U.S. stocks trade higher on hopes of Greece deal

U.S. stocks rallied in the morning session on Monday, as investors sensed hopes of progress on talks to avert a debt default in Greece.

At noon, the Dow Jones Industrial Average increased 128.22 points, or 0.71 percent, to 18,144.17. The S&P 500 gained 15.73 points, or 0.75 percent, to 2,125.72. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 37.71 points, or 0.74 percent, to 5,154.72.

The Greek government's latest plan makes a potentially major concession on cutting deficits in its pension system, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The plan was formally submitted to creditors Monday morning and could be a big step toward ending a months-long deadlock that has spurred talk of a potential Greek exit from the eurozone.

Eurogroup President Jeroen Dijsselbloem said the new proposals from Greek government was "a positive step" in the process and that it is possible to reach a deal within this week.

The finance ministers of the euro zone countries concluded a meeting in Brussels on Monday and will meet again later in the week, seeking to strike a last-minute deal over the Greek debt issue.

Eurogroup's Luxembourg meeting failed to clinch an agreement on Greece earlier on June 18.

On June 30, the extension of Greece's second bailout will expire. On the same day, Athens needs to repay some 1.5 billion euros (1.69 billion U.S. dollars) of loan installments to the International Monetary Fund.

On economic front, fueled partly by an increase in the share of sales to first-time buyers, existing-home sales increased in May to their highest pace in nearly six years, according to the National Association of Realtors.

Total existing-home sales rose 5.1 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.35 million in May from an upwardly revised 5.09 million in April. Endite