US stocks finished higher as investors sighed with relief at hopes for a new plan to deal with Greece's debt crisis.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 128.21 points, or 1.03%, to finish at 12,569.79. The S&P 500 added 14.10 points, or 1.06%, to close at 1,345.20. The Nasdaq Composite climbed 38.44 points, or 1.37%, to 2,835.30.
According to the closely watched S&P Case-Shiller Index, home prices slid 4.2% in the first quarter, sending home prices back to levels not seen since mid-2002.
The Chicago Purchasing Managers index declined more than expected to 56.6 in May, from 67.6 the previous month. Economists were expecting the figure to drop to 62.5.
The Conference Board's consumer sentiment index slumped to 60.8 in May, from 65.4 in April. Economists expected consumer confidence to rise to 66.3.
Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal on Tuesday reported that Germany is shifting its stance to consider lending more money to Greece.
Shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) rallied $10.42, or 3.09%, to $347.83 after the company said that Chief Executive Officer Steve Jobs will address an annual conference on June 6 to unveil a service that lets users store content online and tout a new version of the software that runs the iPad and iPhone.
Nokia Corp. (NYSE: NOK) slumped $1.18, or 14.39%, to $7.02 after the company lowered its second-quarter sales forecast citing lower than expected selling prices and volumes.
Shares of DryShips, Inc. (NASDAQ: DRYS) surged 33 cents, or 8.71%, to close at $4.06.
European stocks closed up. The UK FTSE rose 51.12 points, or 0.86% to 5,989.99. The German DAX and French CAC increased 1.86% and 1.63% respectively.
Asian stocks finished higher. The Nikkei 225 rose 188.76 points, or 1.99%, to 9,693.73. The Hang Seng index of Hong Kong rallied 499.81 points, or 2.16%, to 23,684.13.
Full Disclosure: None.
