Please note that the Forecast for 2009 book is now completed and all orders that were received as of December 10 have been sent out as of December 12. Those that were received afterwards will be sent out early this coming week. It is quite amazing. The pre-orders for this year’s book were double last year’s pre-pub orders – and last year was a record for us. I think that the more uncertain the world seems to become, the greater the demand for the information of Financial and Mundane Astrologers. I am grateful for all the support readers have exhibited. Thank you, and may every one have a very happy holiday season.

Also please note that there will be no column next week, as I will be on holiday in Europe. But I will be giving the Forecast speech in Amsterdam, Saturday, December 20, and I look forward to meeting many readers at that event.

Review and Preview

It was a week that was as complex and dynamic as the signatures of Financial Astrology suggested. In political news, the House passed a bailout loan program for troubled US automakers in the middle of the week, only to have the loan defeated by the Senate late Thursday night, only to have the President and Treasury Secretary announce on Friday that they just happen to have enough money in their bailout program for financial institutions available to help out.

As schizophrenic (and hypocritical and even criminal) as some US lawmakers behaved last week, the financial markets also exhibited quite a frenetic movement in their price behavior. Many of the world’s stock indices were strong early in the week, some later in the week, but all fell on Friday following the Senate defeat of the bailout for automakers. In Europe, all the indices we track made new monthly highs last week, and all were up 17-20% from this multi-year lows (or secondary lows) of November 21.

In the Far East, it was a little more extreme both ways. That is the Australian All Ordinaries index was quite subdued. It failed to make monthly high last week, and in fact it only appreciated 12.5% from the lows of November 21. The Japanese Nikkei and NIFTY index of India was more in line with Europe, with both up about 17-18% from their lows of late November. But the greatest excitement was in Hong Kong, which soared to a new 2-month high of 15,781 on Thursday. This was up 33% from its low of November 21, and nearly 50% from its low of October 27. It was nice to see the markets rebound so strongly in China again, and it gives hope for other parts of the world. It virtually assures that the lows of October were at least a 50-week cycle trough, the first market to confirm a longer-term cycle of all the markets we track. Let’s hope others soon follow.

In the America’s, there was much excitement in Argentina, where the Merval index rallied to 1103 on Thursday, up 28% from its November 21 low of 861. The Bovespa of Brazil was up 20% during the same period. But in the United States, it was even more impressive as the DJIA crossed above 9000 again for the first time in a while. That was up 29% from the 6995 low of November 21. The NASDAQ Composite also made a new weekly high early last week at 1602, up nearly 24% from the 1295 low of November 21.

All in all, it was a good week for stocks until Thursday-Friday. Most were making new monthly highs as we entered the powerful “translation” zone of Sun and Mars conjunct, squaring the Saturn-Uranus opposition, December 10-15. In fact, astrologers will record this period as a T-Square formation. The full moon of Friday, December 12 was even a Grand Square pattern, something rare and a bit tense in the study of astrology. Indeed it was tense if you were a politician or employee of a US automobile company or labor union.

Other markets were also dramatically affected by last week’s financial astrology signatures. Treasuries, for instance, roared to another new all-time on Friday’s full moon, grand square to Saturn-Uranus. Agricultural and grain prices also rallied smartly last week. Corn, for example, was up nearly 25% in just one week. Crude Oil had a 20+% rally from its multi-year low of one week ago to its high on Thursday. Gold soared form 741 to 835 off its lows of last Friday, nearly a $100 gain in only 4 trading days. Ad the Japanese Yen soared to a new 13-year high against the U.S. Dollar. It was, indeed, a typical Sun conjunct Mars, square Uranus week. The only problem is, under these kinds of signatures, nothing is typical, and nothing is certain. It is one surprise after another.

Short-Term Geocosmics

 We are still in the midst of the December 10-15 time band of important geocosmic signatures. On December 10, the Sun formed a waning square to Uranus. On December 12, Mars formed a waning square to Uranus and the Sun foamed a waxing square Saturn. On December 15, Mars completes this translation with its waxing square to Mars. Also on Friday, December 12, the full moon was forming a grand square to Sun, Mars, Saturn, and Uranus. There is some history here to draw from. First of all, there was also a full moon in hard aspect to the Saturn-Uranus opposition on September 15. You may remember this was the day that the financial crisis began, and by the end of the week, lawmakers could not agree on the form of this bailout plan demanded by Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson. It was the beginning of a huge decline in stock markets around the world. The Dow Jones for instance, was trading about 11,400 on the day of that full moon as our most reliable selling indicator – Hank Paulson – gave public TV address to the nation. Congress was hastened to convene to pass his new idea of a financial rescue package – and they couldn’t agree. Does it sound a little bit like what happened this week with the US automakers and Congress? One arm says it is a “go” and we have to do it or else we risk catastrophic consequences, and the other arm defies the threat. Everything fell apart as financial markets - and society – entered a state of panic.

 This set up is known as a “translation” of the faster moving bodies to the slower moving planets, notably Saturn and Uranus. The last “translation” we had to Saturn and Uranus happened on Election Day, November 3-4, when Venus transited in a hard aspect to Saturn and Uranus, just as the Sun and Mars are doing right now. You may remember stock markets around the world were rallying into that time frame too, only to start a swoon down for the next 17 days to new multi-year lows in many of them.

 So here we are again. We have entered another important full moon – just 90 days later (that’s important when it is 90 days later). Just as 90 days ago, Congress cannot agree on an important financial bailout program, and they close the week in total disarray, with the American public shaking their heads wondering who these people are that they have elected to serve the interests of this nation. Who are they serving? This is the question on most Americans minds, and this is why the nation (and the world) is so eager to see the new leadership take over. And just like November 4, the last time a planet made a “translation:” to the Saturn-Uranus opposition, we also see the stock markets of the world making new monthly highs. The question now is will history repeat, and will we see another stock market crash into the end of this year? Or will it be different this time?

 We may get that answer in about a week. From December 22-31, we will find the Sun and Mars both forming a conjunction to Pluto, ending with Saturn turning retrograde. What makes this especially interesting is that the Sun and Mars are essentially now making a “translation” to the forthcoming Uranus-Pluto square of 2012-2015, the heaviest planetary aspect of all within the greater celestial pattern known as the Cardinal Climax (2008-2015… for more information on this, please refer to a more detailed article on my website at www.mmacycles.com). This translation of Sun-Mars to Uranus-Pluto is taking place from December 10-28. We will have a preview of what to expect in 2012-2015 during this period. But for now, our concern is that stock markets have been rallying into the start of this period. We are also concerned because Mars is about to ingress from Sagittarius into Capricorn, December 27 a time which has been historically a historically dangerous time for Israel and its neighbors, and a time corresponding to big reversals in interest-rate related markets. Could it happen during the High Holiday season, traditionally a time when markets and the world are quiet and in peace? I suppose if the U.S. financial markets can fall into a panic just six weeks before a U.S. election (instead of afterwards), anything is possible under the Cardinal Climax.

Longer-Term Thoughts

As much as financial analysts and talking heads on TV financial shows are projecting even lower interest rates, my interpretation of geocosmic and cycle studies suggest just the opposite. We are very near to a critical turning point, and once it turns, we may not see these low interest and mortgage rate levels again in our lifetime. I happen to be in the camp that this deflationary period is going to end very abruptly with a new inflation monster. Combined with the forthcoming stimulus package, and ramped up government spending programs and unbelievable federal deficits, I think that by the time we get to the Jupiter-Neptune conjunction in the spring and summer, we have shifted from deflationary fears to inflationary fears.

 We will talk more about the 14-year Jupiter-Neptune cycle in coming columns. In fact, Jupiter and Neptune will both be in a powerful mutual reception with Uranus for almost the entire year of 2009. For now, suffice it to say that it is the “Return to Camelot,” a resurgence of hope and faith in a new leader. We need that, because just before and after this period lays the intense signatures of Saturn, Uranus and Pluto, which might be equated to a fear of Armageddon. Yes, that the kind of dualistic reality (or illusion) we are living in now and next year: Camelot versus Armageddon. It is enough to make you feel like a character in an X-Box video game.