(MENAFN) U.S. markets closed with mixed results on Wednesday, as investors grappled with a data vacuum stemming from the ongoing federal government shutdown, now in its eighth day. With key economic reports on hold, attention shifted to newly released minutes from the Federal Reserve’s September policy meeting.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average edged down just 1.20 points to settle at 46,601.78. In contrast, the S&P 500 climbed 39.13 points, or 0.58%, ending at 6,753.72. The Nasdaq Composite led gains, rising 255.02 points, or 1.12%, to close at 23,043.38.

Among the 11 major sectors of the S&P 500, seven ended in positive territory. Technology surged 1.52% while industrials advanced 0.85%, leading the day’s gainers. On the flip side, energy and consumer staples underperformed, falling 0.57% and 0.52%, respectively.

The market’s momentum was tempered by the continued absence of official government data, with agencies such as the U.S. Labor Department and Commerce Department still shuttered. As a result, traders are now eyeing next week’s third-quarter earnings reports for guidance.

In a key development, minutes from the Federal Open Market Committee meeting showed divisions among policymakers. While inflation remained a concern, the panel highlighted growing risks in the labor market. “Most judged that it likely would be appropriate to ease policy further over the remainder of this year,” the minutes stated, though clarity on the exact timing and pace of any rate cuts was lacking.

On the corporate front, Nvidia saw its stock rebound by more than 2% following comments from CEO Jensen Huang in an interview with media. “Demand for computing power has gone up substantially,” Huang said. He also confirmed Nvidia’s involvement in funding Elon Musk’s AI venture, xAI, adding that he’s “super excited” about the financing opportunity.

The rebound followed a dip on Tuesday, when Nvidia and Oracle shares fell amid reports of tightening cloud-computing margins, reigniting fears of an “AI bubble” akin to the late-1990s dot-com surge.

“Even if you look at the late-'90s, we had big corrections in the Nasdaq every single year, so I think there's going to continue to be this enthusiasm for a sell-off in tech stocks,” said Baird investment strategist Ross Mayfield. “There could be several corrections, big corrections in tech stocks, you know DeepSeek-type moments, before we ultimately get to some sort of bull market top.”

Meanwhile, despite the shutdown halting official labor data, Bank of America economists pointed to a weakening employment landscape. Using proprietary metrics, they estimate job growth in September slowed to 0.5% year-over-year—“the slowest pace we've seen in months.”

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