Stocks rise despite Greek protests and weak economic data

Greeks clashed with their government on Tuesday over the austerity plan. Investors were unfazed though. From Bloomberg:

Stocks gained, erasing the MSCI All- Country World Index’s 2011 loss, while the euro rose and Treasuries tumbled amid speculation Europe will take action to prevent a Greek default. Commodities surged the most this month.

The MSCI equity gauge added 1.1 percent to 333.09 at 4 p.m. in New York, and the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index rallied 1.3 percent. Yields on 10-year Treasuries rose above 3 percent for the first time in almost a week after a government auction. The euro strengthened 0.6 percent to $1.4367. The S&P GSCI Index of 24 commodities surged 2.2 percent as crude oil futures jumped the most in almost six weeks.

Investors also looked past weak US economic reports on Tuesday.

Stocks in the U.S. rose today even after data showed home prices fell by the most in 17 months and confidence among American consumers unexpectedly fell to a seven-month low. The S&P/Case-Shiller index of property values in 20 cities fell 4 percent from April 2010, the biggest drop since November 2009. The Conference Board’s consumer confidence index decreased to 58.5 from a revised 61.7 reading in May that was higher than previously estimated.