Asian shares rise as investors see Syria strikes as "one-off event"

Asian equities are flashing green.
S&P 500 futures rise 0.5 percent.
Syria fallout limited.

Omkar Godbole FXStreet Contributor

Asian equities are a picture of calm as investors are taking heart from the fact that so far Russia has not responded to the Us-led missile strike on Syria.

As of writing, Japan's Nikkei index is up 0.38 percent. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 is reporting a 0.6 percent gain, while South Korea's Kospi is flat lined. Meanwhile, stocks in New Zealand are down 0.30 percent. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan edged up 0.1 percent. Also, S&P 500 futures have added 0.5 percent.

Clearly, a better-than-expected news flow on the geopolitical front seems to have put a bid under the risky assets. On Saturday, US, French and British missiles hit Syria’s chemical weapons program in retaliation for a suspected poison gas attack a week ago. But the much-feared Russian retaliation has not come through.

"Trump was able to enforce his chemical weapons red line without crossing the threshold for Russian retaliation," said analysts at JPMorgan in a note, according to Reuters. So, the probability of a prolonged campaign towards Syria and fears of US-Russia war have eased.

Author

Omkar Godbole

FXStreet Contributor

Omkar Godbole, editor and analyst, joined FXStreet after four years as a research analyst at several Indian brokerage companies.

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