Stock indices closed higher as Greek proposal of economic reforms was approved by creditors.

Eurozone's consumer price index dropped 1.6% in January, after a 0.1% decrease in December.

On a yearly basis, Eurozone's final consumer price inflation remained unchanged at 0.6% in January, in line with expectations.

Eurozone's consumer price inflation excluding food, energy, alcohol and tobacco remained unchanged at an annual rate of 0.6% in January, in line with expectations.

Germany's final GDP grew 0.7% in fourth quarter, in line with expectations.

The National Bank of Belgium (NBB) released its business survey on Tuesday. The business climate rose to -8.3 in February from -8.8 in January.

The increase was driven by positive developments in the manufacturing industry, in business-related services and in trade.

The Bank of England (BoE) policymaker Martin Weale said today that the BoE could start hiking its interest rates sooner than expected.

Indexes on the close:

Name Price Change Change %

FTSE 100 6,949.63 +37.47 +0.54%

DAX 11,205.74 +74.82 +0.67%

CAC 40 4,886.44 +24.14 +0.50%

The Fed Chair Janet Yellen testified before the Senate Banking Committee in Washington on Tuesday:

• "Too many Americans remain unemployed or underemployed, wage growth is still sluggish and inflation remains well below our longer-run objective";
  
• The labour market showed a strong recovery;
  
• Falling oil prices are "a significant overall plus" for the U.S. economy, supporting household spending;
  
• The weakness of other developed economies could slow growth in the U.S.;
  
• The Fed would not hike its interest rate until it "is reasonably confident that inflation will move back over the medium term toward our 2 percent objective";
  
• The word "patient" in the latest policy statement means that the Fed does not intend to hike its interest rate during the two meetings following the release of that statement;
  
• The Fed will change the wording of the policy statement when it will raise its interest rate;
  
• "If economic conditions continue to improve, as the committee anticipates, the committee will at some point begin considering an increase in the target range for the federal funds rate on a meeting-by-meeting basis".
  

Yellen offered no clear signal on when the Fed will hike its interest rate.

The Fed Chair is scheduled to testify on Wednesday before the House Financial Services Committee.

The Conference Board released its consumer confidence index for the U.S. on Tuesday. The index fell to 96.4 in February from 103.8 in January, missing expectations for a decline to 99.6. January's figure was revised up from 102.9.

The director of economic indicators at The Conference Board Lynn Franco said that consumer confidence "still remains at pre-recession levels".

The decline was driven by weaker short-term outlook. The expectations index decreased to 87.2 in February from 97.0 in January.

The National Bank of Belgium (NBB) released its business survey on Tuesday. The business climate rose to -8.3 in February from -8.8 in January.

The increase was driven by positive developments in the manufacturing industry, in business-related services and in trade.

The S&P/Case-Shiller home price index increased 4.5% in December, in line with expectations, after a 4.3% gain in November.

Chairman of the index committee at S&P Dow Jones Indices David Blitzer said that "the housing recovery is faltering". He noted that construction and new home sales is still weak.

The S&P/Case-Shiller home price index measures single-family home prices in 20 U.S. cities.

U.S. stock-index futures were little changed as investors awaited testimony by Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen.

Global markets:

Nikkei 18,603.48 +136.56 +0.74%

Hang Seng 24,750.07 -86.69 -0.35%

FTSE 6,932.95 +20.79 +0.30%

CAC 4,859.29 -3.01 -0.06%

DAX 11,135.18 +4.26 +0.04%

Crude oil $49.78 (+0.65%)

Gold $1197.30 (-0.29%)

(company / ticker / price / change, % / volume)

Upgrades:

Downgrades:

Chevron (CVX) downgraded from Outperform to Perform at Oppenheimer

Other:

The Home Depot (HD) earned $1.00 per share in the fourth fiscal quarter, beating analysts' estimate of $0.89. Revenue in the fourth fiscal quarter increased 8.3% year-over-year to $19.16 billion, beating analysts' estimate of $18.67 billion.

The company released its forecasts for fiscal year 2016. EPS is expected to be $5.11-$5.17 billion (analysts' estimate: $5.23 billion) Revenue is expected to be $86.1-$87.1 billion (analysts' estimate: $86.31 billion).

The Home Depot (HD) shares increased to $116.10 (+3.40%) prior to the opening bell.

European stocks are almost flat on Tuesday ahead of the highly anticipated speech of ECB president Mario Draghi at 14:00 GMT and FED chair Janet Yellen's semi-annual testimony to the Senate Banking Committee later in the day. Markets will closely watch the testimony for clues as to when the world's largest economy may raise interest rates.

Greece submitted a comprehensive list of reforms as asked by the E.U. as condition for an extension of the bailout for four months. According to officials the list was "sufficiently comprehensive to be a valid starting point for a successful conclusion of the review.".

Germany's Federal Statistics Office released data on German Gross Domestic Product toady. The seasonally-adjusted data showed that the GDP rose +0.7% between October and December in line with expectations as domestic demand and foreign trade were the main drivers of growth in Europe's largest economy. Private consumption rose +0.8%, capital investment added +1.2% and exports increased by +1.3%.A lower oil price and a weaker euro had positive effects on the economy. In the preceding quarter the GDP rose by +0.7%.

Eurostat released data on Eurozone's Consumer Price Inflation today showing a decline by -0.6% in line with expectations further fuelling fears of deflation in the Eurozone as the rate is far below the targeted 2% the ECB is aiming for and the lowest since 2009. Lower oil prices are the main reason for the decline. Month on month consumer prices declined by -1.6% in January compared to -0.1% in the previous month. Core CPI excluding the volatile energy and food items, alcohol and tobacco costs rose +0.6% in January meeting forecasts.

The FTSE 100 index is currently trading +0.09% quoted at 6,918.05. Germany's DAX 30 added +0.02% trading at 11,132.98. France's CAC 40 is currently trading at 4,859.80 points, -0.05%.

European stocks are flat in early trading on Tuesday ahead of the highly anticipated speech of ECB president Mario Draghi at 14:00 GMT and FED chair Janet Yellen's semi-annual testimony to the Senate Banking Committee later in the day. Markets will closely watch the testimony for clues as to when the world's largest economy may raise interest rates.

Today Eurozone's inflation data will be in the focus and is due being published at 10:00 GMT.

Greece submitted a comprehensive list of reforms as asked by the E.U. as condition of an extension of the bailout for four months. According to officials the list was "sufficiently comprehensive to be a valid starting point for a successful conclusion of the review.".

Germany's Federal Statistics Office released data on German Gross Domestic Product toady. The seasonally-adjusted data showed that the GDP rose +0.7% between October and December in line with expectations as domestic demand and foreign trade were the main drivers of growth in Europe's largest economy. Private consumption rose +0.8%, capital investment added +1.2% and exports increased by +1.3%.A lower oil price and a weaker euro had positive effects on the economy. In the preceding quarter the GDP rose by +0.7%.

The FTSE 100 index is currently trading -0.1% quoted at 6,905.58 points, close to its all-time high at 6950.99. Germany's DAX 30 is trading flat at 11,127.48. France's CAC 40 lost -0.1%, currently trading at 4,855.83 points.

U.S. markets moderately declined from fresh all-time highs as the telecommunications sector, oil & gas and industrials led shares lower ahead of US Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen's semi-annual testimony to the Senate Banking Committee. Markets will closely watch the testimony for clues as to when the world's largest economy may raise interest rates.

Yesterday data showed Sales of existing homes fell 4.9% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.82 million in January from 5.07 million in December. That was the lowest level since April 2014.

The DOW JONES index declined by -0.13% easily closing above the psychologically important threshold of 18,000 points at 18,116.84 points. The S&P 500 closed -0.03% with a final quote of 2,109.66 points reversing early losses.

Hong Kong stocks declined and the Hang Seng Index to a break after its longest winning streak in seven months as HSBC Holdings Plc, an index heavyweight led shares lower. Energy shares declined with oil prices. The Hang Seng is trading -0.40% at 24,736.24 points.

Japanese markets rose for a fifth day and closed at a fresh 15-year high in today's trading on a weakening Japanese yen. The Nikkei added 136 points, closing +0.74% with a final quote of 18,603.48 points - the highest level since April 2000.

(index / closing price / change items /% change)

Nikkei 225 18,466.92 +134.62 +0.73 %

Topix 1,502.83 +2.50 +0.17 %

FTSE 100 6,912.16 -3.04 -0.04 %

CAC 40 4,862.3 +31.40 +0.65 %

Xetra DAX 11,130.92 +80.28 +0.73 %

S&P 500 2,109.66 -0.64 -0.03 %

NASDAQ Composite 4,960.97 +5.01 +0.10 %

Dow Jones 18,116.84 -23.60 -0.13 %