North American stocks moved higher Wednesday, reaching record highs, as investors welcomed a U.S. Federal Reserve decision holding the line on interest rates.

The S&P/TSX composite index gained 19.52, or 0.15%, to 13,034.12, beating the record close set last month.

The U.S. central bank left rates at 5.25% and indicated in its announcement that the domestic economy remained strong, inflation remained in check.

Half of the 10 TSX main sectors ended higher.

The materials sector gained 0.86%, while the gold sub-sector gained 1.18%.

Kinross Gold Corp. gained 17¢, or 1.10%, to $15.68.

The energy sector was off 0.16%.

Petro-Canada lost 12¢, or 0.26%, to $45.77.

The information technology sector fell 1.43%.

Electronics manufacturer Celestica Inc. plummeted $2.14, or 23.46%, to $6.98 after reporting a $150.6 million loss for 2006 and releasing disappointing earnings guidance for the upcoming quarter.

The Canadian dollar was up 0.22 of a cent to US84.96¢.

The S&P TSX Venture Exchange gained 20.70, or 0.71%, to 2,940.28.

In New York, investors cheered the Fed’s announcement as markets moved higher.

The Dow Jones industrial average closed up 98.38 points at 12,621.69, a new record high. The S&P 500 index closed up 9.42 points at 1,438.24, while the Nasdaq Composite rose 15.29 points to 2,463.93.

The Dow closed higher for the seventh month in a row in January, gaining 1.3 percent. The S&P 500 rose for the eighth straight month, adding 1.4 percent in January. The Nasdaq finished January with a 2 percent gain.