REVIEW
The US economy continued its seemingly unstoppable ascent out of the pandemic recession and its inflationary aftermath, further burying wrong calls of recession by posting fourth-quarter growth numbers that crushed forecasts. The economy’s main growth engine—personal spending—rose at a 2.8% rate while business investment and housing also helped fuel the larger-than-expected advance. David Rovella, “America Pulls Away,” Bloomberg Evening Briefing, January 25, 2024.
The Federal Trade Commission said it would investigate the growing arms race among the biggest technology companies to produce and commercialize artificial intelligence. Dave Michaels, “FTC Launches Probe of Big Tech’s AI Investments,” Wall Street Journal, January 26, 2024.
Typical of a strong Uranus and Aquarius cosmic force, last week witnessed breakouts to new multi-year or all-time highs in several global equity markets and possible reversals in other financial markets.
On Monday, January 22nd, Japan’s Nikkei Index soared to its highest level since its all-time high of late 1989, but then it promptly reversed and declined the rest of the week. China’s Shanghai Composite and the Hang Seng of Hong Kong, on the other hand, fell to new multi-year lows on January 22-23, then promptly reversed and started strong rallies into the end of the week. Different directions in the same region are a sign of divergence. But which way here?
In Europe, all four indices we track ended the week strong. The Netherlands AEX exploded to 818.96 on Friday, just slightly under its all-time high of 829.66 made in November 2021 when the 45-year Saturn/Uranus waning square occurred. The German DAX rallied to 16,987 on Friday, slightly below its all-time high of 17,003 on December 14. The Zurich SMI had a great week, too, trading to its highest mark since June 2023. The London FTSE closed well, but this was after being down hard in the previous week.
The United States saw all three of its major indices make new all-time highs last week, consistent with our studies of Uranus changing directions when near all-time or multi-year highs.
In other words, if a market is near an all-time high or low, it could “break-through” under Uranus. If not, look for it to make a reversal for a corrective counter-trend move. An example of a reversal from a counter-trend move may have been seen with Bitcoin and Ethereum last week. Bitcoin had dropped over 20% from its yearly high of 49,435 on January 11 to a low of 38,460 on Tuesday. Then, it reversed and rallied 9.8% to Friday’s high of 42,233. Is that the 16-month cycle low we have been anticipating? It’s possible since we are/were looking for a 20-50% selloff. But usually, the decline would last more than two weeks after the high. We will discuss a likely price target and scenario in our weekly subscription report.
In other markets, Crude Oil finally broke out of its two-month congestion pattern, rising to 78.21 on Friday. Silver showed signs of a reversal following its low on Monday at 22.04. Gold also made a slightly lower multi-week low at 2004 on Tuesday. All in all, many markets exhibited some very impressive moves following the ingress of the Sun and Pluto last week from Capricorn (sign of the past) into Aquarius (sign of the future and the new). Now, let’s see if these markets can “flip the script.”
SHORT-TERM GEOCOSMICS
A federal jury said that Donald Trump must pay E. Jean Carroll $83.3 million in compensatory and punitive damages for defaming her in statements he made as president when the writer said he had raped her in the 1990s. Dan Mangan and Adam Reiss, “Jury Rules Trump Must Pay E. Jean Carroll $83.3 Million in Damages for Defamation,” www.cnbc.com, January 26, 2024.
The debate on whether President Joe Biden should seize control of the Texas National Guard in order to force it to comply with a recent Supreme Court ruling is continuing to rage. Despite the ruling, Texas Governor Greg Abbott declared that Texas is currently under an “invasion” and invoked the state’s constitutional right to defend and protect itself. “That authority is the supreme law of the land and supersedes any federal statutes to the contrary. The Texas National Guard, the Texas Department of Public Safety, and other Texas personnel are acting on that authority, as well as state law, to secure the Texas border,” Abbott said. Ewan Palmer, “What Happens if Joe Biden Tries to Take Over Texas National Guard?” Newsweek, January 26, 2024.
Last week’s column began with the idea that the January 20 ingress of the Sun and Pluto together over 0° Aquarius might represent a “flip the script” and “power to the people” narrative. And there were several “flip the script” events that started erupting last week. More are expected into mid-February when Mars and Venus will also cross over from Capricorn into Aquarius and conjoin with Pluto, February 13-17.
The importance of 0° Aquarius was covered in detail in Forecast 2024 as a “super-charged degree” because that is where the “New Aira” began on December 21, 2020, when the 20-year cycle of Jupiter and Saturn conjoined in Aquarius for the first time in about 800 years. As stated therein, any planet (especially Pluto) crossing this degree will coincide with the themes of Jupiter and Saturn, which pertain to new laws, government policies, major court decisions, and changes in education. We saw a lot of that last week.
Of the events that just erupted and “flipped the script” (so far), the most disconcerting may be the standoff between the Federal government and the State of Texas over the huge migration of immigrants over the Texas border, an “invasion” that … “invoked the state’s constitutional right to defend and protect itself” according to Newsweek’s interpretation of Governor Abbot’s actions. Rachel Dobkin, Newsweek, January 24, 2024.
Although this pertains to the Jupiter/Saturn “super-charged degree” and the “flip the script” scenario described last week, it also evokes the cyclical correspondence to Neptune about to leave Pisces for Aries. The last time Neptune ingressed from Pisces into Aries (on its first passage) was April 12, 1861. The next day, the U.S. Civil War began. Neptune comes close to entering Aries this year, reaching 29° 55’ of Pisces as it stations in late June to early July 2024. The actual cross into Aries is on March 30, 2025.
Between Texas and the Federal government, as well as between the extremists against Trump and/or Biden, with each alleging the other of being fascists and a threat to democracy, the nation appears headed into a potentially very dangerous episode regarding its ability to function as a stable government. It’s almost as bad as what is happening in today’s world of astrology regarding the traditionalist versus the modern-day astrologer, or the Vedic versus the Western practitioner, or those who wish astrology to be more scientific and educational-based versus those who want to return astrology back to fortune-telling.
In other words, we live in wild times, just as Pluto moving into Aquarius would suggest. As pointed out in the Forecast 2024 book, this trend may peak into the “Aries Vortex” of 2026 +/- one year. There is hope for humanity. We just need to be a little more patient for a little bit longer.
As far as financial markets go, these major political and legal conflicts can be jolting. You may wonder why I discuss politics in this column that is related to astrology and financial markets. It is because the political landscape will affect financial markets. The economic visions of both Biden and Trump are so vastly different and will affect different facets of the financial spectrum. People support Trump because they believe he will protect them and the nation and lead to more economic stability and growth. But people also support Biden because they believe he will protect democracy as well as lead to greater economic growth. On the other hand, both men are getting ancient and seem to be challenged when it comes to memory and focus. This concerns the majority of Americans who truly wish for a different choice of candidates. In order for that to happen, the “script has to flip” greatly in the next month.
The transit of Pluto, plus Mercury, Venus, and Mars from Capricorn to Aquarius, maybe the way of the cosmos to offer this hope. The next four weeks can be wild in the field of politics, courts, and financial markets. Stay tuned. Things (and markets) are not likely to happen as expected.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
NOTE 1: February 18, 2024, MMA’s Annual Forecast 2024 World Wide Webinar with Raymond Merriman. It starts at noon EST and will last 2-3 hours. In the comfort of your own home or office, you can tune into Raymond Merriman’s annual worldwide Forecast 2024 Webinar. This broadcast will address themes from this year’s Forecast 2024 book, with updates on financial markets since the book was written in November 2023. This presentation will include trading plans for various financial markets based on the possibility of big moves related to the Jupiter/Uranus conjunction of April 21, and afterwards, Questions will be addressed that are submitted one week before the event if they are deemed of interest to the overall audience. If you are unable to attend live, the video recording will be available the following day. Registration for the Forecast 2024 Webinar is now open. Save the date!
The subject topics of this year’s annual Forecast 2024 webinar will include:
- The “New Aira,” 2020-2032
- The outer planets in 2023-2025 and the U.S. war cycle
- The “Aries Vortex” of 2026 +/- 1 year
- Jupiter/Uranus conjunction April 2024 and its correlation to long-term market trends
- The AI revolution and investment opportunities ahead
- The Federal Reserve Board and outlook for the economy and inflation
- Outlook for Bitcoin
- Outlook for Gold
- Outlook for Crude Oil
- Outlook for the U.S. stock market
NOTE 2: THE JANUARY ISSUE OF THE MMA Monthly Cycles Report Plus+, edited by Pouyan Zolfagharnia, will be issued this week. This market letter has become a very popular addition to the MMA Cycles Report (less technical, more visual with horoscopes of current importance, high-quality analysis, and updates on MMA Cycles Report markets). The mid-month addendum to the MMA Cycles report has stunning graphics and charts (people love it!) and is very readable. It contains more illustrations and references to geocosmics than most MMA Cycles reports and is only available for subscription to those who also subscribe to the MMA Monthly Cycles Report. If you wish to try this month’s addendum, along with the latest issue of the MMA Monthly Cycles Report, sign up online at the link above. Subscription for a monthly copy of both reports is $55. That will give you both the most recent January copy of the MMA Cycles Report and the January MMA Cycles Report Plus+ addendum coming out this week. For further information and ordering instructions before rates increase, please click here.
NOTE 3: THE MMA WEEKLY YouTube show, Geocosmic Week in Review and Look Ahead, with Gianni Di Poce, is conducted on Wednesday evenings! Each 5 to 20-minute FREE episode reviews the market activity of the previous week and offers a preview of the geocosmic signatures in effect for the following week and beyond.
NOTE 4: MMA’S FREE WEEKLY COLUMN IS NOW A PODCAST ON SPOTIFY, APPLE, AND AMAZON! Now you can listen to a podcast of this weekly column by Thomas Miller on Saturdays! Just follow Merriman Market Analyst on Spotify or Apple to listen to all our episodes. New podcast episodes will be released every weekend. This is a FREE service and is available to everyone. Check out our podcasts on Apple, Spotify, and Apple Music. It makes for great listening!
NOTE 5: MMA’S Daily and Weekly Subscription services continue to be very hot, especially with stock indices, metals, and Bitcoin over the past several weeks. To order any of these subscription reports, please click here.
NOTE 6: THE JANUARY ISSUE OF THE MMA Monthly ETF Report by Gianni Di Poce was issued last week. Written by MMA market analyst Gianni Di Poce, the ETF is a monthly newsletter that everyone trading ETFs is encouraged to read, especially those that seek less risky trading venues than futures. This report covers 8 ETFs on a monthly basis for readers. The ETFs include: SPY (S&P 500), GDX (gold miners), BITO (Bitcoin), TLT (+20-year Treasuries), USO (Crude Oil), XLV (healthcare), XLK (technology), and XHB (homebuilders). This is a report that was requested by popular demand, and Gianni’s insights and strategies are excellent. For further information, click here.
EVENTS
February 18, 2024, MMA’s Annual Forecast 2024 World Wide Webinar with Raymond Merriman. Starts at noon EST, which is 11:00 AM CET, 9:00 AM PST, and 6 PM CET. It will be very early in the morning in Australia, Beijing and Tokyo. In the comfort of your own home or office, you can tune into Raymond Merriman’s annual worldwide Forecast 2024 Webinar. This broadcast will address themes from this year’s Forecast 2024 book, with updates on financial markets since the book was written in November 2023. This presentation will include trading plans based on the possibility of big moves related to the Jupiter/Uranus conjunction of April 21 and afterwards in the U.S. stock market, Gold, Silver, Crude Oil, and Bitcoin. It will also cover the geopolitical setup of the outer planets moving into new signs between now and 2025 (war cycles, techno-renaissance cycle) and into the Aries Vortex of 2025-2027. Cost is $55.00, and includes the PDF of the presentation slides plus access to the video recording of the event. Questions will be answered that are submitted one week before the event if they are deemed of interest to the overall audience. If you are unable to attend the live session, the video recording will be available the following day. Registration for the Forecast 2024 Webinar is now open. Save the date!
March 9, 2024: 1:00 PM PST, 4:00 PM EST. The Aries Vortex: Third Phase of the “New Aira” with Raymond Merriman. Hosted by The Astrology University. This is a 90-120-minute webinar presentation that explores the hope for humanity as shown by the unusual planetary arrangement of 2025-2027 involving the Saturn/Neptune conjunction on 0° Aries, the Vernal equinox point that marks the start of the spring season in the Northern Hemisphere. It is also the midpoint of the Uranus/Pluto trine, creating a funnel, or vortex, at 0° Aries. This has huge symbolic importance to the world and aligns with other important economic and socio-cultural time cycles. Cost is $30.00 if registered before March 7. For further information, click here.
April 20, 2024: “FORECASTS 2024 AND THE APPROCHING ARIES VORTEX,” Nova Southwestern University, Ft. Lauderdale, FL, with Ray Merriman. An in-person, live event and workshop, 10:30 AM – 5:00 PM, with a 90-minute lunch break. We will also update financial markets that are likely to be at critical stages in their cycles then, as it takes place under the Jupiter/Uranus conjunction that day. Cost is $95.00. This is one of the few live in-person events to be given by Ray Merriman this year. This event will not be broadcast via Zoom, but recordings will be made available for sale a few days afterwards. For further information and registration, please click here.
SEPTEMBER 19-22, 2024: SAVE THE DATES!!! This will be the 2024 MMA Investment Retreat! Negotiations are currently underway (almost completed!) to bring this exciting gathering to a destination location in Europe for the first time since 2015. Once the agreement with the hotel is finalized, we will make a formal announcement, but for now… SAVE THE DATES! You won’t want to miss this chance to meet with the top MMA analysts (plus special guest speakers Claude Weiss and Aleksandar Imsiragic) live and hear strategies for long-term investments and wealth-building ideas using MMA market timing methods. There is nothing quite like a life-altering MMA Investment Retreat! This one will be very special, and it will be our first investment retreat in Europe since 2015!
Disclaimer and statement of purpose: The purpose of this column is not to forecast 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 often cite 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 may affect human activity in the times to come. The author (Merriman) will do this from the perspective of a cycles 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 the psychological dynamics that underlie (or coincide with) the news events and their potential effect on financial markets.
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 of this column assume any responsibility whatsoever for anyone’s trading or investment decisions. Readers of this report should understand that commodity futures and options trading are considered high risk.