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S&P 500, Nasdaq scale fresh intraday record highs

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Nvidia ( NVDA ) shares cross $1,000 mark after results

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DuPont ( DD ) gains on plans of three-way split

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Live Nation tumbles on report of DOJ action

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Indexes: Dow down 0.56%, S&P up 0.07%, Nasdaq up 0.49%

(Updated at 10 a.m. ET)

By Ankika Biswas and Lisa Pauline Mattackal

May 23 (Reuters) - The tech-heavy Nasdaq and the

benchmark S&P 500 opened at record highs on Thursday as chip

stocks rallied after Nvidia's ( NVDA ) upbeat revenue forecast, but

persistent worries about U.S. inflation kept market exuberance

in check.

The AI chip leader's stock opened above the $1,000

mark for the first time and was 8.7% higher by 10:00 a.m. ET, on

track to add around $220 billion in market value if gains hold.

The semiconductor bellwether also announced a stock split,

following an over 90% surge in its shares this year and a

threefold jump in 2023 that have made Nvidia ( NVDA ) the third-most

valuable U.S. stock.

The response to Nvidia's ( NVDA ) results contrasts the muted,

range-bound trading on Wall Street in the days leading up to the

release, underscoring the company's growing significance.

Other chip and AI-linked stocks rose, with Advanced Micro

Devices ( AMD ), Micron Technology ( MU ), and Super Micro

Computer ( SMCI ) rising between 2.8% and 10%.

"When (Nvidia ( NVDA )) results beat, bang, money is straight back on

the table, but it's all a momentum trade," said Marc Ostwald,

chief economist and global strategist at ADM Investor Services

International.

"With so much uncertainty elsewhere, investors are being

cautious and just sticking to what I would call 'flipping the

market.' Short term trades, short term perspective."

The S&P 500 pared gains after data showed U.S. price

pressures increased in May even as business activity

accelerated, while initial jobless claims dropped to a

seasonally adjusted 215,000 for the week ended May 18, compared

with expectations of 220,000.

Minutes of the Federal Reserve's latest policy meeting

released on Wednesday showed rate-setters still had faith price

pressures would ease in coming months, but remained doubtful

about whether the current level of interest rates was high

enough to ensure that outcome.

"Right now, the case for cutting rates just really isn't

there," Ostwald said.

Traders currently expect the U.S. central bank to reduce its

interest rates by nearly 40 basis points this year.

At 10:00 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average

was down 221.43 points, or 0.56%, at 39,449.61, the S&P

500 was up 3.90 points, or 0.07%, at 5,310.91, and the

Nasdaq Composite was up 82.81 points, or 0.49%, at

16,884.35.

Losses in industrial shares and a 2% decline in Boeing ( BA )

weighed on the Dow after a U.S. regulator said

the planemaker

faces a "long road" to address safety issues.

Still, both the S&P 500 Information Technology sector

index and Philadelphia Semiconductor index

touched record highs thanks to optimism around Nvidia's ( NVDA ) results.

The CBOE Volatility Index, also known as Wall

Street's "fear gauge", hit its lowest levels since November

2019.

DuPont ( DD ) climbed 5.6% on the U.S. conglomerate's plans

to split into three publicly traded companies.

Shares of Ticketmaster owner Live Nation dropped

6.2% after a report that the U.S. Department of Justice could

seek a break-up of the company to combat its domination of

concert ticket sales.

Declining issues outnumbered advancers for a 2.10-to-1 ratio

on the NYSE and for a 2.19-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.

The S&P index recorded 29 new 52-week highs and six new

lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 50 new highs and 72 new lows.