Asian markets ended higher on Monday, as Japan made progress in tackling a nuclear crisis and amid signs, a US economic recovery is strengthening. Hong Kong's Hang Seng advanced 1.7%; Singapore's Strait Times Index rose 1.6%; South Korea's Kospi index gained 1.1% and China's Shanghai Composite index edged up 0.1%. Stock market in Japan was closed due to a holiday.European markets opened higher, helped by gains in Asia. Key benchmark indices, London's FTSE, France's CAC and Germany's DAX were trading higher between 1.1 and 2.1% in intra-day trade.