The Dow Jones industrial average gained 60.21 points to close at 6,541.90, bolstered by some strong first-quarter profit reports. The Dow, which traded at a modest loss for much of the session, slid nearly 150 points on Friday to wipe out the rest of what had been a 10 percent gain for the year.

Decliners led advancers by a 7-to-5 margin on the New York Stock Exchange, with 1,042 up, 1,449 down and 847 unchanged. NYSE volume was 406.78 million shares vs. 440.48 million Friday.

Most broad-market measures also turned positive in the afternoon. The Standard & Poor's 500-

stock list rose 6.08 to 743.73, and the NYSE's composite index rose 2.02 to 391.49. The Nasdaq composite rose 9.51 to 1,216.41, but the American Stock Exchange index fell 3.16 to 52.97.

The Dow struggled much of the day despite better-than-expected earnings reports from Coca-Cola Co., Travelers Group Inc., and General Motors Corp.

There were no major economic reports today to calm or aggravate the prevailing inflation worries that have dragged the markets lower over the past month.

On Friday, stocks fell sharply following worrisome reports on wholesale prices and retail sales. The Labor Department reported that a widely watched measure of wholesale prices unexpectedly jumped last month. The Commerce Department reported a slight increase in retail sales for March, but nearly doubled its initial estimate of February's consumer activity.

The reports solidified fears the Federal Reserve, which sent the markets plunging three weeks ago by raising interest rates, will soon tighten credit even further to fight inflation.

Fed officials have warned that the central bank will raise interest rates aggressively to slow the pace of borrowing and spending. That would help ease inflationary pressures, but could choke company profits in the process.