Nikkei posts big gains Monday

The Nikkei average in Japan rose 414.11 points Monday to hit its highest level since January 15.

The Tokyo board gained 3.1 percent on the day, closing at 13,914.57 points, with investors emboldened by a late surge in U.S. markets on Friday.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng index did not follow suit, dropping 35.90 points on the day to 23,269.14, a 0.15 percent decline.

In Bombay, the Sensex average also fell, down 0.5 percent to 17,262.29, off 67.20 points.

In Seoul, investors were buoyed by the swearing in of a new president. Lee Myung-bak's inaugural day in office was marked by a 1.3 percent gain on the Kospi index, closing at 1709.13 points, up 1.34 percent.

The Australian Stock Exchange gained 55.30 points to 5,699.80, up 0.98 percent Monday

Copyright 2008 by United Press International