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U.S. stocks mildly higher at midday despite Greece concerns

Xinhua, May 19, 2015 Adjust font size:

U.S. stocks pushed higher around midday Monday, with both the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 refreshing all-time highs, as investors shrugged off renewed concerns about Greece's debt situation.

At noon, the Dow Jones Industrial Average edged up 12.21 points, or 0.07 percent, to 18,284.77. The S&P 500 added 4.47 points, or 0. 21 percent, to 2,127.20. The Nasdaq Composite Index rose 20.25 points, or 0.40 percent, to 5,068.55.

The Greek government intends to meet all its financial obligations inside the country and abroad in coming weeks, but needs the prompt support of international creditors who should show consistency so that a compromise deal on the Greek debt is reached in May, Greek government spokesman Gavriil Sakellaridis said Monday.

On the economic front, U.S. builder confidence in the market for newly built, single-family homes in May dropped 2 points to a level of 54, missing expectations, according to the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index released Monday.

Most analysts believed that the Federal Reserve, the U.S. central bank, would not raise interest rates until early 2016 due to weak U.S. economic data.

Investors also kept a close eye on the minutes of the Federal Open Market Committee meeting from April 29, which was scheduled for release Wednesday.

U.S. stocks finished mixed after wavering in a tight range Friday, with the S&P 500 eclipsing previous session's closing record, as a string of economic report came out negative. Endite