Wall Street ends higher on IMF hopes, Goldman

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks jumped to their highest since July on Wednesday as the International Monetary Fund sought to help countries hit by the European debt crisis, while Goldman Sachs' forecast-beating earnings dispelled some worries over bank profits.

The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> was up 96.88 points, or 0.78 percent, to end unofficially at 12,578.95. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> was up 14.37 points, or 1.11 percent, to finish unofficially at 1,308.04. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> was up 41.63 points, or 1.53 percent, at 2,769.71.

(Reporting By Angela Moon; Editing by Jan Paschal)