Wall Street closes lower as ECB holds policy unchanged

NEW YORK (AA) – Wall Street ended Thursday lower after the European Central Bank (ECB) kept its policy unchanged, bucking expectations of investors who anticipated more economic stimulus from the bank.

The Dow Jones fell 46 points to end at 18,479 and the S&P 500 was down four points to 2,181. The Nasdaq lost 24 points to finish the day at 5,259 -- ending its rally of four consecutive days of gains.

The ECB said it would keep its interests rate unchanged and would not extend its asset purchases program beyond March 2017.

Investors wanted more purchase of assets from the bank, hoping it would create stimulus for the European economy and have a positive effect in the U.S. as well, according to analysts.

The American stock market closed the day with losses despite sharp increase in oil prices that came after a surprising decline in U.S. weekly crude oil inventories.

At the final bell, the American benchmark West Texas Intermediate traded at $47.42 a barrel with a 4.1 percent rise, while international benchmark Brent crude was at $49.76 per barrel -- a 3.6 percent increase.

Crude oil inventories fell by a massive 14.5 million barrels, or 2.8 percent, for the week ending Sept. 2, according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA). The decline was due to Hurricane Hermine, which negatively affected oil refineries in the Gulf Coast.