European stocks closed lower Thursday, weighed down by a slide in German equities and a rising euro, after the European Central Bank held off from expanding its monetary stimulus. The moves came as ECB President Mario Draghi spoke after the bank's monetary policy meeting in Frankfurt. He said while there are still risks to the eurozone economy, the current outlook for the bloc does not warrant a decision for the central bank to act now.

U.S. stocks on Thursday closed lower after the European Central Bank kept key interest rates steady but disappointed some by not announcing additional measures to boost Europe's sluggish economy.

Asian markets were mixed after a North Korean earthquake was likely caused by an explosion, possibly from a nuclear test in the isolated nation.