The European markets were expected to open higher Monday morning after a turbulent weekend in Greece.
The country's parliament finally approved an austerity bill early on Monday, as protests raged through the streets of Athens. Its leaders have now secured a second bailout by the International Monetary Fund and the European Union and Greece should be able to honor the next round of repayments of its heavy debt burden.
The FTSE 100 was expected to open 30 points higher, with the DAX called at 50 points higher and the CAC 40 expected to open up 24 points.
Asian stock markets and the euro gained modestly on Monday after the news from Greece.
They were up despite the news that Japan's economy shrank by 0.6 percent in October-December – worse than expected – dampening hopes that the country’s economy will return to growth in the first quarter of 2012.
There are a number of key bond auctions to watch in the euro zone on Monday.
Italy will aim to sell up to 8 billion euros($10.5 billion) of 12-month bills, while Germany will sell 4 billion euros worth of six-month paper. France will also sell an estimated of 7-8 billion euros in weekly T-bills.
In the US, President Barack Obama’s Fiscal Year 2013 budget proposals are expected later on Monday.
