ASX to dip as Bitcoin hits US$50,000-mark

Good morning.

Here's Yahoo Finance's Wednesday morning wrap.

The ASX is expected to dip at the open, with the SPI200 Futures Index pointing to a drop of 8 points at the open at 8:14am AEDT.

In the US, Wall Street had a mixed session on Wednesday, with the Dow Jones reached a record closing high while the Nasdaq dipped. The benchmark S&P 500 saw little change.

It comes as the Biden administration attempts to deliver a US$1.9 trillion COVID stimulus package which would see US$1,400 stimulus cheques delivered to Americans.

Approved: Australia's second COVID vaccine is expected to be ready for jabs by the end of March, after the Therapeutic Goods Administration gave it the green light for people aged over 18. Decisions about those aged over 65 will be made on a case-by-case basis.

JobKeeper must end: Treasurer Josh Frdyenberg has said the JobKeeper scheme must end at the end of March, because it is preventing workers from moving freely across the economy, resulting in labour shortages in some areas.

"This successful and expensive program must end but other policies will fill that place," he said.

Bitcoin: The crypto currency broke past the US$50,000-mark on Tuesday, before slipping back under it later in the session. But how long can it last?

NDIS: Around 100,000 more Aussies joined the National Disability Insurance Scheme in the past year, just as the scheme faces criticism over funding cuts to participants.

The minister responsible for the scheme, Stuart Robert, wants to ban all participants from receiving sex therapy through the scheme, despite his state and territory counterparts disagreeing.

House price boom? On Tuesday, CBA announced house prices could rise as much as 16 per cent over the next two years, but independent economist Stephen Koukoulas has hosed down the hype.

"The house price pick up looks like it will peter out in the next few months," he writes.

Billionaires win: At least 11 billionaires reaped dividends worth tens of millions of dollars from companies that received JobKeeper, new research commissioned by opposition frontbencher Andrew Leigh found.

Facebook ban: Liberal MP Craig Kelly has been booted off Facebook for a week, after posting misinformation about the pandemic.

“We don’t allow anyone to share misinformation about COVID-19 that could lead to imminent physical harm,” a Facebook spokesperson said.

Have a great day.

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