Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi shakes hands with Japan's Foreign Minister Taro Kono at their meeting in Tokyo Japan
Most Asian markets fell on Monday after a USA -led strike on Syrian targets fueled fresh concerns over the tinderbox Middle East, though analysts said investors were hopeful the crisis would not escalate.
While Saturday's missile strikes were the biggest intervention by Western countries against Syria, investor risk appetite improved on speculation that the attacks would not lead to prolonged conflict.
Looking ahead, the US earnings season kicks into high gear this week with Thomson Reuters data predicting profits at S&P 500 companies increased by 18.6 percent in the first quarter from a year ago, their biggest rise in seven years.
Hong Kong fell 0.8 percent and Shanghai finished down 1.4 percent.
Futures signaled a muted open for equity markets in Japan and Australia, while Hong Kong stocks pointed higher.
"The markets had been bracing for a possible escalation in Syria following President Trump's earlier warnings".
The world's second biggest economy was expected to have carried most of its strong momentum from past year into the first quarter of 2018, after growing 6.8 per cent in the fourth quarter.
MIDDLE EAST: The leaders of Russia, Iran and the Hezbollah group in Lebanon said Sunday that Western airstrikes on their ally Syria, targeting its chemical weapons program, have complicated prospects for a political settlement to the country's seven-year conflict.
"Investors were relieved that the military action didn't expand further", said Masahiro Ichikawa, senior strategist at Sumitomo Mitsui Asset Management Co., as the strikes were limited to Syrian chemical weapons facilities and did not escalate into a direct confrontation with Russian Federation.
The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average ended up 56.79 points, or 0.26 percent, from Friday at 21,835.53.
Falcon 9 Second Stage Recovery Requires 'Giant Party Balloon'
Bigger and more powerful observatories of the future will scrutinize these prime candidates for potential signs of life. SpaceX said extra time is needed to examine the Falcon 9 rocket's guidance, navigation and control system.
President Trump hits out at Russian and Chinese currency devaluations
As the New Yorker noted, it was the first time in half a century that Russian and US military forces had engaged in direct combat. Local police said they did not see any foul play, but his death prompted intense speculation among friends and colleagues.
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Buffon was sent off for dissent by English referee Michael Oliver after he awarded Real Madrid a stoppage-time penalty which sent the Spaniards into the semi-finals.
"That said, the underlying picture has not changed".
"With trade war and now Syria fatigue likely to set in.it's best not to get too comfortable at this point, as market risk sentiment swings will remain large this week", Stephen Innes, head of trading APAC at Oanda, said in a note.
Investors shrugged off geopolitical jitters Monday, sending US stocks broadly higher and extending the market's gains from last week.
The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index declined 0.3 percent to the lowest in three weeks. The euro edged higher, to $1.2364 from $1.2333.
CURRENCIES: The dollar fell to 107.02 yen from 107.12 yen late Monday.
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) stepped into the currency market again on Tuesday, buying HK$5.77bn ($735m) in Hong Kong dollars as the local currency repeatedly hit the lower end of its allowable trading band.
US crude oil futures rose 0.4 percent to $66.49 a barrel after tumbling almost 1.8 percent overnight as concerns over tensions in the Middle East waned.
West Texas Intermediate crude dipped 1.7 percent to $66.22 a barrel, the first retreat in more than a week.
The 10-year United States treasury note yield was at 2.834% after rising to 2.865 on Monday, its highest since March 22.
LME aluminum gained 5 percent to $2,399.00 per metric ton, the highest in more than six years.
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