From my vantage point alongside the Thames, I see thousands of people attending an emotional vigil for Israel outside 10 Downing Street. The crowd solemnly sings the country’s national anthem, Hatikvah (The Hope). A few miles to the west, Palestine supporters are setting off fireworks and flares at a mass rally taking place outside the Israeli embassy in Kensington at the same time. The juxtaposition could not be more eerie.

Which is why people ask how it’s possible that markets appear so sanguine despite the horror stories coming out of the Middle East. It seems like a fair question, with a death toll of more than 1,000 people in just the first few days of war, yet share prices around the world have been relatively resilient. ..

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