1. Good news could spook our stock market
Fear and anxiety is set to return to the stock market today and it’s all because the US got a better-than-expected jobs report. Yep, very good economic news can be bad news for stocks because a better-than-expected jobs report implies a booming economy, which will drive up inflation. Now it looks like not only will the US central bank raise interest rates possibly seven times in a year, the first one could be half-a-per cent rather than a quarter per cent. Quickly rising interest rates can really hurt stock prices, at least in the short run.

2. Covid-19 tests tax-deductible
Covid-19 tests won’t be free unless Labor wins the next election but they will be tax-deductible for workers and businesses. In a speech today, the AFR says Treasurer Josh Frydenberg will announce that businesses and individuals who need COVID-19 tests simply to work will be able to claim a tax deduction. This covers both PCR and RAT tests and there will be no Fringe Benefit Tax implications for businesses that buy them for their staff. Plus, the Government is expected to announce within days that the international border will open to foreign tourists.

3. Facebook’s share price drops big time!
Facebook’s share price drop late last week meant it created the biggest one-day drop in value of a company in history. But why? Facebook, now under the name of Meta, which includes Instagram and WhatsApp, last week saw the company report a loss of $10bn for 2021. This resulted in a 26% slump in the company’s share price reducing the value of the company by $US232bn! The loss was blamed on new competition and Apple imposing new privacy changes that hurt advertisers’ ability to target ads to potential customers and measure the effectiveness of ads.

4. China extends Belt and Road initiative to Argentina
China has announced its plans to finance $US23.7bn worth of projects in Argentina as part of its Belt and Road initiative, with the two nations already signing a memorandum of understanding. “President Xi Jinping said China and Argentina should implement existing hydropower and railway projects and deepen cooperation in trade, industry, infrastructure, investment and anti-epidemic efforts,” Bloomberg reports.

5. ASX to start the week on a low
The ASX will be off to a slow start as reporting season commences this week in Australia. The AUD is -1% to 70.72 US cents, while On Wall St: Dow -0.1% S&P 500 +0.5% Nasdaq +1.6%. In Europe: Stoxx 50 -1.3% FTSE -0.2% CAC -0.8% DAX -1.8%. 2-year yield: US 1.31% Australia 0.92%. 10-year yield: US 1.91% Australia 1.96%.