Stock prices rose on many of the world's markets Tuesday after a report that troubled Citigroup posted its best financial performance in more than a year in the first two months of 2009.

An internal memo from Citigroup chief Vikram Pandit said the firm had an operating profit of more than $8 billion so far this year.

Global financial markets took a break from persistent gloom-and-doom pessimism to rally sharply Tuesday.

After months of relentlessly selling shares, investors returned to a buying mood, sending markets soaring from Asia to Europe to the Americas.

"It is nice to know that the market does not only go in one direction when that one direction seems to be down," said Michael Farr,Washington-based market analyst.

With governments and central banks around the world struggling to contain and reverse a financial crisis and global credit squeeze, investors responded enthusiastically to positive news from Citigroup, one of America's largest banks and financial services providers. Citigroup's top executive, CEO Vikram Pandit, reported the company has operated at a profit for the first two months of the year, after suffering five consecutive quarterly losses.

For weeks, U.S. legislators have been debating the merits of further government intervention to prop up major financial corporations like Citigroup, as opposed to nationalizing them or allowing them to go bankrupt.

Once started, the market rally was not derailed by other, less upbeat news. The Commerce Department reported U.S. businesses cut inventories at the wholesale level for a fifth consecutive month in February, and Delta Airlines announced plans to further slash international routes. Brazil revealed its economy contracted at a 3.6 percent rate in the final quarter of last year, while the head of the International Monetary Fund, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, proclaimed that the world has entered what he termed a "Great Recession" that could last a long time.

Many analysts have been left asking if Tuesday's rally was a sign of better days to come, or a momentary interruption of a continuing trend downward. UBS wealth management researcher Michael Ryan says, at long last, markets may have reached a bottom.

"The bounce we are getting today comes off of a period where equity markets have been under severe pressure and we have seen significant losses," said Ryan. "I think the fact that we have seen markets start to rebound suggests that we have reached really technically-oversold levels."

Market analyst Michael Farr says no one should interpret a one-day rally as a sign of a market turnaround, noting that economic conditions remain grim in the United States and elsewhere. Just the same, he says, in today's climate, market upticks should be savored.

"Carpe diem, live for the day! Enjoy this moment - we have not had enough of them," he said.

Even with the day's rally, Wall Street's Dow Jones Industrial Average has lost roughly half its value since late 2007. Global financial losses of wealth have been estimated as high as $50 trillion.

花旗银行正面消息使世界股市大涨

全球金融市场暂时停止了持续低迷的悲观局势，星期二出现了大幅上涨。

投资人在几个月接连抛售股票之后，重新恢复了购买情绪，这使亚洲、欧洲和美洲的股市大涨。华盛顿的市场分析人士法尔说：“我很高兴看到，市场并没有只跌不涨。”

*花旗银行今年前两个月盈利*

就在世界各国政府和央行拼力控制和扭转金融危机及全球信贷紧缩时，投资者对来自花旗银行的正面消息作出积极反应。花旗银行是美国最大的银行和金融服务提供商之一。花旗首席执行官潘迪特报告说，在连续经历了五个季度的亏损后，花旗终于在今年头两个月中盈利。

这波大涨行情开始后，其它相对负面的消息并没能对它造成影响。美国财政部的报告说，今年2月，美国企业连续第5个月削减库存。达美航空公司则宣布计划取消更多的国际航线。巴西政府透露，巴西经济在去年最后一个季度收缩了3.6%。此外，国际货币基金组织总裁宣布，世界已经进入“大萧条”，而这种情况可能会持续很长一段时间。

*瑞恩：市场可能已跌到低谷*

许多分析人士不禁问道：星期二的大涨是表明未来形势会越来越好，还是只是持续下行趋势中的一次短暂反弹呢？瑞士联合银行财富管理研究员瑞恩说，这可能意味着市场终于已经跌到了低谷。

他说：“我们今天看到的反弹出现之前，产权投资市场已经经历了一段时间的重压，并承受了巨大损失。我认为，我们所看到的这次反弹表明，从技术上来讲，我们已经达到了过份抛售的水平。”

*法尔：不该把这次大涨视为市场扭转*

但是，市场分析人士法尔说，不应把一天的大涨解释为市场形势开始扭转。他指出，美国和其它各国的经济环境依然恶劣。不过，他也说，在今天的市场环境中，人们应当尽情享受股市上涨的行情。

他说：“及时行乐吧!享受这一时刻，这种大涨越多越好。”

即便在星期二股市大涨的情况下，目前的道琼斯工业平均指数同2007年底相比还是跌了大约50%。据估计，全球金融财富的损失已高达50万亿美元。