US STOCKS-S&P 500, Nasdaq gain on tech boost after inflation data; Mideast tensions in focus

* Indexes: Dow down 0.23%, S&P 500 up 0.15%, Nasdaq up 0.54%

* March CPI at 3.3% annually, in line with estimates

* TSMC's US shares gain after Q1 revenue beat

* CoreWeave (CRWV) rises after deal with Anthropic (Updates after markets open)

By Purvi Agarwal and Avinash P

April 10 (Reuters) - The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq edged higher on Friday, lifted by gains in tech stocks after March inflation data met expectations despite ongoing pressures from the Middle East conflict, while investors weighed the strained truce between the U.S. and Iran.

U.S. consumer prices increased the most in nearly four years in March, as the war boosted oil prices and the pass-through from tariffs persisted.

Traders stuck to bets that the U.S. Federal Reserve will hold borrowing costs steady this year, according to data compiled by LSEG, pulling back from an expectation of two interest-rate cuts this year before the conflict began.

"When paired with Thursday's PCE data, the message is clear: inflation remains sticky - and that optimistically assumes the energy surge proves to be a temporary headwind rather than a lasting recalibration," said Bret Kenwell, U.S. investment analyst at eToro.

"It should keep policymakers on pause, unless we see a more notable deterioration in the labor market or the broader economy."

San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly told Reuters on Thursday the oil shock from the Iran war would extend the timeline on bringing inflation back to the U.S. central bank's 2% target.

At 10:15 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 109.60 points, or 0.23%, to 48,076.20, the S&P 500 rose 10.56 points, or 0.15%, to 6,835.22, and the Nasdaq Composite added 123.70 points, or 0.54%, to 22,946.11.

The S&P 500 information technology index proved to be the biggest boost to the index, rising 0.8%, with chipmakers in the lead. Nvidia (NVDA) and Broadcom (AVGO) rose 1.8% and 4.4%, respectively, and the Philadelphia SE Semiconductor index hit a record high of 8,926.08.

However, weakness in financial stocks, which were down 0.8%, capped gains on the benchmark index. Declines in Goldman Sachs (GS) and Travelers dragged on the Dow.

Wall Street's main indexes were set for weekly gains, with the S&P 500 and the Dow on track for their steepest rise since November and June, respectively.

The two-week ceasefire between Washington and Tehran, and comments from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that he was seeking direct talks with Beirut, largely buoyed market sentiment this week.

However, the Pakistan-brokered truce has shown some cracks, with each side accusing the other of ceasefire violations ahead of the first round of talks, which are scheduled for Saturday.

"This is a headline-driven market... as long as the ceasefire holds and the market sees a path toward relative calm in the Middle East, investors should be able to look through disruptions," said Jeff Buchbinder, chief equity strategist for LPL Financial.

Separately, a preliminary reading showed the University of Michigan's consumer sentiment at 47.6 in April, below an estimate of 52, according to economists polled by Reuters.

U.S.-listed shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSM) , the world's largest contract chipmaker, rose 2.7% after it beat market forecasts for first-quarter revenue.

CoreWeave (CRWV) gained 6.8% after it announced a multi-year agreement with Anthropic and priced its convertible bond offering at a premium.

Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.22-to-1 ratio on the NYSE and by a 1.07-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.

The S&P 500 posted 17 new 52-week highs and 18 new lows, while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 84 new highs and 70 new lows. (Reporting by Purvi Agarwal and Avinash P in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli and Pooja Desai)