Stocks rose on Monday, recovering from an earlier drop, as an analyst's bullish assessment of bank performance lifted financials.

Trading was volatile, however, as stocks initially opened higher and then swung between gains and losses in the first hour of the session.

There was also uneasiness about the survival of CIT Group Inc , which provides financing to many small and mid-sized businesses.

Shares of big-cap technology bellwethers, including Research In Motion Ltd and Cisco Systems Inc weighed on Nasdaq.

The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> was up 47.99 points, or 0.59 percent, at 8,194.51. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> was up 4.28 points, or 0.49 percent, at 883.41. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> was up 1.14 points, or 0.06 percent, at 1,757.17.

(Reporting by Ellis Mnyandu; Editing by Padraic Cassidy)

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