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August Core CPI up 0.3% vs economist estimates for 0.2%

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Nvidia ( NVDA ) rises 8% for biggest market boost

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Trump Media & Technology ( DJT ) shares slump, Solar stocks rally

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Indexes up: Dow 0.31%, S&P 500 1.07%, Nasdaq 2.17%

(Updates with final closing prices, volume data)

By Sinéad Carew and Shashwat Chauhan

Sept 11 (Reuters) -

All three major U.S. stock indexes closed higher on

Wednesday with a boost from the technology sector offsetting

investor disappointment at an early morning inflation report,

which crushed hopes the Federal Reserve would cut interest rates

by 50 basis points next week.

The S&P 500 technology index finished up 3.3%

after opening lower with a big boost from AI chipmaker Nvidia ( NVDA )

, which added 8%. It was helped by a Semafor report that

the U.S. government is considering letting Nvidia ( NVDA ) export

advanced chips to Saudi Arabia.

Political developments also drove market sentiment the

day after Democrat candidate Kamala Harris put her Republican

rival Donald Trump on the defensive in a combative U.S.

presidential debate.

Earlier, the Labor Department reported the consumer

price index (CPI) rose 0.2% last month, in line with July. Core

CPI, excluding volatile food and energy components, rose 0.3% on

a monthly basis, exceeding economist expectations for a 0.2%

rise.

Traders changed their bets to a 85% probability for a 25

basis points cut by the Fed from 66% on Tuesday and the

probability of a 50 basis point cut fell to 15% from 34% a day

ago, according to CME Group's FedWatch tool.

"Maybe the market was looking for a softer inflation print

which would give the Fed more reason to cut by 50 basis points

next week." said Jack Janasiewicz, portfolio manager, at

Natixis. "This report was in-line to slightly hotter than

expectations. As a result, this puts a bit of pressure on the

Fed to cut by only 25 basis points."

As the day wore on investors may have come to terms with the

inflation numbers, according to Janasiewicz who also pointed to

technology as the stand out "which has helped prop up the

broader market."

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 124.75

points, or 0.31%, to 40,861.71, the S&P 500 gained 58.61

points, or 1.07%, to 5,554.13 and the Nasdaq Composite

gained 369.65 points, or 2.17%, to 17,395.53.

Six of the S&P 500's 11 major sectors advanced on the

day with consumer discretionary the second biggest

gainer, up 1.3%. Among the sector laggards, energy lost

0.93% followed closely by consumer staples, down

0.88%.

The S&P 500 financial index pared losses to

close down just 0.39%. At its session low, it was down more than

2%.

Its biggest gainer was

American Express ( AXP )

, whose financial chief told a conference that

credit was strong and consumer spending stable.

Some big U.S. lenders also advanced, rebounding from

early tumbles. Goldman Sachs ( GS ) closed up 0.9% while

JPMorgan ( JPM ) added 0.8%. The sector was hit Tuesday by

warnings of a dip in trading revenue, a slower-than-anticipated

recovery in investment banking and an expected hit to interest

income from looming rate cuts.

After the Presidential debate and with eight weeks left

until the election, contracts for a Harris victory are trading

at 57 cents, with a potential $1 payout, up from 53 cents before

the debate, on the PredictIt politics betting platform. Trump

contracts are trading at 48 cents versus 52 cents beforehand.

As a result, stocks expected to perform well under a Trump

presidency fell, with cryptocurrency and blockchain-related

shares and prison operators lower. Trump Media & Technology

Group ( DJT ) shares slumped 10.5%.

Meanwhile, solar stocks, seen as benefiting from a Harris

administration, rallied. First Solar ( FSLR ) added 15.2% while

Sunrun ( RUN ) rose 11.3% and SolarEdge Technologies ( SEDG )

advanced 8.5%.

While the debate offered Wall Street little clarity on key

policy issues, some market watchers see Harris' proposals to

raise the corporate tax rate as likely to hit company profits,

while Trump's tougher stance on tariffs could stoke inflation.

GameStop ( GME ) shares fell almost 12% after the videogame

retailer said it had filed for an offering of up to 20 million

shares and reported lower second-quarter revenue.

Shares of lithium miners jumped after Chinese battery giant

CATL said it plans to make adjustments to lithium

carbonate production in Yichun. Albemarle, one of the

largest lithium miners in the world, jumped 13.6%.

Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.4-to-1

ratio on the NYSE where there were 342 new highs and 130 new

lows.

On the Nasdaq, 2,337 stocks rose and 1,882 fell as

advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.24-to-1 ratio. The

S&P 500 posted 21 new 52-week highs and 17 new lows while the

Nasdaq Composite recorded 48 new highs and 129 new lows.

On U.S. exchanges 12.19 billion shares changed hands

compared with the 10.80 billion 20 day moving average.