Japanese stocks closed higher on Monday. The Nikkei rose nearly 3 percent and posted its best weekly performance in more than four years after strong U.S. retail sales data eased concerns about a recession in the world's largest economy and Japan's biggest trading partner. The Nikkei had fell more than 12 percent on Aug. 5, its biggest daily drop since Black Monday, amid a storm of fears that included concerns about a recession in the United States after a weak jobs report. Despite making back some of those losses, it still remains some way off its all-time highs of mid July. Source : Qatar News Agency