World Financial Markets Edge Lower

Stock prices edged lower across the globe Monday as Japanese investors worried about the bailout of a major retailer and European traders were disappointed by a downgrade of Nokia.

U.S. financial markets were closed Monday in observance of Martin Luther King Day.

Japan’s benchmark 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average fell 13.07 points, or 0.1%, to close at 10,280.25. Investors were worried that a massive bailout for struggling retailer Daiei could further harm Japan’s economy.

In currency dealings, the dollar slipped against the yen as a senior Japanese currency official denied speculation that Japanese finance authorities intentionally were weakening the yen.

The dollar was quoted at 132.57 Japanese yen, down from 132.74 on Friday.

In Europe, stocks were mostly lower Monday, pulled down by the troubled technology and telecommunications sectors.

The decline followed a Morgan Stanley brokerage downgrade of Nokia, the Finland-based telecommunications manufacturer, to “underperform” from “neutral.”

The Dow Jones Stoxx Total Market index of shares in European companies fell 1.60 points to 275.79 points.

The Dow Jones Euro Stoxx Total Market index, which tracks companies in countries that joined the single currency, was down 2.72 points at 271.32 points.

The Dow Jones Euro Stoxx 50 index was down 40.3 points at 3,599.0 and the Dow Jones Stoxx 50 index was down 24.7 points at 3,522.8.