The Globe and Mail reports in its Thursday edition that U.S. stocks ended lower on Wednesday as the U.S. Federal Reserve held interest rates steady as expected. A Reuters dispatch to The Globe says that meanwhile, the Toronto Stock Exchange closed modestly higher after the Bank of Canada cut its key lending rate. Technology shares were the biggest drag on the S&P 500. Nvidia shares fell 4.1 per cent and Microsoft finished 1.1 per cent lower on Wednesday, two days after a tech sell-off sparked by Chinese start-up DeepSeek's launch of AI models it said were cost-effective and ran on less advanced chips compared with U.S.-based OpenAI. The U.S. central bank dropped language saying inflation "has made progress" toward the Fed's 2-per-cent inflation goal, noting only the pace of price increases "remains elevated." Mr. Powell told reporters that monetary policy is "well positioned" for the challenges at hand. "Powell does a great job of calming markets," said Jake Dollarhide, chief executive officer of Longbow Asset Management in Tulsa, Okla., adding that "a strong economy gives the Fed plenty of wiggle room." The S&P/TSX Composite Index ended up 53.85 points at 25,473.30, its highest closing level since Dec. 11.