Europe stocks fall as earnings roll in; ING up 5%; traders react to Fed decision

This is CNBC's live blog covering European markets.

European stocks were slightly lower on Thursday as global markets react to the U.S. Federal Reserve's latest monetary policy decision and a slew of corporate earnings.

The Stoxx 600 index was down 0.25% at 11 a.m in London, with sectors spread between losses and gains. Bank stocks were 0.5% higher, while oil and gas retreated 1.35%.

Central bank policymakers kept rates steady in their May meeting, holding at a range of 5.25% to 5.5%, as expected. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said it was unlikely that the central bank's next move will be a rate hike.

The comment spurred a rally for the three major U.S. averages Wednesday, with the Dow surging more than 500 points in its session high.

Asia-Pacific markets were mostly higher overnight as traders reacted to the Fed's stance, while U.S. stock futures advanced as investors looked ahead to more corporate earnings due Thursday.

It's a busy day for earnings in Europe Thursday. The region's biggest company, Novo Nordisk, beat profit estimates as demand for its weight loss drugs continued to boom. Oil giant Shell also outperformed on higher refining margins and robust oil trading.

Dutch bank ING was 5% higher in early deals after announcing a 2.5 billion euro ($2.7 billion) share buyback.

AXA, ArcelorMittal, Orsted, Vestas, Hugo Boss, Pandora and Standard Chartered are among the other companies reporting.

Data releases include Swiss inflation figures for April and Italian producer prices for March.

Janet Henry, chief global economist at HSBC, discusses the state of the U.S. economy and the outlook for Federal Reserve policy.

Shares of Universal Music Group were fractionally above the flatline at 10:15 a.m. in London, after the