Stocks rose strongly on Tuesday, extending a rally to a second day, as corporate giants including General Electric gave encouraging forecasts to investors hungry for signs of economic health.

"The bear market is over, but the bull market is not yet upon us," said Mr Stanley Nabi, managing director at Credit Suisse Asset Management, which oversees $100 billion in North America.

"There is a minor reconsideration about how quickly the market is to recover." General Electric said its profits would meet Wall Street's targets this year and grow by at least 10 per cent in 2002 and 2003 as strength in its long-cycle businesses helps combat a weak global economy. GE's stock, a Dow component, rose $1.42 to $39.72, lifting the blue-chip Dow average.

Bucking the trend of gloomy drugmaker forecasts, Pfizer, the world's largest pharmaceuticals company, rose 31 cents to $40.64 after it reaffirmed it expects earnings to grow at least 51 per cent next year. Tempering some investor enthusiasm was Solectron, the world's largest contract electronics manufacturer. The shares fell $2.71, or 18.3 per cent, at $12.10.