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MMA Comments for the Week Beginning January 30, 2012
Written by Raymond Merriman
Review and Preview
We thought last week would be an interesting week, based on the Sun's T-square to the Jupiter-Saturn opposition (January 19-22), the new moon in Aquarius January 23, and Mars turning retrograde on January 24, and it was. Nearly every stock index we track made a new multi-month high, but not all did so at the same time.
On the prior Friday, January 20, the Zurich SMI Index soared to 6213, its highest level since July 8, 2011. On Monday, January 23, the Netherlands AEX raced up to 323.83, its highest level since August 2. On January 26, the London FTSE touched 5806, its highest point since August 1, And on Friday, January 27, the German DAX went to 6574, its highest level since August 4.
In Asia and the Pacific Rim, the pattern was not quite as dramatic. The Hang Seng of Hong Kong rallied to 20,590 on Friday, January b27, its highest mark since September 1, 2011. Friday was also the weekly high in the Australian All ordinaries, China's Shanghai, and India's Nifty indices. But those highs did not take out the highs prior to November 2011. Japan's Nikkei index made a new 2-month high on Wednesday, January 25 and Russia's MICEX index made a monthly high a day later. Some of these indices look poised to resume a decline next week.
In the Americas, the big story was the Dow Jones Industrial Average. After Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke and the Fed announced that they would now keep the Fed funds interest rates near zero percent for three more years, the DJIA soared to 12,842 on Thursday, January 26, almost taking out last year's high of 12,876. The NASDAQ Composite soared to 2834, its highest level since July 26. The Bovespa of Brazil and Merval indices of Argentina also took off to their highest levels since June and October respectively.
As exciting and buoyant as the stock indices were, they paled in comparison to Gold and Silver. Gold tested 1740 on Friday, which is up nearly $220 per ounce since our special "buy alert" and "buy recommendation" of December 28-29, within the half-hour of the actual low. But Silver is now testing 3400, up nearly 800 points from that same low when the buy signal was given. At $5000 per every one dollar (100 points) per contract, that represents a gain of nearly $40,000/contract between the low of December 29 and the high of Friday, January 27. Our position trader subscribers on both our daily and weekly reports are still long, and will be for awhile, for as mentioned in that report, I believe this is just the start of the new 3-year cycle. The first phase of every cycle is bullish, per the rules outlined in all of our cycle books.
Short-Term Geocosmics
Mars is retrograde now (January 24-April 14), so matters could get tricky here. This is an indicator of sudden changes in policies, such as we witnessed last week when the Fed thought it prudent to announce that it would maintain a zero-interest policy for three years instead of just another 1-1/2 years as announced previously. Keep in mind that this announcement was made right near the time Mars turned retrograde. Retrograde Mars indicates a reversal of actions initiated at the time. It sounded nice and was a welcomed cause for markets to explode upwards, but I don't think this announcement will be carried through. That's the value of astrology. The announcement was made under a retrograde Mars, when actions taken have to be reversed, and also when the Moon was in Pisces, which indicates it may be more of a case of wishful thinking than sincere commitment. Bernanke may not even be around by then to see it through.
There is not a lot of geocosmic activity going on this week. Perhaps the most noteworthy signature is Venus in opposition to this retrograde Mars on February 1. Venus is in Pisces, where it truly loves agreement and peace. It doesn't like a hassle or a confrontation. But Mars retrograde in Virgo probably sees this weakness of Venus in Pisces, and decides to badger it. This annoyance is irritating to many who want all parties to get along with each other instead of launching these silly barbs. You can probably see the first run of this show in the Republican primaries in Florida, and probably during President Obama's campaign swing this week too. My guess is that those who hurl such unnecessary insults will lose support. Candidates need to be serious and stay with the issues, or the American public turns off on them.
But speaking of all that, we note that on February 3 Neptune will begin its 14-year trek through Pisces, the sign it rules. That would seem to favor Pisces people, like Mitt Romney. Too bad he can't campaign for 14 years. But it favors Obama too (who has been campaigning for what seems like 14 years), because Neptune will form a trine to his natal Venus (his popularity is coming back). It should be an interesting race to the White House this year, as both Romney and Obama have the heavens on their side. Friday is also important because it is the release of the important monthly payroll and unemployment reports. The following week, however, is the one that stands out due to geocosmic activity related to reversals.
And of course we should never take our eye off the fact that Jupiter ends its transit of 23 degrees Aries through 7 degrees of Taurus on March 7, 2012. Historically, long-term cycles in the USA stock market top out by then. For more on this, please read "Forecast 2012," or join our webcast on February 19 where this matter will be discussed in great detail.
Longer-Term Thoughts, and "Answer Me That!"
"The budget should be balanced, the Treasury should be refilled, public debt should be reduced, the arrogance of officialdom should be tempered and controlled, and the assistance to foreign lands should be curtailed lest Rome become bankrupt. People must again learn to work, instead of living on public assistance." - Cicero - 55 BC (via Mark Lusher to me).
Some things never change. But with Uranus approaching its 3-year waxing square to Pluto, and soon to make a grand square to the USA Sun-Saturn square, changes will take place. The momentum for those changes is already in force, and the source of those changes is simple: economics. With Uranus in Aries, people want freedom, but that freedom is largely for economic opportunity. And that economic freedom for individuals can only come from the presence of a healthy and honest private sector, not an overly expansive and overly regulating public sector.
Listening to President Obama's State of the Union address last week, I was impressed with two things. First, he is still an eloquent speaker who knows exactly what is on the public's mind. Second, he seems to have become disconnected from their reality and is unable or unwilling to take action in the direction of his analysis of the problems. In fact, his actions are in almost complete opposition to his correct analysis of the problems, time and time again (i.e. his comments about "too much regulation," yet he is the leader of this "Era of Regulations," or, "every one should pay their fair share of taxes," yet 47% of population pay no income tax. A "fair share" would be a flat tax, which would be very unpopular for his support base).
One statement in particular that highlights this awareness occurred when he stated that many people think the USA is in a state of decline, and "… those people don't know what they are talking about." Really? Does he not look at the rate of acceleration of the government's debt? Is he not aware that the debt ceiling is about to be increased $1.2 trillion to $16.4 trillion within days, which – according to Rick Santelli on CNBC – represents a debt of $52,409 for every single person living in the USA? That's an increase of over 60% just since the end of 2008! Does he not realize that the USA credit worthiness was downgraded for the first time in its history and it is on watch to be downgraded again soon if nothing changes? Does this support the idea that the country is NOT in decline? This is the "debt explosion" symbolized by Uranus (explosion) in square aspect to Pluto (debt and threat). The fuse is lit and it is exploding on his watch.
But more to the point about the disconnect. It is not just between Obama and the American people, but between the government and the people who elected them to serve. Let me share two examples of this disconnection from my recent trip to Zurich and Amsterdam.
At my workshop on Financial Market Timing on Saturday, January 7, in Zurich, I had the privilege of sitting at lunch with three very fine people. One was a Swiss banker. He was there with one of his special clients - one my subscribers, who is a very successful businesswoman with residences in both Switzerland and Vero Beach, Florida. At a certain point, I asked this young banker if he comes often to the United States. "Not anymore. We can't. Our banks will not let us travel to the USA."
"Why not?" I asked, for this seemed like a very strange policy for a bank.
"Your country now detains all Swiss bankers who enter the USA. They are asked to give up the names of their American clients so they can be checked to see if they are avoiding payment of taxes in the USA. If we do that, we lose our clients and the bank fires us. If we don't, your government detains us for several weeks, months, even years. Therefore none of us, as Swiss bankers, can travel to the USA at this time." You see, it is a violation of Swiss banking laws of confidentiality to reveal their clients to anyone. At the same time, the USA now has a policy where banks from other nations cannot conduct business in the USA unless they reveal the identities of all of their USA clients. As a comparison, imagine that you are a doctor, lawyer, astrologer, or psychologist, and someone from law enforcement asks you to reveal confidential information about one of your clients, under threat of detainment or even incarceration. What do you do? What does your employer do if he/she knows you will be put into such a compromising situation?
Two weeks later, after the mini-symposium on "Forecast 2012" in Amsterdam on Saturday, January 21, I had another experience that would surprise many USA citizens, and again demonstrates the disconnect that has subtly evolved between the government and the people it serves. After the very successful mini-Congress, the organizer - Irma Schogt of Schogt Market Timing – invited two other symposia participants and myself to dinner at a well-known French restaurant. We split a fine bottle of wine. We had dessert, and then left to take me back to my apartment. As we drove along the main thoroughfare, the traffic was diverted to the right of the road. We were in a queue. Irma, the driver, said this diversion was for drivers to be given a breath-alyzer test for alcohol. This is what they do at this hour on Saturday night in Amsterdam. It is an "agreement" between the people and the police. No one wants people driving who are drunk and may be a threat to the safety of others. After a few minutes, it was time for Irma to take the breath-alyzer. I was nervous, because I know what happens in the USA if you are pulled over and found to have a blood alcohol limit that is "too high." But Irma passed the test just fine.
"What would have happened if you had failed, Irma?" I asked.
"They would have pulled me over and asked me to step out of the car and go eat or walk, or do something, and then come back and take it again until I was under the limit for safety."
I am thinking. "This isn't real." But it was and it is. In Amsterdam, the focus is on prevention of problems via cooperation between the people and its government to provide safety for its people. It is a quite different relationship here in the USA.
Why and how have we become so disconnected from our government, or vice-versa? Why is it that the rest of the world is living our dream, the dream of our founding fathers for a cooperation between the government and the people who elect it to serve? Are we losing touch with this aspect of our national character? Is it true that we are not in a state of decline from these founding principles, as President Obama stated? Can we ever get it back? Answer me that!
Announcements
The "Forecast 2012" webcast will take place on Sunday, February 19, starting at 1:00 PM EST (that's 6:00 PM GMT or 10:00 AM PST). Via the modern technology of our webinar host, you can log onto this presentation on current markets (both long-term and short-term outlooks) and the political-psychological climate for 2012, in the comfort of your home or office. All you need is a computer with speakers. You can hear the speech and see the live presentation and slide show, complete with the charts as they are being discussed, on your computer screen. The cost for this special event is $45.00. If you are interested in being part of this unique live webcast, just register at the MMA Website (www.mmacycles.com) and scroll down the opening screen for the announcement. Or drop us an email (ordersmma@msn.com) or fax (248-538-5296), or call us at 1-248-626-3034. Instructions to log into this event will be sent upon making reservations. Reserve early (before February 17), for space will be limited.
If you are an active short-term trader, or even if you are an investor who likes to keep up with our current thoughts on financial markets, you may be interested in our Weekly or even Daily Market reports with position trading and aggressive trading recommendations. It is the only way I keep in touch with traders on a daily or even weekly basis, as I no longer offer personal consultations. These reports give in-depth analysis of the DJIA, S&P and NASDAQ futures, Euro currency (cash and futures), Dollar/Yen cash and Yen futures, Euro-Yen cash, T-Notes, Crude Oil, Gold and Silver. The daily reports cover all stock indices listed above, as well as futures in Euro, T-Notes, Gold and Silver. Both reports provide trading strategies and recommendations for position traders as well as for shorter-term aggressive traders. Subscription to the daily report also includes the weekly report. For more information, go to http://www.mmacycles.com/services, or call our offices at 1-248-626-3034. These reports are extremely valuable to those who trade ETF's (Exchange Traded Funds). In the words of one of our subscribers: "I am really pleased with your recommendations through the Daily and Weekly Trade Recommendations. I have used them to trade gold and silver stocks in my IRA. In the last eight years I increased my account from $60,000 to $712,000. Thanks for your excellent publications." - Bryden C., Small Business Owner, Illinois.
Copies of the printed version of Forecast 2012 are still available. There will be no additional printings, so when they are gone, they are gone. This year's book is 200 pages – our largest ever – and packed full of information about the economy, USA Presidential election, social and economic trends, and of course, financial markets with their all-important three-star critical reversal dates (the one and two-star reversal dates are covered in the MMA Cycles Report, as well as weekly reports). The annual Forecasts Book, written by Raymond A. Merriman since 1976, is one of the most unique, affordable, and accurate glimpses into the coming year. Utilizing the study of cycles and geocosmic factors, this annual Forecasts book outlines forthcoming trends pertaining to political, economic, and financial markets throughout the world. For further information, please go to the front page of our web site at www.mmacycles.com, O call us at 1-248-626-3034.
The E-Book version of the Forecast 2012 Book is now out as well in two different formats. The first is our own version, which contains both the text and the calendar-ephemeris for 2012. The cost for this is $55.00, or $35.00, depending on whether you also ordered the printed version too. The second is through Apple iTunes, which covers iPhone 4 and 4S, and the iPad, and also Amazon.com Kindle. The cost is $39.99. It does not contain the advertisements or the planetary calendar and ephemeris in the back. You can now order it if you have an email address registered via one of these 9 countries (USA, UK, Australia, France, Canada, Italy, Portugal, Slovenia, and Spain). Just go to iTunes, and then "Library," then "Store," then in the field titled "Search," type in "Forecast 2012" or "Raymond Merriman" (without quotation marks). Or, go to http://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/raymond-merriman/id408289861?mt=11.
The printed version of Forecast 2012 has also been translated into several different languages (including English) this year, and many of these publications are now out or will be this coming week.
Dutch: at www.markettiming.nl
Italian: at www.astrofinanza.com, and http://www.astrofinanza.com/mma/shop.html
German: at http://www.mma-europe.ch/
Japanese: at http://merriman.jp
Russian: at http://www.mmafinance.ru/
Spanish: at www.mmacycles-spanish.com.
Each of these will also offer the English version of Forecast 2012, as will our Chinese distributor at http://www.zzdcycles.com. "After reading the annual Forecasts and subscribing to MMA Cycles for the past ten years, I can say that Ray Merriman's forecasts are uncannily accurate and indispensable for the preservation of wealth. Nothing else I've seen compares. It is without a doubt the best perspective on the big picture, not just bits and pieces of the picture."
W.W., Investor and Teacher, Indiana.
I am about to begin the update to "The Ultimate Book on Stock Market Timing Volume 2: Geocosmic Correlations to Investment Cycles." I expect it to be ready mid-year. We are going to offer a pub-publication special price for those who order it before May 1. The retail price of this expanded and update book will be $125, but the prepublication special will be $75.00 (plus postage). For more information, please go to www.mmacycles.com, and scroll down the front page. You will see it.
"The Ultimate Book on Stock Market Timing, Volume 5: Price Objectives and Technical Analysis" is now out as well! The comments and reviews are starting to come in, and we will post them here over the next few weeks. "The Ultimate Book on Stock Market Timing series is truly a life's work of grand proportion. Raymond Merriman has built the foundation upon which Financial Astrology can securely rest. Volumes 1-4 were more than a foundation, they were an edifice, and Volume 5: Technical Analysis and Price Objectives, is the pinnacle. Coupled with the timing strategies of the first 4 volumes, these volumes provide a complete trading methodology, brilliantly and logically presented, that any person who makes the time and the effort to understand, may trade profitably."- Duke O'Neil, President, Capstone Capital Wealth Management, Boulder, Colorado.
The retail price of this new book is $144.00. If you are interested in this unique and integrated methodology for analyzing and forecasting stock indices, you can save big bucks by ordering all five volumes, or choice of any four now at http://www.mmacycles.com/catalogue/books/the-ultimate-book-on-stock-market-timing-volume-5/, or just go to www.mmacycles.com and scroll down to the announcement. If ordering all five volumes, you will save $99.00! For more information on this book, go to YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PnplAS5m2AI, describing this new book. It is "the missing link." You may want to check this video out, as it contains some interesting long-term tips.
Our new 2012 MMA Catalogue is now out!! You can download this catalogue directly at http://www.mmacycles.com/index.php?option=com_docman&task=cat_view&gid=41&Itemid=63.
Events:
February 19, 2012: "Forecast 2012 Worldwide Webcast!!!" This is our annual speech to viewers the world over. It will be the latest update on Raymond Merriman's annual Forecast Book. Utilizing the study of cycles and geocosmic factors, this speech will focus on the current state of the economy, political situation in Washington, DC, and in particular, the financial markets, including: the U.S. stock market, interest rates, the U.S. Dollar, Gold, and Silver. This will be a telecast of the live presentation taking place at the Michigan Education Conference Center in Troy, Michigan on Square Lake Road. The webcast and speech will start at 1:00 PM, EST and last two hours. Cost to participate in the webcast, or to attend in person in Troy, is $45.00. Go to http://www.mmacycles.com/catalogue/multimedia/forecast-2012-live-webcast-february-19,-2012!!!/ for more information.
March 1 and 3, 2012: Hong Kong. "Forecast 2012" on Thursday, March 1, and a full day intensive on "Financial Market Timing" on Saturday, March 3, with emphasis on Gold, Silver, Currencies, and Equity Markets for 2012. Organized by Earlthorn.Com at the Excelsior Hotel, Causeway Bay, Hong Kong. Contact Teresa Wong at 852-2529 1211 (phone), or by e-mail at earlthorn@hknet.com. A special 90-minute private meeting with MMA Subscribers will follow the workshop on March 3.
March 9-11, 2012: The 12th Annual Balkan International Conference, Belgrade, Serbia. Featuring a pre-seminar workshop with Raymond Merriman. For further information on this fantastic gathering, contact www.keplerunited.org. +381-11-267-31-92 or email info@keplerunited.org.
April 19 and 21, Boulder, Colorado. "Forecast 2012" with Raymond Merriman, plus a workshop on "Financial Market Timing," focusing on equities and precious metals. Sponsored by ROMA. For more information and registration, contact dralagifts@msn.com. Once again, a private meeting for MMA subscribers will follow the workshop.
May 24-29, 2012: UAC!!! The world's largest astrological conference. Taking place at the New Orleans Marriott Hotel. Go to www.uacastrology.com. There will be an awesome Financial Track, featuring some of the top Financial Astrologers and researchers in the world. There will be private meeting for MMA on Friday or Sunday evening on the top floor of the Marriott.
August 2-6, 2012: Midwest Astrology Conference, in Ann Arbor, MI, Holiday Inn. Pre-seminar workshop on Financial Astrology, Thursday, August 2, with Raymond Merriman. More details soon.
Disclaimer and statement of purpose:
The purpose of this column is not to predict the future movement of various financial markets. However, that is the purpose of the MMA (Merriman Market Analyst) subscription services. This column is not a subscription service. It is a free service, except in those cases where a fee may be assessed to cover the cost of translating this column from English into a non-English language.
This weekly report is written with the intent to educate the reader on the relationship between astrological factors and collective human activities as they are happening. In this regard, this report will oftentimes report what happened in various stock and financial markets throughout the world in the past week, and discuss that movement in light of the geocosmic signatures that were in effect. It will then identify the geocosmic factors that will be in effect in the next week, or even month, or even years, and the author's understanding of how these signatures will likely affect human activity in the times to come. The author (Merriman) will do this from a perspective of a cycle's analyst looking at the military, political, economic, and even financial markets of the world.
It is possible that some forecasts will be made based on these factors. However, the primary goal is to both educate and alert the reader as to the psychological climate we are in, from an astrological perspective. The hope is that it will help the reader understand these psychological dynamics that underlie (or coincide with) the news events and hence financial markets of the day.
No guarantee as to the accuracy of this report is being made here. Any decisions in financial markets are solely the responsibility of the reader, and neither the author nor the publishers assume any responsibility at all for those individual decisions. Reader should understand that futures and options trading are considered high risk.
Copyright MMACycles 2007-2012; you may link to this site or page, but you may not distribute these texts in any way (by email or otherwise).
Archives
Previous weeklies (2006) are archived at www.olmta.com
For other language editions of MMA´s weekly comments:
- Chinese : www.zzdcycles.com
- Dutch : www.markettiming.nl (Nederlands)
- German : www.mma-europe.ch (Deutch)
- Japanese : www.merriman.jp
- Polish : www.astrobiznes.pl (Polska)
- Russian : www.urania.ru
- Serbian : www.mma-balkan.com
- Spanish : www.mmacycles-spanish.com (Español)
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