Overseas Trading: European Stocks Drop as Draghi Takes the Mic

It was a mixed finish for stocks in Asia, as crude oil traded modestly higher and traders parsed yesterday's Beige Book release from the Fed. News that Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) will soon offer Nintendo's "Super Mario Run" in its app store lifted shares of the Japan-based video game maker by as much as 28%. Nevertheless, Japan's Nikkei dropped 0.3% by the close, as a stronger yen overshadowed an upwardly revised reading on second-quarter gross domestic product (GDP).

Elsewhere, better-than-expected trade data helped China's Shanghai Composite add 0.2%, while a separate report showed Beijing's crude oil imports hit a year-to-date high in August. Hong Kong's Hang Seng tacked on 0.8%, and the South Korean Kospi climbed 0.1%.

European markets are mostly lower at midday, after the European Central Bank (ECB) said it will leave interest rates unchanged. Traders are now digesting a press conference with ECB President Mario Draghi -- currently underway -- for hints on the central bank's future monetary policy forecast. At last check, Germany's DAX and France's CAC 40 have dropped 0.6% and 0.3%, respectively. London's FTSE 100, meanwhile, has added 0.2%. 

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