Stocks get boost from Citi earnings 'beat'

The U.S. stock market, which took it on the chin last week amid a massive sell-off in once high-flying tech and biotech stocks, opened higher Monday after a strong reading on March retail sales and earnings beat from Citigroup.

The better-than-expected Citigroup earnings and the best monthly retail sales jump since September 2012 provided a positive one-two punch for Wall Street.

The earnings beat helped offset some of the negativity from last week, when J.P. Morgan Chase's profit came in far below forecasts. Citigroup's results also offset some of the gloom ahead of what is expected to be a challenging quarter for corporate profits.

The 1.1% jump in retail sales in March also raised hopes that the spring thaw will coincide with a re-acceleration of economic growth after a lousy first quarter due to harsh winter weather.

Right after the opening bell, the Dow Jones industrial was up 0.6%, the Standard & Poor's 500 was 0.7% higher, and the Nasdaq composite, which suffered its worst weekly decline since June 2012 last week, was up 0.9%. CNBC reported that only 9 of the 500 stocks were down in early trading, a sign that the market rebound is broad today.

Citi shares were up 4.2% in early trading after it topped profit forecasts by 16 cents.

Oil rose above $104 per barrel amid renewed tensions between Ukraine and Russia.

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In early European trading Germany's DAX fell 0.5 percent to 9,275.98 and France's CAC-40 shed 0.1 percent to 4,361.36. Britain's FTSE 100 dropped 0.5 percent to 6,530.90. Asian stock markets were muted.

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On Wall Street, futures for the Dow Jones industrial average and the broader S&P 500 both were off 0.1 percent.

The declines came after investors drove U.S. markets lower for a second day Friday due to anxiety that earnings growth was faltering.

Financial analysts expect earnings for companies in the Standard & Poor's 500 to drop ! 1.6 percent from a year earlier, according to FactSet, a financial data provider. That was a reversal from the start of the year, when they expected a jump of 4.3 percent.

"We believe the selling is not finished," said Bank of America Merrill Lynch in a report.

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Tokyo's Nikkei 225 shed 0.4 percent to 13,910.16 and Sydney's S&P/ASX 200 tumbled 1.3 percent to 5,358.9.

China's benchmark Shanghai Composite Index was little changed at 2,131.54 while Seoul's Kospi held steady at 1,997.02.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng index was the region's only major gainer, rising 0.2 percent to 23,048.40.

In Japan, retailers are feeling the impact of a sales tax hike that took effect April 1. Department stores such as Takashimaya, Mitsukoshi and Sogo said sales plunged by 10 to 25 percent in the first week of April.

"Consumption demand has fallen sharply since the new tax rate took effect," said DBS Group in a report.

On Friday, the Nasdaq dropped 1.3 percent. The Dow fell 0.9 percent while the S&P 500 was off 1 percent.

In energy markets, benchmark U.S. crude for May delivery was up 72 cents to $104.47 after Ukraine's government said Sunday it was sending troops to try to quash a pro-Russian insurgency in eastern Ukraine despite warnings from the Kremlin. Markets have been rattled by concern Western sanctions against Moscow might disrupt Russian exports of oil and gas. The contract rose 34 cents Friday to close at $103.74.

In currency markets, the dollar rose to 101.68 yen from 101.63 yen late Friday. The euro fell to $1.3827 from $1.3852.

Contributing: Associated Press