1. Best trading month ever!

By the end of trading today, it’s likely that the Australian stock market would have had its best month since 1988. Interestingly, that followed the stock market crash of 1987 and shows share market crashes are typically followed by strong rebounds. With a day’s trading to go, we’re up 10.9%.

So how come? Well, there’s historically low interest rates and the Government’s budget spending is about the biggest in the Western world, with JobKeeper as the star programme. Also, our banks have been told to say ‘yes’ rather than ‘no’, our virus fighting (except for Victoria) is world class and vaccine news is getting better by the day. That will do it! And it’s expected to continue. All thiswill be great for jobs and your superannuation.

2. Treasury Wine faces 30% profit smashing

Probably the only negative for the economy at the moment is this trade spat with China. Beijing is playing hard ball, putting bans and tariffs on products like barley, meat and others, but wine is the latest local product copping it. Treasury Wines (TWE) makes many brands, but Penfolds Grange is its most famous. The company’s wines face a 212%  tariff on its exports that are 40% of our 1.3 billion dollar wine trade with China. And now market analysts expect the company’s profit will fall by 30%. That’s how much the share price has fallen since China turned up the heat on Aussie producers, as payback for being close to the US and banning companies such as Huawei.

3. Victoria is epicentre of disease-fighting research

And from the funny old world of business and Victoria could become a Coronavirus and pandemic hub, despite the fact that the virus cost the state an estimated 200,000 jobs, contributed to a state budget deficit of $23.3 billion and will send the government's net debt to almost $155 billion in the next three years. And there was a matter of 800 lives lost. But Victoria’s reputation for medical science research hasn’t been hurt and it’s why the local boss of pharmaceuticals giant Bristol Myers Squibb, whose Australian headquarters is in Melbourne, says the state is in a unique position as a global hub for disease-fighting research, testing and the manufacturing of virus fighting products.

4. Anthony Fauci says "Australia is the model" for managing the Coronavirus

The director of the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Dr Anthony Fauci, has told The Australian that Australia's management of the Coronavirus is "the proof of the pudding" that "when you uniformly implement public health measures, be that full lockdown or partial lockdown, you can turn off the surges". Fauci has warned that the United States may see a "surge upon a surge" of cases following the Thanksgiving holiday.

5. S&P 500 and Nasdaq reach record highs again

In a shortened trading day on Friday, both the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq reached new record closing highs. For the week, the S&P 500 was up 2.21% to 29,910.37, the Nasdaq rose 2.96% to 12,205.85 and the Dow Jones gained 2.21% to 29,910.37.