Wall Street’s main indexes edged higher on Wednesday following a brief interruption in a steady rally, as investors awaited fresh clues on the interest-rate trajectory.

With the U.S. government shutdown delaying the release of key economic reports, traders are likely to lean heavily on commentary from Federal Reserve officials to guide their positioning.

Euphoria around artificial intelligence has helped stocks shrug off concerns about the shutdown, keeping markets buoyant through what is typically a weak period for equities.

“Shutdowns are speed bumps but AI is a highway and the price action shows drivers are flooring it,” said Eric Schiffer, chief executive officer at investment firm the Patriarch Organization.

Gold broke above $4,000 an ounce for the first time, underscoring growing appetite for a hedge against policy risks and a shaky macroeconomic backdrop.

“The momentum is well-supported. A softer dollar, persistent central bank buying and elevated geopolitical risk continue to underpin the move,” said Daniela Hathorn, senior market analyst at Capital.com.

At 11:44 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 179.40 points, or 0.38%, to 46,782.38, the S&P 500 gained 35.17 points, or 0.52%, to 6,749.76 and the Nasdaq Composite climbed 174.57 points, or 0.77%, to 22,962.94.

The S&P 500 tech sector rose 1.1% with Nvidia gaining 1.8% and Micron Technology up 5%.

Tech Stock Gains Boost Nasdaq

The gains in tech stocks also boosted the Nasdaq.

The Industrials sector rose 0.9% on the S&P 500. Caterpillar rose 3.7%, while Boeing added 1.6%.

On the benchmark index, healthcare stocks added 0.3% while Moderna rose 3%. BofA Global Research upgraded the U.S. healthcare sector to “overweight” from “underweight”.

Remarks from Dallas Fed President Lorie Logan, Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee, Fed Governor Michael Barr, and Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari are on deck. Minutes from the Fed’s September meeting are also due at 2 p.m. ET.

Separately, investors are also digesting data that shows signs of cooling in the labor market.

Global investment firm Carlyle estimated on Tuesday that U.S. employers added just 17,000 jobs in September, well below the 54,000 gain economists polled by Reuters had expected in the official nonfarm payrolls report, which has been delayed.

Among stocks, Fair Isaac Corp fell 7.8% after credit bureau Equifax said it plans to offer cheaper mortgage credit scores.

U.S.-listed shares of gold miners rose, with Newmont and Gold Fields up 2.2% and 3.8%, respectively.

Dell hit its highest since May last year and was last up 7.2% after multiple brokerages raised their price target on the stock.

Datadog rose 6.6% after Bernstein raised its price target on the cloud security firm, while Intercontinental Exchange fell 2.2% after Barclays cut its price target on the stock.

Joby Aviation declined 10.6% after the electric air taxi maker on Tuesday priced a $514 million share sale at a 10.9% discount to its last closing price.

Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.34-to-1 ratio on the NYSE and by a 1.49-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.

The S&P 500 posted 15 new 52-week highs and 4 new lows while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 53 new highs and 41 new lows.

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(Reporting by Niket Nishant and Sukriti Gupta in Bengaluru; Editing by Devika Syamnath and Anil D’Silva)