Markets upbeat on hopes Greek debt deal is near, reports of European Central Bank involvement

LONDON - Markets were hopeful Wednesday that a long-awaited deal to allow Greece to claim its second bailout was near despite another delay to discussions between the country's political leaders.

Stocks advanced, while the euro was trading near two-month highs, as investors awaited the latest developments in Athens. Though a host of deadlines have passed without agreement, the prevailing view in the markets is that a deal for Greece to get its hands on €130 billion ($170 billion) will be secured.

Greek coalition leaders are studying a draft deal on further austerity measures demanded to secure a new bailout that will determine whether the country avoids bankruptcy next month.

The office of Prime Minister Lucas Papademos said Wednesday that the heads of the three parties backing his interim government received the 50-page document, drafted with the country's debt inspectors, earlier in the day. A meeting of Papademos with the party leaders, originally scheduled for 1100 GMT, was postponed to 1300 GMT to give parties more time to study the draft.

The talks were delayed for three days to make time for exhaustive negotiations with representatives of the European Union, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund, on whose approval the continued flow of Greece's vital rescue loans depends. Without the bailout, Greece would not have enough money to pay off a big bond redemption next month, triggering a default that could send shockwaves around financial markets and the global economy.

Greece has been kept solvent for the last two years by €110 billion ($145 billion) in international rescue loans. But the money was not enough and a second loan is urgently needed to avert bankruptcy.

"We are finally approaching the endgame of the Greek talks," said Gary Jenkins, managing director at Swordfish Research. "Ultimately it is difficult to see how they can do anything other than agree a deal. After all, the alternative is a disorderly default which could lead to a much deeper economic depression and potential civil unrest."

Jenkins said a report in the Wall Street Journal that the ECB is prepared to contribute to lightening Greece's debt burden will help pave the way to an agreement. According to the report, the ECB would essentially give up on profits that it stands to gain on its Greek bond holdings by handing them over to the European bailout fund, which then will sell them back to Greece — Athens would gain billions in the deal.

In Europe, the FTSE 100 index of leading British shares was up 0.3 per cent at 5,907 while Germany's DAX rose 1 per cent to 6,819. The CAC-40 in France was 0.7 per cent higher at 3,436.

The euro clambered higher, trading up 0.1 per cent at $1.3275, a fresh two-month high.

Wall Street was also poised for modest gains at the open — Dow futures were up 0.2 per cent at 12,854 while the broader Standard & Poor's 500 futures rose 0.1 per cent to 1,346.

Corporate earnings reports were mixed, with disappointing results from French pharmaceuticals company Sanofi, Danish wind turbine maker Vestas — their shares fell 2.2 per cent and 13 per cent respectively.

Figures from Norwegian oil company Statoil were more upbeat, and its shares rose 2.7 per cent.

Earlier in the day, Asian stocks posted sharp gains following a retreat of the yen that was welcomed by Japan's mighty export sector. The Nikkei 225 index in Tokyo gained 1.1 per cent to close at 9,015.59, its highest finish since Oct. 28.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng surged 1.5 per cent to 21,018.46 while mainland China's Shanghai Composite Index jumped 2.4 per cent to 2,347.53 and the smaller Shenzhen Composite Index gained 2.8 per cent to 893.82.

Oil prices tracked equities higher — benchmark oil for March delivery was up 95 cents to $99.37 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.