World financial news

Citigroup Inc. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. rose at least 7.7 percent. KB Home, the fourth-largest U.S. house builder, rallied 9.3 percent, and Home Depot Inc. rose 6.7 percent as housing starts unexpectedly climbed 22 percent in February, the most since 1990. Apple Inc. added 4.4 percent to help lead technology shares higher after updating its iPhone software.

The S&P 500 increased 3.2 percent to 778.12. The Dow Jones industrial average advanced 178.73 points, or 2.5 percent, to 7,395.7. The Nasdaq composite index surged 4.1 percent.

"The market was depressed to an extreme level because of the constant stream of bad news and events," said Mark Freeman, a money manager at Westwood Management Corp. in Dallas, which oversees $7 billion. "The mere fact that the negative news has stopped allows the market to come back up to a reasonable level."

JPMorgan rose the most in the Dow, climbing 8.9 percent to $25.14. Citigroup Inc. added 7.7 percent to $2.51.

Centex gained 56 cents, or 8.1 percent, to $7.45.

Home Depot had the Dow’s third-biggest advance, adding 6.7 percent to $21.48.

Apple added 4.4 percent to $99.66.

Cisco Systems Inc. gained 4.5 percent to $16.14. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. added the world’s largest maker of networking equipment to its "conviction buy" list, citing the introduction of its so-called blade platform.

Target Corp. rose 5.6 percent to $30.45. The second-largest U.S. retailer was raised to "buy" at Jefferies Group Inc payday loan companies. Kohls Corp., which also was boosted to that rating, advanced 6.2 percent to $39.70.

Genworth Financial Inc. climbed 20 cents, or 14 percent, to $1.64 and Hartford Financial Services Group advanced 58 cents, or 8.9 percent, to $7.13.

Financial shares in the S&P 500 added 6.6 percent. The group dropped as much as 2.2 percent in the first half hour after analyst Meredith Whitney told CNBC that banks’ profit forecasts may come back to haunt them because they probably don’t include writedowns on bad assets and loan losses.

Bank of America Chief Executive Kenneth Lewis said on Friday that his company was profitable in January and February, joining JPMorgan and Citigroup in suggesting the nation’s three biggest banks are recovering from the credit crisis.

Alcoa Inc. led the market lower in early trading after the largest U.S. aluminum company cut its dividend and said it will sell stock to raise cash. The shares slid 53 cents, or 8.7 percent, to $5.59.

Nucor Corp., the largest steelmaker by market value, fell $3.40, or 9.2 percent, to $33.55 after forecasting a first-quarter loss of as much as 65 cents a share.

LaBranche & Co. tumbled 23 percent to $4.60. The fourth-largest market maker at the New York Stock Exchange said it expects to post a loss in the first quarter.

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