Hopes for Greek debt deal with one week to go

Greece and its creditors were working to seal a bailout deal with exactly one week to go June 23 before Athens is due to repay the IMF around 1.5 billion euros or face default and a possible exit from the EU.

After an emergency summit in Brussels, they ordered their finance ministers to hold fresh talks on June 24 to thrash out the details ahead of a full meeting of all 28 EU leaders on June 25.
 
Global stocks surged -- including a nine percent leap in Athens -- on signs of a potential breakthrough, which came after Greece submitted an 11th-hour reform plan to free up crucial funds from its EU-IMF bailout.
 
European Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker said he was "convinced" they could end the five-month stand-off with the leftist Greek government led by Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras.
 
"I'm convinced that we will come to a final agreement in the course of this week, for the simple reason that we have to find an agreement this week," Juncker told a press conference.
 
French President Francois Hollande also said a deal was within reach.
 
"We are moving towards an accord," Hollande told reporters. "There is still work to be done... every effort must be made so that when eurozone finance ministers meet Wednesday, a solution is in sight."  

Most Asian markets climbed June 22 on the news, tracking US and European markets.    

Tokyo jumped 1.62 percent to a fresh 15-year high June 22 morning on hopes of a deal, while Hong Kong was 0.35 percent higher.
 
The euro inched down to $1.1264 and 139.33 yen in Tokyo from $1.1340 and 139.91 yen in New York late June 22.
         
German Chancellor Angela Merkel said that while Greece's plans were a "good starting point for...