U.S. stocks rose on Monday, sending indexes to fresh closing highs for 2009, as optimism about the economic recovery lifted shares of technology, energy and industrial companies, offsetting a drop in airline shares amid security worries.

* Investors were also optimistic that the year-end holiday shopping season could prove stronger than initially expected.

* Trading was choppy, with most market participants away on vacation. Indexes see-sawed for most the day, but then mounted a late advance to end in positive territory.

* The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> rose 26.98 points, or 0.26 percent, to end unofficially 10,547.08. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> added 1.30 points, or 0.12 percent, to finish unofficially at 1,127.78. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> advanced 5.39 points, or 0.24 percent, to close unofficially at 2,291.08.

* Both the Dow and the S&P 500 marked their highest closes in 14 months, and the Nasdaq notched its highest close in 15 months. (Reporting by Ellis Mnyandu; Editing by Jan Paschal)