North American markets closed flat Wednesday following the decision by the U.S. Federal Reserve to raise interest rates by 25 basis points.

The key federal funds rate is now 2%.

The S&P/TSX composite index closed down 3.49 points, or 0.04%, at 8,841.67. Volume was 289 million shares.

Six of the 10 TSX groups closed lower. A drop in gold shares more than offset advances in energy stocks.

The materials group was down 0.17%, in part due to a 1.79% slump in gold mining issues. Gold futures ended the day below there 16-year highs.

Kinross Gold shares slipped 1.93% to $9.65.

Iamgold shares shed 43¢, or 4.78%, to $8.57 after the company posted a third-quarter loss.

Gainers on the TSX were led by energy stocks, which rose 1.5%, on renewed fears over dwindling heating fuel supplies.

Canadian Natural Resources was up 1.48¢, or 3.14%, at $48.60. Before markets opened, the oil explorer said it planned to acquire oil and natural gas properties from West Canadian Properties.

Encana shares rose 73¢, or 1.18%, to end at $62.34.

The heavily weighted financial services group was down 0.59%.

Scotiabank shares fell 40¢, or 1.03%, to $38.55. The bank said it suffered a brief computer glitch which affected its operations Wednesday morning.

Active stocks included Stelco, which closed up 1¢ to $1.48 on top of Tuesday’s 20 per cent jump after Russia’s Severstal made a formal offer for the steelmaker. Volume was 12 million shares.

Shares in hydrogen fuel-cell firm Stuart Energy soared 84¢, or 29%, to $3.66 after rival Hydrogenics Corp. struck a deal to acquire the company for $155 million in stock. Hydrogenics shares slid 32¢, or 5% to $5.27.

The junior S&P/TSX Venture composite index edged up 1.62 points to 1,632.67.

In New York, blue chips gave up their earlier gains after the Fed announcement. Technology shares fell amid disappointment over Cisco Systems’ sales outlook.

The Dow Jones industrial average closed down 0.89 of a point 10,385.48. The S&P 500 slipped 1.17 points to 1,162.91. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index dropped 8.77 points, or 0.43%, to 2,038.67.