NEW YORK, Sept. 16 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks closed mixed on Wednesday as tech shares struggled, weighing on the market.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average increased 36.78 points, or 0.13 percent, to 28,032.38. The S&P 500 fell 15.71 points, or 0.46 percent, to 3,385.49. The Nasdaq Composite Index decreased 139.85 points, or 1.25 percent, to 11,050.47.

Six of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors fell, with technology and communication services closing down 1.56 percent and 1.2 percent, respectively, leading the laggards. Energy rallied 4.04 percent, the best-performing group.

U.S.-listed Chinese companies traded mostly lower, with six of the top 10 stocks by weight in the S&P U.S. Listed China 50 index ending the day on a downbeat note.

The moves came after the U.S. Federal Reserve held its benchmark interest rate steady at the record-low level of near zero and promised to maintain this target range until labor market conditions have improved to reach maximum employment and inflation has picked up to its desirable level.

"Economic activity and employment have picked up in recent months but remain well below their levels at the beginning of the year," the Fed said in a statement after concluding a two-day policy meeting on Wednesday.

"Weaker demand and significantly lower oil prices are holding down consumer price inflation," the Fed said, adding "the ongoing public health crisis will continue to weigh on economic activity, employment, and inflation in the near term, and poses considerable risks to the economic outlook over the medium term."

The Fed slashed interest rates to near zero earlier this year in an effort to support the economy amid the pandemic shock.

On the data front, U.S. retail sales registered 537.5 billion U.S. dollars in August, an increase of 0.6 percent from the previous month, the Department of Commerce reported on Wednesday. The reading fell short of market consensus.