European Central Bank chief Mario Draghi said Thursday the governing council "didn't discuss" winding down its massive bond purchases, after a report that an end may be in sight spooked investors earlier this month.

"We didn't discuss tapering" or gradually phasing out the 80-billion-euro a month quantitative easing programme, Draghi told reporters after a meeting of the governing council.

Investors were eagerly awaiting clarification on the bank's next move on its stimulus programme, after a Bloomberg article suggested the ECB was considering "tapering".