The Globe and Mail reports in its Thursday edition that U.S. stocks finished lower on Wednesday, led by a drop in the Nasdaq Composite Index, with technology shares declining as investors moved into more defensive areas. A Reuters dispatch to The Globe says the Toronto Stock Exchange ended slightly higher at a fresh record, benefiting from yet another rise in gold prices. The S&P 500 Banks Index dropped, with shares of Wells Fargo down 4.6 per cent after the company missed fourth-quarter profit expectations. Citigroup and Bank of America shares also fell. Financials including the banks, which were up sharply in 2025, have fallen this week amid concerns over President Donald Trump's proposed cap on credit-card interest rates. Michael O'Rourke, chief market strategist at JonesTrading in Stamford, Conn., said the credit-card cap may never go forward, but "none of the bank executives could rule it out." In tech, he said, investors are looking to rotate out of expensive megacaps and into value and more defensive names. The S&P/TSX Composite Index ended up 46.11 points at 32,916.47, surpassing the record closing high it posted on Monday. The energy sector in Toronto added 2.6 per cent, while gold hit a record high.