US stocks rose in trading overnight but were far off session highs after top Republicans voiced support for President Barack Obama's call for military strikes...

US stocks rose in trading overnight but were far off session highs after top Republicans voiced support for President Barack Obama's call for military strikes against Syria. The S&P500 rose more than 1% in early trading after Obama sought congressional authorisation before taking military action, a move seen likely to shelve any strike until at least September 9. The S&P500 fell 1.8% last week due to uncertainty over what appeared to be the likelihood of imminent strike. John Boehner, the top-ranking Republican in the US House of Representatives, and House Majority Leader Eric Cantor pledged on Tuesday their support for military action against Syria to punish President Bashar al-Assad for his suspected use of chemical weapons against civilians. The S&P500 finished the session 0.42% higher at 1,639.77 while the Dow rose 0.16% to 14,833.96.