ASX needs a shot in the arm as investors come to grips with growing NSW COVID case numbers

The unpredictability of the market continued this morning as the ASX dipped on open, turned higher, before dipping again just before noon. S&P/ASX200 was up 0.1% at 7,520.3 at noon, after falling by as much as 0.5% at the open. The share market is now flat, with offshore equities and earnings season volatility to blame while the market also cooled after NSW recorded a record high 633 new COVID-19 cases. Highlighting the volatility is CSL Ltd, which fell 2.1%, turned that around with a 1.6% gain to hit a record high of $302.80, before falling again by 1.5% on the back of a weak plasma collection. CSL is behind the AstraZeneca vaccine and exceeded expectations with a $US2.4 billion profit for 2021. However, chief executive Paul Perreault says profit margins are expected to ease into next year.  With Qantas Airways (ASX:QAN) Limited and SPC now mandating vaccines for staff and other companies and industries to follow, Perreault may have his expectations exceeded next year. Brambles (ASX:BXB) Limited also surged. It rose 5.8% to an 18-month high of $12.70 … before retracing sharply. BHP Group Ltd fell 6.9% in early trading before making a slight comeback to a negative of 4.4%.  There were some winners Amcor CDI (NYSE:CDI) surged 3.5% to a record high of $17.20 on strong results and guidance. Domino's Pizza (NYSE:DPZ) Enterprises Ltd jumped 6% to a record high of $135.24 also on strong guidance. On the small cap front Once again, there are a couple of small caps defying the odds today. St George Mining Ltd (ASX:SGQ) is currently up 4.48% after it identified a new electromagnetic (EM) target for massive nickel-copper sulphides at its flagship high-grade Mt Alexander Project. Calima Energy is up 12.5%. There was no news today, however, it is confident several core assets in the Montney Formation in western Canada will set it up long into the future, as demand for Montney gas increases. Hannam & Partners also recently increased its risked NAV (Net Asset value) to A$0.0255 per share from A$0.0245 per share, implying 155% upside from the current share price. The S&P/ASX Small Ordinaries is surprisingly up 0.32% to 3,470.80.