NEW YORK: The Dow and the S&P 500 indexes gained on Wednesday, helped by gains in industrial and defensive names, while investors awaited minutes from the Federal Reserve’s meeting after the central bank took a more hawkish tone last month.

Six of the 11 major S&P sectors rose with industrials providing the biggest boost, while energy fell 1.4%, extending declines from the previous session.

The defensive real estate, utilities and consumer staples sectors were among the biggest gainers, as investors sought the safety of government bonds and refrained from making riskier bets ahead of the Fed’s minutes from its June meeting at 2 p.m. ET.

At 11:56 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 44.05 points, or 0.13%, at 34,621.42, the S&P 500 was up 9.60 points, or 0.22%, at 4,353.14, and the Nasdaq Composite was up 21.38 points, or 0.15%, at 14,685.02.

China’s market regulator said it has fined a number of internet companies including Didi Global, Tencent and Alibaba for failing to report earlier merger and acquisition deals for approval. US-listed shares of Didi fell 7%, adding to a nearly 20% slump on Tuesday.