1. Woolworths is giving up the grog

The nation’s top supermarket Woolworths is about to go off the grog and it could be good for its share price. Woolworths will spin off its liquor and hotels businesses in June in a demerger that has been a few years in the planning. Undoubtedly, the Coronavirus put the plans on ice but in June Woolies will put its booze business, with its star operator Dan Murphy’s and a big stable of pubs into a separate company, that will be listed on the stock market. And the move should be good for its share price because there are big ethical fund managers who won’t put their money into companies that are involved in tobacco, gaming, alcohol or fossil fuels. Woolworths could become attractive to these funds, which would push its share price up.

2. Pay packets getting fatter

Australian workers’ pay grew faster than expected in the December quarter, as firms reversed temporary COVID-19 pay cuts as the economy grew, thanks to our success containing the virus. A rise in the minimum wage helped as well. The Australian Bureau of Statistics reported that its wage price index lifted by 0.6%, after climbing by just 0.1% in the three months to September, which coincided with border closures and Victoria going back into its long second lockdown. Private sector pay was up only 1.1% for the year but the education sector was the best place for wage rises, which saw a 2.4% increase. But with the economy improving, most Australians could see better pay rises this year.

3. It's one or the other, says MP Craig Kelly

Rebel Government MP Craig Kelly says he won’t support a freeze on legislated super contribution increases without pay rises for workers. Recently, Mr Kelly left the Government to sit on the cross benches because he was told to stop publicly pushing unsafe COVID-19 treatments. He also has a staffer accused of inappropriate behaviour towards a female workmate. His exit from the Government takes away the Prime Minister’s majority, which means if the Government tries to stop the super levy rise from 9.5% to 12% between now and 2025, he will need Mr Kelly’s vote. But now he’s saying if you stop the super rises, workers will have to get compulsory pay rises instead or you don’t get my vote.

4. Charlie Munger on Tesla and bitcoin

When asked to choose whether bitcoin hitting US$50,000 or Tesla reaching US$1 trillion in fully diluted enterprise value was more unbelievable, Berkshire Hathaway vice chairman Charlie Munger had the following to say according to CNBC: "Well I have the same difficulty that Samuel Johnson once had when he got a similar question, he said: ‘I can’t decide the order of precedency between a flea and a louse,’ and I feel the same way about those choices. I don’t know which is worse."

5. A positive day for Wall Street

On Wednesday in the US, the Dow Jones closed at a record high and the Nasdaq gained after two days of losses. The Dow was up 424.51 points or 1.35% to 31,961.86, the S&P 500 moved 44.06 points or 1.14% higher to 3,925.43 and the Nasdaq rose by 132.77 points or 0.99% to 13,597.97.