NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- U.S. stocks were modestly higher on Monday, as investors cheered news that Osama bin Laden was killed by U.S. forces.
The founder and leader of al Qaeda, Osama bin Laden, was killed by U.S. forces in Abbottabad, north of the Pakistani capital Islamabad.
In an address to the nation Sunday night, President Barack Obama called bin Laden's death, "the most significant achievement to date in our nation's effort to defeat al Qaeda."
"It was such an incredible victory that there is going to be a very, very good mood on Wall Street and throughout the country," said Jeffrey Sica, president and chief investment officer at SICA Wealth Management.
While the news should boost stocks first thing Monday morning, Sica said Osama bin Laden's death is not enough to sustain a long rally.
The Dow Jones industrial average (INDU) rose 43 points, or 0.3%; the S&P 500 (SPX) climbed 5 points, or 0.3%; and the Nasdaq Composite (COMP) gained 7 points, or 0.2%.
Oil prices were slightly higher, after being down more than 1% earlier in the day. Crude oil was at $114.19 a barrel, up 27 cents.
"Oil can be a globally emotional, reactive market and any time that geopolitical risk is reduced there is less fear in the oil markets," said Derek Hoffman, chief executive and founder of Wall St. Cheat Sheet. "The news that there was a successful effort to find, capture and kill the number one terrorist in the world is a positive sign."
Gold prices also backed off their highs Monday. Gold futures for June delivery fell $3.20 to $1,553.20 an ounce, after hitting an intraday high of $1,577.40 an ounce.
On Friday stocks finished their best month this year.
Stocks have headed higher since the beginning of the year amid strong earnings. Despite jitters about the economy and concerns about inflation, April was the best month for the three indexes since December.
While corporate earnings have thus far been strong, Sica said the weak read on both the economy's growth and the labor market last weekwere causes for concern.
World markets: Markets around the world had a muted reaction to Osama bin Laden's death, with Britain's FTSE 100, the Hang Seng in Hong Kong and the Shanghai Composite all closed for holiday.
Other European stocks rose slightly in morning trading. The DAX in Germany rose 0.8% and France's CAC 40 edged higher 0.4%.
And Japan's Nikkei ended the session 1.57% higher.
Economy: The Institute for Supply Management said its April manufacturing index fell to a reading of 60.4%, better than the reading of 58.5% economists had expected.
Companies: The Nasdaq-100 index will be rebalanced to reduce the weight of Apple's stock by about 40%. Apple (AAPL, Fortune 500) currently represents 20.5% of the index. After the rebalancing, Apple's weight will be reduced to 12.3%.
Shares of TiVo (TIVO) were up 8% in early trading after DISH Network Corporation (DISH, Fortune 500) and EchoStar Corporation (SATS) announced they will pay TiVo $500 million to settle an ongoing patent dispute.
Separately, DISH reported earnings per share of $1.22 for the quarter ended in March, easily topping forecasts. Also, DISH said it gained approximately 58,000 net subscribers during the quarter. Shares of DISH were up almost 8% in premarket trade.
Currencies and commodities: The dollar fell against the euro, but gained strength against the Japanese yen and the British pound.
Bonds: The price on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury dipped, pushing the yield up to 3.31%.
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