NEW YORK, Feb. 19 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks ended slightly higher on Wednesday, despite the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting minutes showed Fed officials' concerns about the potential for policy changes to keep inflation above the Fed's target.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 71.25 points, or 0.16 percent, to 44,627.59. The S&P 500 added 14.57 points, or 0.24 percent, to another record high of 6,144.15. The Nasdaq Composite Index increased 14.99 points, or 0.07 percent, to 20,056.25.

Nine of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors ended in green, with health and consumer staples leading the gainers by adding 1.26 percent and 0.79 percent, respectively. Meanwhile, materials and financials led the laggards by losing 1.16 percent and 0.03 percent, respectively.

Federal Reserve officials agreed in January that further interest rate cuts would require additional progress on inflation, according to the meeting minutes released on Wednesday afternoon. They also voiced concerns over the impact of U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs on potential inflation.

The FOMC unanimously decided to keep rates unchanged, following three consecutive cuts in 2024 that totaled one percentage point. The committee noted that current policy is "significantly less restrictive" than it had been prior to the rate cuts, giving members time to evaluate conditions before making any additional moves.

FOMC members also cited, according to the meeting summary, "the effects of potential changes in trade and immigration policy as well as strong consumer demand. Business contacts in a number of Districts had indicated that firms would attempt to pass on to consumers higher input costs arising from potential tariffs."

Trump on Tuesday floated the notion of imposing a 25 percent tariff on imported autos, chips and pharmaceuticals. Fed Chair Jerome Powell has largely steered clear of speculating on the economic impact of Trump's tariffs, but other officials have acknowledged that the trade policies could influence monetary decisions and potentially delay rate cuts further.

"I think there's a lot of noise tied to DOGE (Department of Government Efficiency), Elon Musk and tariffs in the short-term, which is what you're seeing today. And I think a lot of this stuff will linger," said Jim Elios, founder and chief investment officer at Elios Financial Group. "It's the Trump effect with headlines that are weighing on markets and causing some pain. In the long-term, I'm still really bullish about how this can become a pro-business environment."

On the corporate front, a handful of stocks were on the move after the release of quarterly earnings reports. Shares of Microsoft gained 1.25 percent and led the broader technology sector higher after the company unveiled its first ever quantum computing chip.

Shares of homebuilder Toll Brothers fell 5.87 percent, while Arista Networks dropped 6.43 percent and specialty chemicals maker Celanese plunged 21.46 percent to lead S&P 500 decliners.

Among post-earnings gainers, semiconductor company Analog Devices and GPS device maker Garmin rose 9.74 percent and 12.64 percent, respectively. Enditem

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