NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - U.S. stocks staged an impressive turnaround Monday, as a bounce in software, chip and Internet stocks, as well as continued gains in select blue chips, pushed indexes higher by the close.

However, with light volume and little new corporate news, analysts cautioned that any gains were very insecure ahead of key speeches from President Bush and Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan and the one-year anniversary of the terrorist attacks against the United States.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 92.18 to 8,519.38. The Nasdaq composite gained 9.30 to 1,304.60. The Standard & Poor's 500 index stood at 902.96, up 9.04. All three major indexes posted solid gains at the end of last week.

"We had a mid-afternoon drift upwards, but I would call it more a lack of selling than buying momentum," Jennifer Williams, a floor broker at Griswold Co., told CNNfn's Street Sweep. "We're looking at added volatility this week because of the September 11th memorial Wednesday, George Bush addressing the U.N. and Greenspan speaking Thursday."

After the close of trade, automaker Ford Motor (F: up $0.60 to $10.80, Research, Estimates) said that its third-quarter results will come in higher than what analysts currently expect.

Semiconductor, Internet and software stocks bounced off their earlier losses, while gold, homebuilders and biotech built on their earlier strength.

Gains in a wide range of blue-chip issues, notably AT&T (T: up $0.10 to $12.30, Research, Estimates), Walt Disney (DIS: up $0.54 to $15.90, Research, Estimates), Philip Morris (MO: up $1.59 to $48.10, Research, Estimates) and Merck (MRK: up $0.80 to $49.40, Research, Estimates), helped boost the Dow.

"Short-covering has brought stocks back a little, but you've got very little volume and the rhetoric of the potential attack against Iraq and the September 11th anniversary hanging over markets," said Peter Cardillo, director of research at Global Partners Securities.

Wednesday marks the one-year anniversary of one of the worst terrorist attacks in the nation's history. Equity markets will delay their opening until 11 a.m. ET in a show of respect, as well as to allow traders and other market professionals to attend memorial services. The site of the New York Stock Exchange is in close proximity to where the World Trade Center used to stand.

On Thursday, President Bush will address the United Nations, in a speech that is expected to hammer home the administration's belief that international action must be taken against Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein. Also on Thursday, Alan Greenspan will testify on the state of the economy before the House Budget Committee.

"It's pretty clear Bush wants to go after Iraq, and he seems to have [U.K. Prime Minister] Tony Blair lined up, and that's pretty much all he needs. And the market seems to be getting more used to the idea of an attack," said John Hughes, market analyst at Shields & Co. "Greenspan is the least influential event this week. We know where the economy is, and there isn't much expectation of him saying anything new."

"You have a lot going on this week," Hughes said. "But emotionally, for lots of us in New York and elsewhere, Wednesday is the big day."

Shares of AOL Time Warner (AOL: up $0.20 to $13.33, Research, Estimates) reversed course, after declining most of the session. The media and Internet company reaffirmed revenue guidance that is lower than what analysts are currently expecting, and said it continues to see a weak advertising environment. AOL Time Warner is the parent company of CNN/Money. The turnaround gave a boost to other stocks that had been declining in sympathy, including Yahoo! (YHOO: up $0.21 to $10.15, Research, Estimates) and eBay (EBAY: up $2.54 to $58.99, Research, Estimates).

Wireless developer Nextel Communications (NXTL: down $0.09 to $7.89, Research, Estimates) gained after the company said that it will either meet or beat current estimates of 2 million additional net subscribers in 2002 and that it expects to generate more than $3 billion in operating cash flow.

As is typical during times of sharp stock selling, gold stocks rallied, as investors made a safe-haven play into companies such as Durban Deep (DROOY: up $0.24 to $4.46, Research, Estimates) and Harmony Gold (HGMCY: up $1.35 to $17.66, Research, Estimates).

But J.P. Morgan Chase (JPM: down $0.32 to $23.59, Research, Estimates) couldn't shake its early weakness. Merrill Lynch downgraded the stock to "neutral" from "buy" and cut its 2002 and 2003 profit estimates. The firm cited concerns including the settlement of the company's $1 billion dispute with several surety bond companies, the result of which could directly affect earnings per share.

Financial services firm Citigroup (C: up $0.79 to $31.07, Research, Estimates) said Sunday it has replaced the head of global corporate and investment banking amid recent controversy surrounding biased stock research and questionable practices by its Salomon Smith Barney unit.

Treasury prices fell, pushing the 10-year note yield up to 4.06 percent. The dollar was slightly higher versus the yen and euro.

Light crude futures rose 12 cents to $29.73 a barrel, while gold hit six-week highs.

Market breadth was mixed on light volume. On the New York Stock Exchange, winners beat losers 9-to-7 as 1.12 billion shares changed hands. On the Nasdaq, decliners edged advancers as 1.22 billion shares traded.