* Indexes up: Dow 0.19%, S&P 500 0.19%, Nasdaq 0.10%

* Oil prices jump on Middle East tensions

* Intel ( INTC ) climbs after Friday's rally

* Inflation data due later this week

(Updates with closing prices for individual stocks and sectors,

volume data and gainers-decliners)

By Stephen Culp and Ragini Mathur

NEW YORK, May 11 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks closed slightly

higher on Monday, with AI optimism fueling upward momentum even

as the earnings-driven fervor of the recent rally eased in the

home stretch of reporting season and as crude prices rose,

stoking inflation worries as U.S.-Iran peace negotiations

stalled.

All three major U.S. stock indexes advanced and the S&P 500

and the Nasdaq eked out their latest in a series of all-time

closing highs.

Semiconductors handily outshone other sectors, with the PHLX

Semiconductor index jumping 2.6%, suggesting the AI wave

is showing few signs of abating.

"The semis and AI infrastructure trade has taken on a life

entirely of its own," said Ross Mayfield, investment strategy

analyst at Baird in Louisville, Kentucky. "And there's so much

momentum and chasing to get in on some of these names that it

seems almost somewhat divorced from any sort of like headline or

announcement."

But some market watchers believe the rally is about to run

out of momentum.

Investor Michael Burry warned on Monday that stocks are

likely about to crash. In a post on his Substack, Burry, one of

the biggest winners of the 2008 financial meltdown, said that

the 2026 rally in tech stocks is about to end with a thud. "The

market has jumped the shark," he wrote.

First-quarter reporting period is nearing the finish line,

with 440 of the companies in the S&P 500 having reported. Of

those, 83% have topped earnings expectations, according to LSEG

IBES.

As of Friday, analysts estimated first-quarter S&P 500

earnings growth, on aggregate, of 28.6% year-on-year. That's

nearly double the 14.4% first-quarter growth estimates as of

April 1.

"The strength of the rally largely is a function of earnings

growth, which is superb," said Terry Sandven, chief equity

strategist at U.S. Bank Wealth Management in Minneapolis.

"Market watchers are looking ahead to next week, when the

big-box retailers report, to get a sense of if there's any

change in consumer spending behavior following, you know,

elevated prices at the gas pump."

But as earnings season nears the finish line, focus returns

to macroeconomics and geopolitical developments.

President Donald Trump dismissed Iran's response to a U.S.

peace proposal, causing crude prices to spike and stoking

concerns that a prolonged conflict will keep putting upward

pressure on inflation, particularly at the gasoline pump, where

consumers are feeling the pinch.

On that point, investors will pay close attention to

economic indicators this week, particularly the Labor

Department's Consumer Price Index and the retail sales report

from the Commerce Department, scanning the data for signs that

the ongoing surge in energy prices is metastasizing into broader

inflation or affecting consumer spending.

Producer prices and industrial output are also on this

week's economic calendar.

Later this week, President Trump is due to meet his Chinese

counterpart Xi Jinping in Beijing for talks covering a broad

range of issues, including the Iran war, trade, nuclear weapons,

Taiwan, artificial intelligence and possible extension of a

critical rare-earth minerals deal.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 95.31 points,

or 0.19%, to 49,704.47, the S&P 500 gained 13.91 points,

or 0.19%, to 7,412.84 and the Nasdaq Composite gained

27.05 points, or 0.10%, to 26,274.13.

Among the 11 major sectors of the S&P 500, energy stocks

boasted the largest percentage gains, while

communication services were the biggest laggards.

Companies slated to report this week include tech networking

giant Cisco ( CSCO ) and semiconductor equipment maker Applied

Materials ( AMAT ), while heavyweights Nvidia ( NVDA ) and

Walmart ( WMT ) are due to report later in the month.

On Monday, Intel ( INTC ) rose 3.6% after surging 14% on

Friday on a report of a preliminary chip-making agreement with

Apple ( AAPL ), while peer Qualcomm ( QCOM ) jumped 8.4% to a

record high.

Media major Fox Corp ( FOXA ) rose 7.6% after beating

third-quarter revenue estimates.

Among other movers, some airline stocks slipped as rising

oil prices threatened to squeeze margins. Southwest Airlines ( LUV )

, Delta Air Lines ( DAL ), Alaska Air ( ALK ) and United

Airlines fell between 2.9% and 4.4%.

Declining issues outnumbered advancers by a 1.08-to-1 ratio

on the NYSE. There were 567 new highs and 144 new lows on the

NYSE.

On the Nasdaq, 2,129 stocks rose and 2,704 fell as declining

issues outnumbered advancers by a 1.27-to-1 ratio.

The S&P 500 posted 39 new 52-week highs and 42 new lows

while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 157 new highs and 164 new

lows.

Volume on U.S. exchanges was 21.42 billion shares, compared

with the 17.99 billion average for the full session over the

last 20 trading days.