Wall Street jumps as investors weigh Citi, Google results

And investors appeared unfazed by the latest spike in energy prices. Oil jumped to $117 a barrel for the first time when a militant group in Nigeria said it sabotaged a major oil pipeline.

Light, sweet crude for May delivery rose to a new trading record of $117 in after-hours electronic trading Friday, after settling up $1.83 at a record $116.69 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It was the fifth day in a row crude prices set new records.

Meanwhile, a survey of gas stations by AAA and the Oil Price Information Service found that the national average price of regular gas rose 2.7 cents overnight to a record $3.445 a gallon.

Gold prices fell, while the dollar was mixed against other major currencies.

Kumar contends that while investors appear upbeat following the stronger-than-expected quarterly reports, Wall Street will likely still bounce around for some time as it tries to get a read on the fate of the economy.

"The market is trying to find a bottom and that's why you're seeing these volatile days," he said. "I think before one can say that the markets are ready to make a sustained move upward, you have to look at the negative side," he said, pointing to high prices for oil and food.

He also emphasized that it was still early in the earnings-reporting period.

Doug Roberts, chief investment strategist at Channel Capital Research, also believes the market is engaged in the sometimes messy process of establishing a base.

"My sense is, at least short term, we've reached some kind of a bottom," he said. "There was just so much pessimism built into everything."

Unease did appear to dissipate. Wall Street's "fear index" the Chicago Board Options Exchange's volatility index declined 1.2 percent Friday.