U.S. Stocks Gain on GDP, Rate Cuts; Intel, Home Depot Advance (Eric Martin)

  Oct. 30 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. stocks rose after the economy contracted less than forecast in the third quarter and investors speculated global interest-rate cuts will stem a further slump.

  Intel Corp., Disney Co. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. climbed more than 5.3 percent after the government said the economy shrunk 0.3 percent last quarter. Colgate-Palmolive Co. jumped 7 percent on better-than-estimated earnings. The advance added to a global rally after Hong Kong joined the U.S. in lowering borrowing costs and the Federal Reserve provided $120 billion to spur lending in emerging markets.

  The Standard & Poor's 500 Index gained 23.93, or 2.6 percent, to 954.02. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 189.73, or 2.1 percent, to 9,180.69. The Nasdaq Composite Index increased 41.31, or 2.5 percent, to 1,698.52. Almost seven stocks rose for each that fell on the New York Stock Exchange.

  ``There weren't any nasty surprises,'' in the economic data, said Jeffrey Davis, chief investment officer at Lee Munder Capital Group in Boston, which manages $4 billion. ``GDP was better than expected. The real economy didn't fall as dramatically as the financial markets. The central bank cuts are bringing a little bit of confidence.''

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