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Apple ( AAPL ) overtakes Microsoft ( MSFT ) as world's most valuable company

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May CPI data unexpectedly flat

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Federal Reserve policy announcement due at 2 p.m. ET

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Oracle up on double-digit FY25 revenue growth forecast

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Indexes rise: Dow 0.28%, S&P 1.11%, Nasdaq 1.74%

(Updated at 12:04 p.m. ET/1604 GMT)

By Lisa Pauline Mattackal and Johann M Cherian

June 12 (Reuters) -

U.S. stocks rose broadly on Wednesday, with the S&P 500 and

the Nasdaq touching fresh record highs after softer inflation

data lifted hopes for central bank rate cuts, while Apple ( AAPL )

overtook Microsoft ( MSFT ) to become the world's most valuable company.

As the focus shifts to the

Federal Reserve's policy announcement

, markets will zero in on Chair Jerome Powell's press

conference and the Fed's updated "dot plot", which shows where

policymakers expect interest rates to stand this year and long

term.

Interest rates are overwhelmingly expected to remain

unchanged at the meeting.

Meanwhile, Apple's ( AAPL ) shares climbed 4.4% to hit a record

high, dethroning Microsoft ( MSFT ) for the first time in five months, as

the iPhone maker's market valuation rose to $3.24 trillion

versus Microsoft's ( MSFT ) $3.23 trillion.

The latest spurt came soon after Apple ( AAPL ) launched its

artificial intelligence-integrated products on Monday, sprinting

past AI chip powerhouse Nvidia's ( NVDA ) $3 trillion valuation.

Risk sentiment was boosted after a Labor Department

report showed the

Consumer Price Index

was unchanged on a monthly basis in May, when it was

expected to rise 0.1%. On an annual basis, inflation rose 3.3%,

lower than economists' expectation of a 3.4% increase.

CPI, excluding volatile food and energy prices, rose

0.2%, compared with an expectation of a 0.3% rise, while core

inflation rose 3.4% on an annual basis versus a forecast of

3.5%.

"This continues the process of inflation slowly coming

down. The $64,000 question is, going forward, how quickly it

will keep coming down," said Sameer Samana, senior global market

strategist at the Wells Fargo Investment Institute.

Markets boosted expectations for a September start to

rate cuts after the data, pricing in an over 70% chance,

according to the CME's FedWatch tool, from 54% prior to the

report.

"It still comes down to when the cuts start and how many

times they (the Fed) will cut, and in our opinion, the market's

probably being too exuberant," Samana said.

Rate-sensitive megacap stocks rose as Treasury yields

fell, with the S&P 500's information technology and an

index tracking chip stocks at all-time highs.

Real-estate stocks rose to an over three-week

high, while the small-cap Russell 2000 Index jumped

2.7

%.

At 12:04 p.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average

was up 106.95 points, or 0.28%, at 38,854.37, the S&P 500

was up 59.77 points, or 1.11%, at 5,435.09, and the

Nasdaq Composite was up 302.32 points, or 1.74%, at

17,645.87.

Among others, Oracle gained 11.7% after forecasting

double-digit revenue in fiscal year 2025 after the bell on

Tuesday.

U.S.-listed shares of electric-vehicle maker Nio

slipped 0.8% after the European Commission announced extra

tariffs on imported Chinese EVS.

Paramount Global ( PARAA ) fell 0.2% after Shari Redstone

ended talks for a potential merger with David Ellison's Skydance

Media.

Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 5.55-to-1

ratio on the NYSE, and by a 2.85-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.

The S&P index recorded 38 new 52-week highs and no new

lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 90 new highs and 45 new lows.