Geopolitics helped prompt profit-taking in Asian shares Thursday following this week's strength. As expected, President Donald Trump signed a bill on Wednesday that imposed fresh sanctions on Russia, North Korea and Iran even as he expressed concern that the "seriously flawed" legislation "will drive China, Russia, and North Korea much closer together."

European equity benchmarks ended lower Wednesday, as bank shares slumped after France's Société Générale SA posted a drop in profit and metal's related stocks declined after an update from Rio Tinto PLC. The Stoxx Europe 600 SXXP, -0.43% dropped 0.4% to 378.63, partly erasing a 0.6% gain from Tuesday.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average on Wednesday notched a psychological milestone at 22,000, highlighting a steady record ascent for the blue-chip benchmark. The 30-component Dow industrials DJIA, +0.24% hit the latest in a string of all-time highs on Tuesday finishing at a record and was powered on Wednesday by a rally in shares of Apple Inc. AAPL, +4.73% which trading in record territory, following better-than-expected results late-Tuesday.