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August CPI data due at 8:30 a.m. ET

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Oracle extends gains after near 36% jump on Wednesday

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Futures up: Dow and S&P 500 0.2% each, Nasdaq 0.3%

(Updates prices throughout, adds Centene ( CNC ) share move)

By Purvi Agarwal and Shashwat Chauhan

Sept 11 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures were

slightly higher on Thursday as investors refrained from making

large bets ahead of crucial inflation numbers that are likely to

influence the Federal Reserve's monetary policy path.

A reading of consumer prices is due at 8:30 a.m. ET, with

inflation expected to have picked up in August. Last month's

producer inflation numbers, released on Wednesday, fell

unexpectedly, boosting expectations of interest-rate cuts from

the Fed at its meeting next week.

Recent economic indicators have shown the U.S. labor market

was weaker than previously thought, bringing bets on a

bigger-than-usual 50-basis-point trim in September to 10.2%,

according to CME's FedWatch Tool.

Continued labor market weakness, especially bleak nonfarm

payrolls data for July and August, prompted investors to fully

price in at least 25 bps of easing at the central bank's

September 16-17 meeting.

"We expect ... forthcoming consumer price inflation data

today to also keep the door open for a resumption in U.S.

interest-rate cuts," said Mark Haefele, chief investment officer

at UBS Global Wealth Management.

"The combination of a moderation in jobs growth and

still-manageable inflation should keep the Fed on track to cut

rates, with a 25-basis-point cut expected in September."

A weekly reading of jobless claims data is also due

alongside the inflation report.

At 7:03 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis were up 89 points, or

0.2%, S&P 500 E-minis were up 13 points, or 0.2% and

Nasdaq 100 E-minis were up 67 points, or 0.28%.

The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq notched record high closes on

Wednesday, partly helped by a nearly 36% surge in Oracle

after an upbeat forecast that brought the cloud

computing company closer to joining the trillion-dollar club.

It revived the AI trade on Wednesday, sparking a rally in

artificial-intelligence-linked chip and utility companies

supplying power to data centers.

Oracle rose 1.6% in premarket trading on Thursday.

Wall Street's three main indexes have had a broadly

positive start to September - a month that is deemed bad

historically for U.S. equities. In the month, the benchmark S&P

500 has shed 1.5% on average since 2000, data compiled by LSEG

showed.

Gun stocks climbed before the bell, extending their rally

from the previous session after conservative activist Charlie

Kirk was shot dead at a university in Utah on Wednesday.

GrabAGun gained 1.5% and Smith & Wesson Brands ( SWBI )

was up 4.8%.

Stocks linked to ether rose, tracking gains in the

cryptocurrency. Sharplink Gaming ( SBET ) advanced 1.4%, Bit

Digital ( BTBT ) was up 1.2% and Bitmine Immersion Technologies

was 4.7% higher.

Centene ( CNC ) gained 3.8% as the health insurer said its

results through August are consistent with its previous guidance

for a full-year profit.