Euro Stocks Rise; Asia Indexes Fall

European shares closed higher Monday with merger-and-acquisition activity giving them a boost, but Asian stock markets declined.

U.S. markets were closed for Martin Luther King Day, keeping volumes on European markets on the low side.

Germany’s DAX 30 added 0.58% to 5,514, the French CAC 40 index inched up 0.11% to 4,856 and Britain’s FTSE 100 index added 0.51% at 5,740.

Tokyo’s benchmark Nikkei 225 index dropped 186.92 points, or 1.34%, to finish at 16,268.03 points. South Korean shares bucked the trend, climbing to a record high on gains by major technology companies. The South Korea composite stock price index, or Kospi, gained 5.51 points, or 0.4%, to 1,421.79.

“As it often happens on market holidays in the U.S., the European market goes very quiet and trades in a range all day,” said Tom Hougaard at London brokerage firm City Index.

Toronto’s S&P;/TSX composite index jumped 101.91 points, or 0.9%, to 11,706.73 in afternoon trading.

While investors in South Korea were cheered by strong earnings reported by Samsung Electronics Co. and LG.Philips LCD Co. last week, in Japan investors unloaded technology and security shares to lock in profits from last week’s gains.

Decliners included Kyocera Corp., a major maker of ceramic products for computer chips, which fell 0.2% to 9,400 yen ($82.46) and electronics giant Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., which lost 3.1% to 2,505 yen ($21.97).

“Technology stocks have been particularly hot over the past month and after the strong gains are, along with the market, due for a cool-down,” said Hajime Kitano, equity strategist at JPMorgan Securities in Tokyo.

The mood remained cautious ahead of earnings reports from Intel Corp. and other U.S. technology firms this week, which traders hope will give them an indication of the industry’s outlook.