This is written Friday afternoon here in Belgrade, Serbia, which is shortly after equity markets open in the USA. Thus this week’s report will not have the benefit of being written after the weekly close in the USA. Also, due to speaking and travel schedule, it will be another shortened report.

    Next week’s report may have the similar limitations due to the time difference. However we intend to keep up with our daily and weekly subscription reports during this period, as well as the monthly MMA Cycles Report, which may come out a day later than usual this week.

Review and Preview

    Friday’s USA jobs report showed an increase of 227,000 new jobs, while unemployment remained steady at 8.3%. One day earlier, the bailout of Greece received positive news as 95% of investors involved agreed to accept the 75% haircut in return (swap) for new Greek debt. The markets loved it, for the prior two days there were doubts that led to a sudden and sharp 200 point decline on Tuesday of the DJIA. By Friday’s payroll report, they were right back up, with the NASDAQ Composite testing the 3000 mark again, its highest level in 12 years. As of this writing USA cash and future equities are still maintaining their multi-year cycle highs of February 29-March 2, although in some, that could still change by early next week. But this could also be what is known as a “double topping” formation. According to studies published in Volume One of “The Ultimate Book on Stock Market Timing: Cycles and Patterns in the Indexes,” This is a common chart pattern at primary and longer-term cycle crests. But is this a long-term cycle crest? It’s still possible due to the Jupiter effect described over the past several months, and re-examined in this week’s shortened report. We could know the answer shortly.

    Gold and Silver continued to struggle last week, with Gold falling as low as 1663 and Silver down to 3249 on Tuesday. But this is entirely normal behavior at this point within their primary cycle. If it continues lower after next week, there may be cause for concern and a special update for subscribers. I still view this recent decline as a “Gift from heaven.”    

Short-Term Geocosmics

    There will be more “Gifts from heaven” this week.

    A rare and fascinating geocosmic pattern will unfold in the skies, March 12-14. It is known as a “Grand Trine” in the study of astrology, which means that there are at least three planets forming an equilateral triangle to one another, in which each part is 120° degrees distance from the other. Since it is happening in earth signs (Taurus, Virgo, and Capricorn), it is known as an “Earth Grand Trine.”

Earth signs, in this case, represent financial and mundane political matters. In astrology, it is said that those born with an earth grand trine (or a grand trine in the earth houses, which are second, sixth, and tenth houses) are said to be financially blessed, with opportunities to do extremely well in life. Therefore this current pattern involves the world’s financial structure, and the “gift from heaven” associated with it is being addressed specifically to the government of Greece.

    In this particular instance, the pattern commences with the trine between Jupiter (in Taurus) to Pluto (in Capricorn) on Monday, March 12. The next day, Venus (in Taurus) will also make a trine aspect to Pluto. And on Wednesday, March 14, Venus will form a conjunction with Jupiter in Taurus, as well as a trine to both Mars in Virgo and Pluto in Capricorn. Mars will trine Jupiter this day as well. It’s all about money (Venus and Taurus) and debt restructuring (Pluto). One can see how this would lend support to the Greek debt restructuring, where Greece agrees to pay about 25 cents on the dollar to those bondholders who lent it money, in exchange for a new deal. In typical Venus-Jupiter fashion, the financial community will initially celebrate yet another successful round of “kicking the can down the road,” with the hope that more time will somehow yield another solution to the same problem that no one has thought of yet. But with Saturn to enter Scorpio in October 2012 for nearly three years, the “Time of Reckoning” is fast approaching. It is the realization that there are no magical or miraculous solutions, only practical decisions and sacrifices, which of course will be disappointing to political leaders whose messages are always based upon promises of the magical and miraculous – if you elect “me.”

    So there is yet another peak in the hopes and wishes of a financial solution involving the world debt crisis. The key word is “peak,” for from here the trajectory starts to become more and more starkly realistic. We are headed to the Uranus-Pluto waxing square in June, which will continue to be the dominant geocosmic pattern (and theme) through March 2015. There are probably few, if any, cosmic opportunities showing the potential for an agreement like the one that Greece just struck. In other words, this may be the end of the last big and generous bailouts. “You are on your own, now. Either clean up your house or tear it down and rebuild another,” will be the mantra from here on out. Either that or get ready for the most massive printing of fiat money imaginable, possibly leading the world into a bout of inflation unlike anything seen since the late 1970’s.

    As if this scenario isn’t complicated enough, these agreements are about to be enacted as Mercury turns retrograde, also on Monday, March 12. As Financial Astrologers know, this indicates a rather unreliable period in terms of technical signals being generated. Sentiment that appears to be bullish turns out to instead be bearish market-wise, and vice-versa. But not necessarily for long. Many markets may see-saw back and forth every four days or so it seems. Or if a new trend appears to begin at this time, it is suddenly disrupted right around the middle of the retrograde period (about 9-11 days into it). The uncertainty is usually a result of mixed economic and political signals. For instance, payroll numbers may indicate the economy is recovering, but new tax policies may be under consideration that would imply an impediment to future growth in employment numbers.

Another area is the march towards the Republican presidential nomination. The last time Mercury turned retrograde, Newt Gingrich, the Gemini (ruled by Mercury) reversed his fortunes and came out of nowhere to take the lead over front runners Mitt Romney and Herman Cain (Romney the Pisces and Cain the Sagittarian, the two signs where Mercury is debilitated). Once again, Romney has the lead and Gingrich is in the back of the pack. If Romney hopes to wrap up the nomination, he needs to get through this period and pay attention to Gingrich – again. You may remember that when Mercury went direct that last time on December 10, everybody through Gingrich had the nomination wrapped up. But this column warned that he was about to peak (as a Gemini-ruled Mercury Sun sign) and head south in his approval ratings, which is exactly what happened. Watch for something similar these next three weeks in the field of politics, and maybe it doesn’t pertain to the USA. Maybe it pertains to France, Iran, and other nations involved in forthcoming elections.

    But back to the decision processes of today that are unfolding as Mercury goes retrograde in Aries (war talk) and Pisces (peace talk) through April 4. Any promises or threats made today are not likely to be carried out, at least not without some word twisting to redefine the meaning of the words originally spoken. This will be the season of double talk, denial, and re-translation into an entirely new meaning than the one first spoken. Prepare yourself for an assault on your common sense and the assumption that “you don’t know what you are talking about” when really, “you don’t know what I am talking about, and neither do I, but I won’t admit it”).

    How will this affect financial markets? One would think that the peak of the grand trine (March 12-14) will be close to a peak in equity markets. But the full brunt of these signatures may not be evident until March 25-29, when the Sun joins Uranus, and both square Pluto.

Longer-Term Thoughts

    Jupiter was in 7º Taurus from February 29 through March 7. As discussed at length in this column over the past year, 7º Taurus is a zodiacal time limit that correlates to long-term cycle crests in U.S. stocks when averaged out over the past 140 years. However, there have been exceptions to this mean average study, most notably at the all-time highs in September 1929 and February 1966, when Jupiter was in 14-23° Gemini. That is interesting, because those two times were the only times in the last century that were nearby to the only two times that Uranus and Pluto were in hard aspect to one another, as they will be this time.

    What does this mean? As I see it, the stock market either tops out right now (say no later than this month), or it continues to be bullish into at least August-November 2012 (or even March-May 2013). If stock prices make new cycle highs after March 2012, then the mean average study fails and we switch to the alternate Uranus-Pluto bullish scenario. In either case, the market is still prone to fall hard until Jupiter enters Leo, historically-speaking.

    But the past two weeks exhibited some interesting behaviors in equity price movements. The DJIA made its new three-year high on February 29, within less than one hour of the moment that Jupiter entered 7° Taurus, according to the observations of subscriber Robert Bennett. The NASDAQ continued making higher highs on March 2, without being accompanied by either the DJIA or S&P averages.

    Could it be that 7° Taurus will once again correspond to the long-term cycle crest in U.S. stocks? Sure, anything is possible and this has a mean average study of 140 years to support that possibility. But only time will tell – along with political policies that might be employed to juice up the market into an election, which just happens to coincide with Jupiter entering the Gemini sector of the zodiac that has also been observed to coincide with long-term market crests when it doesn’t stop with its position in Taurus.

    Is this year going to be like 1929 and 1966, in which case we have higher (much higher) to go? Or will it be more like the election of 2008, in which case the top is probably happening now, and a meltdown will be in force as we enter the weeks immediately ahead of the election. Either case is supported by Financial Astrology at this time, but one of those possible scenarios would change if all stock indices make new yearly highs after March.