Prices on the New York stock market have hit a new high, only three months after financial crises in East Asia and Russia led to a wave of selling by nervous investors.

The Dow Jones industrial average of leading shares climbed more than two-and-a-quarter per cent to 9374.27 on Monday, surpassing the previous record set in July.

Prices have also surged in trading in Japan where the Nikkei index reached fifteen-thousand for the first time in three months.

And a strong rally continued for a second day in Hong Kong.

Correspondents say optimism in New York has been rising since the United States central bank the Federal Reserve cut interest rates.

The latest upsurge was triggered by merger negotiations in the banking and internet sectors.