Australian stocks closed higher on Monday, with the S&P/ASX 200 gaining 0.45%, driven by strength in the IT, A-REITs, and Financials sectors. Top performers included Omni Bridgeway Ltd, which rose 4.38% to close at 1.43, Nanosonics Ltd, up 6.33% to 3.53, and Tabcorp Holdings Ltd, which climbed 6.25% to 0.68. On the downside, Resolute Mining Ltd fell 3.70% to 0.39, Perenti Global Ltd declined 2.52% to 1.36, and Credit Corp Group Ltd dropped 2.45% to 17.12. Market breadth was positive, with 545 stocks advancing, 535 declining, and 480 unchanged. The S&P/ASX 200 VIX, an indicator of market volatility, eased by 1.16% to 10.80. In commodities, gold futures edged down 0.03% to $2,747.99 per troy ounce, while crude oil for March delivery slipped 0.03% to $77.37 per barrel, and Brent oil for March dropped 0.15% to $80.67 per barrel. Meanwhile, the AUD/USD exchange rate remained steady at 0.62, and AUD/JPY rose slightly by 0.06% to 96.93.