1. Russia increases military presence with Belarus
Russia has begun 10 days of military exercises with its neighbour Belarus as tensions remain high over a large build-up of troops along its border with Ukraine. About 30,000 Russian troops are believed to be in Belarus to take part in the exercises, according to NATO, which has said the drills are the biggest Russian deployment there since the Cold War.

2. Morrison shelves religious freedom bill after Liberals cross the floor
An unsuccessful attempt at passing the religious freedom laws proposed by the Morrison government has seen the Liberal Party shelve the legislation till after the election. Liberal MPs Trent Zimmerman, Fiona Martin, Katie Allen and Bridget Archer crossed the floor to oppose the new laws, tilting the proposition in Labor’s favour. “Sources said the cabinet on Monday night discussed introducing to Parliament the already-shelved legislation for a national anti-corruption commission to try to appease moderate Liberals Mr Morrison feared would defy him on religious freedom. The move was supported by government Senate leader Simon Birmingham but ultimately decided against because of, a source said, a nervousness to introduce the laws after what happened to former NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian last year,” the AFR reports.

3. Hong Kong continues with ‘impossible’ Covid-Zero policy
Hong Kong is doubling down on a Covid-Zero strategy that has failed almost everywhere else, battering its economy and threatening its status as an international financial centre as most nations learn to live with the virus. “I believe most government officials know it’s impossible to maintain Covid Zero, but they can’t help because they have to follow China’s policy,” said Danny Lau, honorary chairman of the Hong Kong Small and Medium Enterprises Association. “Hong Kong is becoming more and more like a ghost city.”

4. NBC’s Winter Olympics Ratings Are Heading Toward a Historic Low
Total audience is down nearly 50% from South Korea in 2018, with increased ad inventory said to help NBC make up for reduced rates. NBC anticipated about 40% fewer viewers than four years ago and cut its ad rates by a similar amount.

5. US inflation numbers send ASX back down
ASX futures down 17 points or 0.2 per cent to 7166 near 5.35am AEDT, with the AUD +0.5% to 72.14 US cents. On Wall St: Dow -0.6% S&P 500 -2.6% Nasdaq -3.7%. 2-year yield: US 1.55% Australia 1.04%. 10-year yield: US 2.03% Australia 2.10%.