Australian shares rose more than 1 percent on Monday as surprisingly robust US jobs data bolstered investors' appetite for riskier assets. Miners led gains, with Rio Tinto climbing 2.6 percent to A$72.30 and BHP Billiton up 1.6 percent to A$38.21.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index climbed 1.05 percent or 44.8 points to 4,296, according to the latest available data, more than reversing last week's 0.9 percent fall, the first weekly fall this year. Iron miner Fortescue Metals Group rose 5.7 percent on market talk that Singapore-listed Noble Group was building a stake. Noble denied the rumour, while Fortescue could not be reached immediately. Top supermarket Woolworths eased 0.25 percent and electronics retailer JB HiFi fell 1.1 percent. Myer dropped 1.9 percent.