After a very choppy week, we're really ready for Raymond Merriman's public weekly preview comments from his Merriman Market Analyst - Comments for the Week, encompassing financial astrology, economic and financial sociology, wrapped around cycles, affecting equities, commodities and currencies markets. There's a reason we always keep his site in the list at right. He's one of those who've mentioned mid-January as an important turning time frame for the markets. So we're all thinking about it, aren't we! Raymond Merriman applies his own special blend of insights and analysis for seeing ahead. Let's see what he provides for traders to ponder for the upcoming week or so - and this time, really for later in the year also:
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MMA Comments for the Week Starting January 18, 2010
Written by Raymond Merriman
Please note: This is not the same as our service titled "MMA Weekly Comments and Recommendations on Financial Markets" which is available by subscription only.
Note: There will be no column next week due to my activities at symposium in Zurich, Switzerland. The next column will be for the week starting February 1. This week’s column will be issued before markets close on Friday, for here in Europe, it is six hours later and I have a presentation to make in Amsterdam Saturday, followed by a meeting with our subscribers.
Review and Preview
Equity markets continued their rallies to new yearly highs last week as Saturn turned retrograde on January 13, while Mercury turned direct and a solar eclipse formed on Friday, January 15. It might be enough to produce a high of some significance from which markets will now reverse. Otherwise we have to start thinking in terms of a “bubble” forming in stocks. With Jupiter and Uranus moving towards their first of three conjunctions in Aries on June 8, we do expect a climate of excessive speculation and asset bubbles to form. But from a purely cycles point of view, an 8-20% decline first would be a better fit.
In Asia and the Pacific Rim, only the Japanese Nikkei made a new yearly high last week. It occurred on Friday as the Nikkei soared to 10,982, well above its previous yearly high of 10,767 last August 31. The All Ordinaries of Australia, Hang Seng of Hong Kong, and the NIFTY index of India all rallied into last Monday, January 11, but not to new yearly highs. In the case of the Hang Seng, prices then fell, closing near its lows of the week on Friday. Something is going on in China that doesn’t look nearly as well as it does in Japan.
As of Thursday, all European indices made their new yearly highs on Monday, January 11, and then pulled back the next two days. The MICEX index of Moscow also made a new high last week – twice, on Monday and then again Thursday at the same level. In the Americas, the NASDAQ Composite and Bovespa of Brazil also made new yearly highs on Monday and then pulled back. But the Dow Jones Industrial Average made yet a new yearly high by Thursday, and Argentina’s Merval index was close to doing the same. They all fell on Friday.
Crude Oil, Gold, and Silver also made their weekly highs on Monday, January 11 – at least as this is being written, which is early Friday morning back in the USA.
Short-Term Geocosmics
This week will be highlighted early by a changing of signs involving three planets. The first will be Jupiter, leaving Aquarius for Pisces on Sunday, January 17 and lasting through June 6. This will be followed by first Venus, and then the Sun, moving from Capricorn into Aquarius on Monday and Tuesday. But all of this is preparation for the second passage of Saturn square Pluto, which takes place on January 31. Just before then, on January 27 and 29, Venus and the Sun will be in opposition to the Mars retrograde. This is more akin to a sudden event that may affect the financial world, and possibly even a geopolitical event. With Mars so heavily involved, there could be a major conflict. With Saturn square Pluto, it may be a time when more human lives are in danger. Whether this danger is in terms of terrorist threats or acts of nature, it is a time that requires more than the usual amount of caution.
With Saturn and Pluto involved, it always has the potential to pertain to matters of debt, and the problems that increasing debt causes. Since three planets are changing signs this week, it will be interesting to note the new approaches to solving the debt crisis that may be introduced over the rest of this month. I am not sure that any of them are credible, however, with Jupiter (exaggeration) in the sign of Pisces (fantasy). My guess is that it will be more tough talk followed by actions that are exactly the opposite of the promises and tough talk. In other words, spending will increase, deficits will increase, and consequently so will risk-taking and speculation. For that matter, so will blaming others increase. It is, however, a time in which budget constraints need to be discussed realistically. But is there the backbone for lawmakers to follow-through on what everyone knows? Or will it take discussion of a populist uprising to force the issue in 2010-2011? We can never discount the idea of revolutionary actions to force economic and behavioral changes in government under Saturn in opposition to Uranus, and both in square to Pluto.
And finally, the January 15 Solar Eclipse at 25 degrees of Capricorn falls right on President Obama’s natal Saturn in the 12th house. Saturn rules control issues and potential for loss, and the twelfth house rules activities behind the scenes, and institutions. The solar eclipse intensifies whatever it hits as a major theme in the life for the next several months, even a year or more. Saturn in the 12th house is a struggle between principles, ideals, and the ethical way to bridge the two. What happens if he – or someone close to him - wishes to enact something from behind the scenes that is discovered, and then perceived to be unconstitutional? It may be interesting to note early September, when both Venus and Mars will square this eclipse point, just before the mid-term elections. At its best, it would indicate an obsession for honor, honesty, and truthfulness. At worst, it would be the opposite, and suffering the consequences of being exposed in a cover-up.
Longer-Term Thoughts
Let’s discuss Jupiter moving into Pisces. It is a time when the planet of excess and optimism meets the sign of fantasy and dreams. Due to its retrograde motion in the middle of the year, it will move quickly through Pisces (January 17-June 8) and into Aries, but then return for a second round in Pisces September 10, 2010 through January 22, 2011. It will conjunct Uranus three times from June 2010 through January 2011.
When Jupiter transits a sign, it tends to bring favorable recognition to sectors of the stock market ruled by the sign it is in. Pisces rules sectors like entertainment (movies and music), drugs, pharmaceuticals, health care, and crude oil. Some - or most of - these sectors will find their stock values increasing. Others, like Crude Oil, may find their supplies increasing, which could have a negative effect upon their values.
Prior to this weekend, Jupiter has been in Aquarius for the past year. Aquarius rules technology. It was therefore not surprising that the tech-heavy NASDAQ has appreciated over 80% since the lows of last March, whereas the Dow Jones Industrials only a little over 60%. But in 2010, Jupiter will conjunct Uranus, which also rules technology. This implies that technology will still likely outperform the industrials and manufacturing sectors in 2010. In fact, the combination of Jupiter in Pisces, and conjunct Uranus, may favor the biotechnology sector.
But more important will be the psychological climate. It is as if everyone in government and finances is on drugs. If indeed an asset bubble develops, as Jupiter and Uranus suggest it could, then a massive exodus from savings accounts into stocks will take place. Why would anyone stay in savings accounts with a return of .1 - .3%, when stocks are yielding gains of 60-80%? Well, for one reason, savings are more safe (or are they?), and stocks are speculative. But no matter – not with Jupiter in Pisces. This could be the year where everyone thinks he is a successful speculator, just like the house-flippers thought in 2007. But not everyone is good at speculation, especially those who have been historical savers.
For this reason, Jupiter in Pisces may be dreams of glory and unlimited riches, which always happens to people during bubbles and times of excessive speculation. But the reality is another side of Jupiter in Pisces: tears of sadness, as the bubble may be pricked by Saturn and Pluto, which are in hard aspect to the Jupiter-Uranus conjunction. So the year ahead is a roller-coaster ride, with first the thrills of going up the ascent, but then the danger of coming down the hill without any brakes on. If you are going to succeed in 2010, you have to be nimble and realistic. Dreams of riches and happiness won’t get it in the market place. It may work for weddings and romances, which could be off the charts with happiness and dramatic presentations. We will probably see many such incredible social events this year. But after the reception and the honeymoon, you still have to wake up the next day and wonder: “What was I thinking?” It may have been a great party while it lasted, but it could be followed by a nasty hangover if you indulged too much and didn’t exercise any practical caution for protection.
Announcements
Announcements
CD’S, MP3’s, DVD’S, and webcast viewing of the Forecast 2010 speech will be available in about a week. The Forecast 2010 Webcast Speech took place December 20, 2009. We are offering a CD or MP3 download that contains the audio only. You can also view the webcast again in it’s entirety as a one-time download from Vibation until January 25, 2010. And it will be available in a DVD edited edition too. The cost for any of these recordings will be $45.00 and an additional postage charge if ordering in audio CD or edited DVD format. For further information, go to our website at www.mmacycles.com (it will be up sometime this week). Or drop us an email (ordersmma@msn.com) or fax (248-538-5296), or call us at 1-248-626-3034. “Thank You - it’s very thoughtful and thank you for sharing your knowledge. A whole new world opened for me.” Attendee to the Forecast 2010 webcast.
The next Forecast 2010 speech will take place in Moscow, Russia on January 19, 2010. Contact www.urania.ru or Urania@urania.ru for further information and limited seating reservations. This will be followed by a presentation at the Swiss symposia, and a Financial Market Timing workshop in Zurich, Switzerland on January 23-24. Contact AstroData at info@mma-europe.ch, or www.mma-europe.ch or 41-(0)-43-343-33-66 for reservations and further information. There will be private meetings, at no cost, with MMA subscribers in both Amsterdam and Zurich following these presentations. Please contact the host listed above for details to participate. If you are a subscriber and can participate, you will find these meetings highly informative and exciting.
The Forecast 2010 book are out!!! We have printed an additional 20% beyond the pre-orders, and they will likely sell out within the following 8 weeks, as has been the case three of the prior 4 years. For more information, visit our web site at www.mmacycles.com. “Kudos… the 2010 forecasts – you’ve outdone yourself - I see Jupiter is playing a role not anticipated (if I recall correctly) last year .... it all clicks.” RR, Santa Fe
If you are an active short-term trader, you may be interested in our Weekly or even Daily Market reports with short-term 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), Swiss Franc, Dollar/Yen cash and Yen futures, T-Notes, Corn, Soybeans, Wheat, Gold and Silver. The daily reports cover all stock indices listed above, as well as futures in Euro, T-Notes, Soybeans, Gold and Silver. 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. In the words of one of our subscribers: “I recently subscribed to your weekly report and am finding it to be excellent and a very useful companion to the MMA Cycles Report. I can't imagine now managing my investments without them.”
The MMA Catalogue of products and services for 2010 is now out!!! You can download it in PDF at http://www.mmacycles.com/option,com_docman/task,doc_download/gid,161/Itemid,63/. The ordering page is the last page of the catalogue. This is especially useful for those outside of the USA, since we do not send these by snail mail unless requested.
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 2007-2010; you may link to this site or page, but you may not distribute these texts in any way (by email or otherwise).
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