US STOCKS-Strong U.S. data, financials drive stocks higher

* Durable goods data soothes concerns about economy

* Oil rises on storm worries, boosts energy shares

* Fannie, Freddie rally as fears of government rescue ease

* Dow up 0.8 pct; S&P 500 up 0.8 pct; Nasdaq up 0.9 pct (Updates to close)

By Steven C. Johnson

NEW YORK, Aug 27 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks rose on Wednesday as surprisingly strong data on durable goods orders soothed some concern about the sluggish economy while Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac led a rally in financial shares.

Energy shares gained with higher oil prices, which rose for the third straight day on fears that Tropical Storm Gustav could interrupt oil and natural gas output in the Gulf of Mexico.

Investors, meanwhile, were cheered by data showing new orders for big-ticket manufactured items jumped a surprisingly strong 1.3 percent in July. Boeing (BA.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) shares added nearly 2 percent after the data showed a 28 percent rise in orders for civilian aircraft.

"Durable goods orders were up very nicely, and the market is going up because that has helped people start to look beyond the valley of all the economic and credit concerns to better times ahead," said Al Goldman, chief market strategist at Wachovia Securities in St. Louis. "People are a little less pessimistic."

Fannie Mae (FNM.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and Freddie Mac (FRE.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) rallied for a third straight day as investors grew more confident that there will not be a government bailout that would wipe out their equity.

The Dow Jones industrial average .DJI was up 89.64 points, or 0.79 percent, at 11,502.51. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index .SPX was up 10.12 points, or 0.80 percent, at 1,281.63. The Nasdaq Composite Index .IXIC was up 20.49 points, or 0.87 percent, at 2,382.46.

Trading volume, which has been light for much of August, was especially thin ahead of the U.S. Labor Day holiday weekend. Thin trade can exaggerate price moves.

Fannie Mae, the biggest provider of U.S. home financing, rose 15.3 percent to $6.48, while shares of Freddie Mac gained 19.7 percent to $4.75.

Merrill Lynch & Co. in a Tuesday note became at least the third major Wall Street bank to cast doubt on speculation that the Treasury would add direct support to the companies, since both have adequate capital to offset losses for "several quarters."

That helped lift stocks of big U.S. banks and financial companies, many of which have significant underwriting business with the two government-sponsored mortgage finance firms.

Shares of Bank of America (BAC.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), the No. 2 U.S. bank, were among the top boosts for the S&P and Dow, rising 2.2 percent to $29.65. Lehman Brothers LEH.N rose 5.4 percent to $14.78.