New York Times Co. shares jumped nearly 7 percent Monday amid thin trading volume, helped by a lift in media stocks and the broader market.

The stock market surged after upbeat economic news from China, strong earnings at European banks and a surprisingly good report on U.S. manufacturing activity.

Media stocks joined the rally, with USA Today publisher Gannett Co. up 4 percent, MTV and Paramount Pictures owner Viacom Inc. up 3 percent and the Walt Disney Co. up 2 percent.

The Times Co. also announced Monday that it would begin licensing software to other publishers for creating iPhone and iPad applications.

The company did not release financial details but any extra source of revenue could help the Times Co. deal with a deep slump in advertising sales.

Benchmark Co. analyst Edward Atorino cautioned against reading to much into the jump in share price. "You can't look at percentage increase in these small price stocks," Atorino said.

Trading in Times Co. shares was also relatively thin at about 1.2 million shares.

The Times Co., which publishers the namesake newspaper, The Boston Globe and 16 other dailies, has taken a beating during the recession.

Companies pulled back on advertising to save cash and competition for ad dollars on the Web has increased.

Times Co. shares rose 59 cents, or 6.8 percent, to $9.33 in afternoon trading.