Chinese shares close higher

Chinese stocks soared high on Monday -- with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index up 2.35 percent -- to close at 2,927.18 points.

The smaller Shenzhen index closed 2.05 percent higher at 10,370.99 points, Xinhua reported.

The ChiNext Index, which tracks China's NASDAQ-style board of growth enterprises, gained 1.56 percent to close at 2,245.56 points.