Stocks headed higher Thursday on reports that Greece had reached a deal with bondholders that would meet international mandates.
Media reports indicate that bondholders representing 50 percent of the country's outstanding debt have agreed to participate in the debt swap that would ease Greece's financial pressures and allow it access to the $170 billion international loan put together by the European Union, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund.
In early afternoon trading, the Dow Jones industrial average added 72.43 points or 0.56 percent to 12,910.52. The Standard & Poor's 500 index gained 12.38 points or 0.92 percent to 1,365.03. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index added 31.55 points, or 1.07 percent, to 2,967.06.
The benchmark 10-year treasury note lost 11/32 to yield 2.018 percent.
The euro rose to $1.3261 from Wednesday's $1.3149. Against the yen, the dollar rose to 81.53 yen from 81.09 yen.
In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 index gained 2.01 percent, 192.90 points, to 9,578.96.
In London, the FTSE 100 index rose 1.18 percent, 68.32, to 5,859.73.
