US stocks follow European shares down

New York - US stocks opened lower on Thursday, following European bourses downward after European Central Bank chief Mario Draghi called on eurozone countries to immediately enact fiscal stimulus.

"The cost of delay is simply too high," Draghi told the Brussels Economic Forum, one day after the ECB announced a new bond-buying programme to try to spur the tepid eurozone economy.

"Fiscal policy should work with, not against, monetary policy."

US oil prices dipped a bit, but remained above $50 a barrel, resulting in declines for shares of ExxonMobil, Chevron and other oil-linked equities.

Five minutes into trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was at 17 941.84, down 0.4%.

The broad-based S&P 500 shed 0.5% at 2 109.68, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index lost 0.5% at 4 950.73.