U.S. stocks rise as geopolitical tensions ease, earnings heat up

U.S. stocks rose on Monday as geopolitical tensions eased and earnings season heated up.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 183.26 points, or 0.90 percent, to 20,636.51. The S&P 500 added 20.06 points, or 0.86 percent, to 2,349.01. The Nasdaq Composite Index increased 51.64 points, or 0.89 percent, to 5,856.79.

A slew of notable companies will report quarterly results during the week, with the United Continental Holdings Inc. and the Netflix Inc. kicking off after Monday's closing bell. Goldman Sachs, Bank of America and eBay, among others, were also set to report this week.

The latest data from Thomson Reuters showed that the S&P 500 companies' blended earnings in the first quarter of 2017 are expected to gain 10.4 percent year on year, while the revenues are forecast to increase 6.9 percent.

Business activity grew at a more subdued pace in New York State, according to firms responding to the April 2017 Empire State Manufacturing Survey. The headline general business conditions index fell 11 points to 5.2.

On the economic front, builder confidence in the market for newly-built single-family homes remained solid in April, falling three points to a level of 68 on the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) after an unusually high March reading.

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told the Financial Times on Monday that Republicans could complete tax reform without incorporating the border adjustment tax.

U.S. stock markets were closed Friday in observation of the Good Friday holiday. On Thursday, U.S. stocks pared early gains to end lower after the U.S. military dropped the largest non-nuclear bomb in Afghanistan on an Islamic State target. Endit