) EU bailout package to go through later this week, avoiding a default.
“This means that European finance ministers should on Wednesday approve new funding for Greece, ahead of the next 14-billion-euro bond redemption on March 20,” equities analyst Conall Mac Coille at Davy Stockbrokers.
