Japan's economic growth jumps

A report on Thursday showed that Japan's economic growth accelerated to 1.5 percent in the first quarter, sharply up from 0.1 percent in the previous quarter.

The spike in the growth rate was largely attributed to a rush in demand before the April sales tax hike.

A report later on Thursday is expected to show that the eurozone economy grew 0.4 percent in the first quarter.

However, a report on Wednesday showed that eurozone industrial production fell 0.3 percent in March as mild weather contributed to a fall in energy production.