The DJIA has pared a portion of Monday's steep losses on hopes Greece reaches a last-minute debt deal with its creditors
Following yesterday's 350-point plunge, the
Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) came roaring back to life amid
speculation Greece could be on the verge of a last-minute deal with its creditors. Most recently, Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras submitted a new bailout proposal to the European Stability Mechanism, requesting funding for the the fiscally strapped nation for the next two years. Greece will fall into arrears with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) at midnight tonight if a $1.7 billion payment isn't made -- a situation likely to occur,
given recent signals.
Back on the homefront, speculators are digesting reports that showed housing prices edged higher in April, consumer sentiment jumped to a nine-year high in June, and factory activity in the Chicago area contracted for the fourth time this year. This economic data came in the wake of a speech from New York Fed President William Dudley, who said a September rate hike will be "very much in play" should the economy continue to strengthen. At last check, the Dow was trading comfortably higher, but is still on pace to finish notch monthly and quarterly losses.
Continue reading for more on today's market -- and don't miss:
Among the stocks with notable call volume is Towers Watson & Co (NASDAQ:TW), with the contracts crossing at 69 times the average intraday pace. The business specialist is down 2.1% at $135.07, after earlier announcing an $18 billion merger with Willis Group Holdings PLC (NYSE:WSH). Option traders are rolling the dice on a quick rebound, and are buying to open the July 135 call.
One of the top gainers on the Big Board is financial firm National Bank of Greece (ADR) (NYSE:NBG). Yesterday, U.S.-listed shares of NBG plunged more than 24% -- and hit a record low of $0.88 along the way -- after Greek banks were ordered shut. Today, the stock is up 9.9% at $1.07, but is being contained by the $1.10 mark.
Juno Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:JUNO) is the biggest advancer on the Nasdaq, up 22.4% at $56.69, after the firm inked a 10-year deal with Celgene Corporation (NASDAQ:CELG). An upbeat analyst note is helping to stoke the bullish flames -- and push the shares back into the black on a year-to-date basis. However, today's upside appears to be stalling out near the round-number $60 mark, an area that served as a ceiling in March.
After closing at its highest perch since early February yesterday, the CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) is up 0.1 point, or 0.5% at 18.95.
Today's put/call volume ratio on the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) is 2.18, with puts more than doubling calls. At last check, SPY was up 0.9 point, or 0.4%, at $206.28.