Markets 'remarkable' with muted reaction to uncertainty
Markets' reaction to recent geopolitical upheaval has been "remarkable", according to one investment expert.
Yesterday the DAX in Frankfurt hit a fresh record high - as did the Dow Jones Index in New York.
It highlighted the relative indifference markets have shown to the US attack on Venezuela over the weekend, and the implications the move could have for global politics and trade.
In some cases, the US action in Venezuela is being seen as an opportunity.
"Certainly a lot of investors are seeing in what's going on in Venezuela is the potential that US companies might make money," said Danni Hewson, head of financial analysis at AJ Bell.
"One of the stocks that we saw jump significantly on the news about that strike in Venezuela was Chevron, which of course is the only US oil company that still has operations in Venezuela," she noted.
"And we understand that it has been in talks with the US government just in the last few hours about expanding its key licence to operate there - so that is likely to increase oil exports, which in turn has had a knock on to refineries," she stated.
Some defence stocks have also seen shares rise overnight after the US President suggested the country needed to dramatically increase its military spending.
That has highlighted how closely investors are watching Donald Trump's comments and actions, as they try to figure out what it may mean for the US and world economies.
"Donald Trump is an intriguing character in investors," said Ms Hewson. "I think last year they were all about the Trump chickens out in terms of tariffs. This year, they're looking at some of his moves and they're thinking about what's behind it".
"Because we know that this president is very much a transactional president and as we go into the latest US earnings season, I think people are just seeing dollar signs."
Tech companies are also continuing to have a significant influence on the direction of markets on both sides of the Atlantic.
This week's CES conference in Las Vegas has provided many firms with an opportunity to showcase their future plans - with Intel's shares enjoying gains recently as it sought to convince the market it was catching up with Nvidia in the AI space.
"I think people are now getting used to the fact that these big AI companies are just going to keep spending," said Ms Hewson.
"And as long as they're giving us reasons for that spending, explaining how AI is going to be used by us, I think investors now are broadly quite okay with that," she added.
