1. Pressure to cut the fuel excise
On inflation and our Prime Minister will be under pressure to cut the fuel excise on petrol with the UK doing exactly that. That big 6.2% inflation number in the UK has seen the Johnson Government cut its tax on fuel by 5 pence a litre and with our Treasurer, Josh Frydenberg, set to deliver the pre-election Budget next Tuesday, there are calls to cut the fuel excise levy, which is a whopping 44 cents a litre! To date, the PM has dismissed these calls but increasing inflation and his decreasing popularity in the polls could change that.

2. Russia offers to cut wheat price for Indonesia
The Russian invasion of Ukraine could get ugly for local wheat growers, with Russia offering to cut its price to our Indonesian customers. Indonesia has supported UN resolutions condemning the Russian invasion but our northern neighbour has a close bilateral relationship with Russia. Interestingly, wheat is exempt from the sanctions on Russian exports imposed by the West, while Ukraine can’t move 20 million tonnes of wheat and corn set for export because Russia is blockading the Black Sea.

3. China plane crash update: one of two black boxes found
One of two black boxes from China Eastern Airlines flight MU5735 was found in the mountainside wreckage overnight. It is said to contain the voice recorder from the cockpit and has been sent to Beijing for analysis. The airline claims that all three pilots had current licenses, valid health certificates and solid experience, and the plane was fit to fly before take-off. Further investigation has found that the plane plunged vertically at almost the speed of sound. Such an impact may complicate the task for investigators because it can obliterate evidence. Air-traffic controllers tried multiple times to reach the pilots after Flight MU5735 tipped into a deadly dive, but received no response to their calls, an official with China’s Civil Aviation Administration said at a press briefing. 

4. Research suggests health benefits from listening to music
According to The Guardian, a review of 26 studies conducted across several countries including Australia, the UK and the US has found that music may provide a clinically significant boost to mental health.

“This study makes the connection between our personal experiences and a growing body of data of peer-reviewed research that makes the case for music as a frontline intervention in our health system, said Kim Cunio, an associate professor and convener of musicology at the Australian National University, who was not involved in the research.

“All of us are experts in music because we’ve spent thousands of hours listening to music, codifying it in our brain and responding to it. Is it any wonder what when we listen to music, something remarkable happens?”

The authors of the meta-analysis suggest that the benefit of music to mental quality of life was close in effect to improvements in mental health due to exercise and weight loss.

5. Trifecta of terror for stocks
The local stock market is set for a bad day at the office, with global share markets all negative overnight. The big market players who drive stock prices don’t like the stalemate in the Russian-Ukraine war, its impact on the oil price, with Brent Crude up 5% to go over $US120 a barrel. Meanwhile, the UK inflation rate came in at 6.2% — the highest since March 1992. Plus, global BA.2 virus concerns complete the trifecta of terror for stocks.

ASX futures down 54 points or 0.7% to 7295 at 7am AEDT, with the AUD +0.5% to 75.04 US cents. On Wall St: Dow -1.3% S&P 500 -1.2% Nasdaq -1.3%. 2-year yield: US -0.06% (2.10%) Australia -0.01% (1.53%). 10-year yield: US -0.10% (2.28%) Australia +0.06% (2.77%).