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That Saturn-Uranus freight train keeps thundering down the tracks, crushing any asset of value that stands in the way of its destination on Election Day, November 4, 2008. Although this particular train ride has been more of “train wreck” for most investors, it has been a phenomenal reinforcement of the value of Financial Astrology to today’s society.

There are few astrological signatures that have the potential for near-total devastation as Saturn and Uranus in hard aspect. You may remember the last one, which was a square between these two powerhouses that unfolded three times between July 18, 1999 and May 13, 2000. Many of the world’s stock markets made their all-time high in January-March 2000. But before the aspect was completed, the “technology bubble” burst and a dramatic decline in the “tech stocks” commenced. The tech-heavy NASDAQ Index plunged 80% by October 2002. Many of the start up “dot com” companies went out of business. In this current case, global equity values are once again dramatically falling as we enter into the opposition aspect, which starts November 4, and doesn’t end until July 26, 2010. The “good news” is that this bear market will quite possibly be completed by the time aspect ends (or within the following 5 months). The bad news is that the start of this aspect series is still ahead. See “Longer-Term Thoughts” section for more discussion.

Every major stock index that we study made a new multi-year low last week, except two: the Swiss SMI and Dow Jones Industrial Average. But it is not just that so many indices made a new low that is important. It is the chart structure that is impressive, for herein one can see that these new lows represent the greatest percentage decline in many decades. Not only that, but they followed some of the greatest appreciation – rallies – in history. This reinforces one of our cyclical rules, which states that when a market rallies longer than anyone expects, the decline will also be much greater than anyone expects. For so many months in 2007 we were baffled by the fact that the stock markets kept rising and rising into - and beyond – the time band when the 4-year cycle trough was due. At the time, all I could do was repeat this rule. And now, unfortunately for many investors who did not get out, one can see the truth in this rule.

In Europe the AEX fell to 232.43 on Friday. This represents a 59% decline since its all-time high of 563.98 on July 13, 2007. It is now approaching its previous 4-year cycle trough of 217.10, which was recorded at the time the U.S. commenced its war to liberate Iraq on March 12, 2003. Note that the all-time high happened when the next 4-year cycle trough was supposed to be due, which is the case in all of these examples. The German DAX fell to 4014.60 on Friday. This represents a 50+% decline from its all-time high of 8157, also on July 13, 2007. It is still nearly double its 4-year low recorded also on March 12, 2003, at 2188.75. A similar pattern can be observed in London’s FTSE stock index, which made a new 5-year low on Friday at 3715.24. Its previous 4-year cycle trough was 3277.50 on March 12, 2003. After that, it soared to an all-time high of 6754.10 on July 13, 2007, so the decline now has only been 45%. The Swiss Stock Market (SMI) did not make a new multi-year low on Friday. It fell to 5410.95, still above the 5205.86 low of October 10, but down from its all-time high of 9548.09 achieved on June 4, 2007. It is also still up considerably from its 4-year cycle trough of 3618 of March 12, 2003.
 
In the Far East and Asia, the dramatic nature of this decline has been even more stunning. In Hong Kong, for example, the Hang Seng has now fallen from an all-time high of 31,958 on October 11, 2007, to Friday’s low of 12,618. This represents a loss of value of 62.47%. India’s NIFTY Index fell to 2525 on Friday, a decline of over 60% from its all-time high of January 8, 2008. In Japan, the Nikkei index fell back to 7647 on Friday, nearly matching its 54-year cycle low of 7604 back on April 29, 2003. It is now down 58% from its highs of mid-2007. In Australia, the All Ordinaries plunged to 3799.50 on Friday. That represents a decline of only 44.7% from its all-time high of 6873 back on November 1, 2007.

In the United States, the NASDAQ made a new 5-year low on Friday as it plummeted to 1493.79. It is still well above its low of October 10, 2002 when it was down to 1108.49. That is still down nearly 50% from its 4-year cycle crest of 2861.50, and still much lower than its all-time high of 5132.52 recorded on March 10, 2000, when the last hard aspect (square) took place between Saturn and Uranus. The DJIA, like the Swiss SMI, did not make a new low on Friday. It fell to 8187, which is still considerably above the 7882 low of October 10. It might have exceeded this if it had opened earlier, for the DJIA futures were locked limit down when they opened on Friday. In the case of the DJIA, it is challenging the 7197 lows of October 10, 2002. The low of October 10, 2008 was already down 44% from its all-time high of 14,198 on October 11, 2007. The market seems to like the October 10th period. It may also like this current period too, for four years ago, the market was making an important low on October 26, less than 2 weeks before that USA presidential election. Usually this means the party in office will lose. But not then. The market soared into the election of 2004, and George W. Bush was re-elected. Are we about to witness another stunning reversal in the stock market and the election polls? It is doubtful, but with Saturn still approaching its opposition to Uranus on Election Day itself, nothing will surprise me.

Precious metals and crude oil also witnessed stunning declines last week. Silver, for instance, fell to 865 during the day on Friday, a loss of nearly 60% in value from the 2115 level posted last March. Gold dropped to 681 on Friday, down $367 from its all-time high of March 18. Crude oil made its all-time at 147.27 just last July 11. On Friday, it was down as low as 62.65, now off over 57% and confirming our forecast of a 50-90% decline before Uranus left Pisces. There are some things that simply cannot be understood or prepared for properly in advance without the aid of Financial Astrology combined with Cycle Studies. It is truly a gift from the heavens (i.e. God), and nothing that I have studied demonstrates the existence of an orderliness to the universe (i.e. a Divine Intelligence at work) more so than the study of Astrology. It is humankind’s misfortune that this marvelous study is not used more effectively in understanding trends that coincide with both the individual and society’s cyclical nature, as alluded to in the Book of Ecclesiastics (i.e. for everything there is a season under heaven).

Short-Term Geocosmics

 As mentioned earlier, we are fast approaching the Saturn-Uranus opposition of November 4. But the day before, November 3, is also important, for that is when Venus will “translate” the Saturn-Uranus opposition in a T-square (squaring both). Every “translation” of the Sun or Venus to the Saturn-Uranus opposition of this year has coincided with a serious sell-off in stocks throughout the world. This one is no different. Venus rules assets, and has special significance to currencies and Soybeans. Both are falling hard since their all-time highs of just a few months ago.

 We also note that our next time band of heavily populated geocosmic signatures starts on Halloween, October 31, and lasts through November 13. There are nine important signatures unfolding then, of which five are Level One (strongest) types. We can anticipate the week starting November 3 may be one of the most important reversal weeks of the year. We already know that politically it will mark an important change as well. An era will have ended and a new one will begin. The new era will be dramatically different than we have experienced for the past 8 years in terms of economics and military activity, regardless of who wins.

Longer-Term Thoughts 

 In “The Ultimate Book on Stock Market Timing Volume 2: Geocosmic Correlations to Investment Cycles,” there is a special study titled “Saturn-Uranus in Cardinal signs.” This study examined the 8 cases of Saturn-Uranus in hard aspect, in cardinal signs, since 1761, and their correlation to long-term cycles in the British and U.S. stock indices. The results showed that in 7 of these 8 cases (87.5%), an 18-year or greater cycle unfolded within 5 months of the central time band. That is a quite phenomenal result! I bring this up because Saturn and Uranus will be in opposition, in the cardinal signs of Aries and Libra, on that last passage, July 26, 2010. In this case, we are looking for the 72-or 90-year cycle trough, a cycle that historically has coincided with losses of 50-90% in stock markets around the world. We are already there in several stock markets, and nearly there in all the others. But typically, these declines last 3-22 years from their all-time highs. The year 2009 will be only the second year. Could it be done by then? Why not? We are in the part of the Pluto cycle where time “speeds up”. That is, when Pluto transits Scorpio through Capricorn, it stays only 12-15 years in each sign. When it is on the opposite side of the zodiac (Taurus-Cancer), it spends up to 28 years in each sign. 

 The “ideal” time for this bear market to end is anywhere between 2011 and 2016, as discussed in my article on “Pluto in Capricorn: The Good, The Bad, Even Worse, and Redemption,” which you can read on our web site at www.mmacycles.com. But sometimes long-term cycles contract, especially when Pluto is moving through the “fast part” of its orbit around the Sun. Pluto, ruler of debt and reform, is going to re-enter Capricorn again on November 26, where it remain through much of 2023. Yes, it is a new era we are entering.