REVIEW AND PREVIEW
Broad-based strength in hiring in October signals the economy is shaking off the Covid-related slump of the third quarter and could grow faster than expected in the fourth quarter. Employment increased by 531,000 in the month. The unemployment rate fell to 4.6%. Revisions to prior months’ data also added a total of 235,000 more payrolls in August and September. – Patti Domm, “Strong Jobs Report Shows Economy Back on Track for Further Growth,” www.cnbc.com, November 5, 2021.
Stock markets were strong again last week, as several made new all-time highs into last week’s new Moon in Scorpio, opposite Uranus on November 4. These included the DJIA, S&P, and NASDAQ in the U.S., and DAX and AEX in Europe. Other markets enjoyed nice rallies, albeit not to new all-time highs. The exceptions were in China, Hong Kong, India, and Brazil, which all fell to new 4-week lows. With Uranus, you seldom get uniformity. Its nature is more non-conforming and can be followed by abrupt movements.
The abruptness of Uranus was most notable in precious metals, especially Gold, which fell to a three-week low on Wednesday, and by Friday was making a new two-month high. This is in alignment with Mars in Scorpio now, and points to higher prices as long as last week’s low holds. Ethereum was also highlighted last week as it soared to a new all-time high, but Bitcoin did not. With Uranus in the cosmic limelight, and in the money sign of Taurus, we can expect some fireworks here too as we approach December 24, when the last exact waning square aspect with Saturn takes place. It just happens to be within a week of Venus turning retrograde as well, in conjunction to Pluto. Venus and Pluto rule stable currencies, as does Taurus, and Uranus rules cryptos, another form of currency, which many are trying to make “stable currencies.” With Uranus in Taurus, that may not be likely for a while.
SHORT-TERM GEOCOSMICS AND LONGER-TERM THOUGHTS
The takeaway from Tuesday’s voting is that the Democratic Party’s progressives are a clear and present danger – to their party and to everyone else. Because of progressive overreach, incompetence, and intolerance, the Republican Party now owns three important security issues – economic security, education security, and civil security, a.k.a. “law and order.” – Daniel Henninger, “The Biden Democrats Lose It,” Wall Street Journal, November 4, 2021.
Mr. Trump, naturally, tried to take credit for Mr. Youngkin’s victory. But he was jumping in front of the victory parade. The former president would have hurt Mr. Youngkin had he campaigned for him. The message from Virginia is that voters don’t want the agenda of the progressive left, and they will listen to a Republican who forthrightly addresses problems they care about while talking like a normal human being. – Review and Outlook. “Lessons of the Progressive Fall,” Wall Street Journal, November 4, 2021.
One of the handicaps of writing an annual book is that the forecasts you write about can come about sooner than the book is in print. Hence, last week’s stunning election results, demonstrating the support for moderate viewpoints and goals as opposed to extreme political behavior and policies, was taken right out of the second chapter in the soon-to-be released Forecast 2022 Book titled, “The Beginning of a New Era: Moderation and Detachment.” The chapter describes the social, political, and economic history of the first years following the 20-year Jupiter/Saturn conjunctions, and what that history tells us about 2022-2023. It also describes the history of U.S. stock indices and their longer-cycle cycles in this phase of the new Jupiter/Saturn cycle, as well as their relationship with major changes in education.
One of the takeaways is that stock indices perform very well when the government is in gridlock and extreme economic and social policies, spending programs, and speculative trading frenzies are curtailed.
The repudiation of the progressive policy proposals of the current administration by voters in traditionally liberal states may have been yet another factor in the strong performance of U.S. and world stock indices last week. Investors know the value to the business community of a government that is stymied in its efforts to pass large, transformative bills that do not have bipartisan support. The bills stall and the economy grows when government is boring.
Investors also know the importance of containing extreme divisive rhetoric from the opposition that threatens a moderate approach to society, government, and economics. Hence, Republicans may celebrate last week’s unexpected victories, but they should be very careful and not assume that this means support for their party’s current political leader. As the Forecast 2022 Book will point out, it is the Democrats who may be celebrating at the mid-term elections, and not because the country supports their views as much as it may be a result of a “gift” (Neptune making a grand trine to his natal Venus/Jupiter trine) given to Joe Biden from the activities/behavior/involvement of the former president. The winners will be those of both parties who come across as the most moderate and not the most extreme, now that Jupiter will start exhibiting characteristics of its waxing phase to Saturn (moderation), while Saturn separates from its waning square to Uranus (radical and extreme). If given the opportunity, I think a moderate Democrat, Republican, or Independent will win in the vast majority of contests against an extreme right or extreme left candidate in the 2022 mid-term elections, based on the newness of the Jupiter/Saturn cycle. And if so, that will bode well for the economy.
But let’s leave politics aside and return to the financial markets. We are in the midst of a Uranus onslaught. The new Moon of Thursday evening, November 4, was in direct opposition to Uranus. The Labor Department reported a much better increase in payrolls than expected and revised the prior month’s disappointing jobs numbers much higher. It appears the booming U.S. economy is back on track. But it also means the booming inflation situation is also likely to continue, and inflation is like a “stealth tax.” With the Fed’s announcement that they will begin their “tapering” program late this month, it will be interesting to see how long the “breakout” nature of Uranus will remain in force before the “reversal” properties of Uranus begin. From November 10 through November 17, Mars will make a T-square to Saturn and Uranus. On December 24, the final exact waning square between Saturn and Uranus will take place. During this period, we are apt to see both of these sides of Uranus. We are already witnessing the breakout part of this planet’s personality. But we know Uranus can change its tune abruptly at any moment, much like Mercury retrograde, only more forcibly.
The lunar eclipse of November 19 will also be interesting as it is only one day after President Biden’s birthday. That means his solar return and year ahead will have characteristics of a lunar return: conflict and opposition. At the same time, the Mars/Uranus opposition is also a Mars return for him – they hit his natal Mars. Wait! That’s getting back into politics and we wanted to stick with financial markets. Under heavy Uranus aspects, no one knows for certain which side of the Uranus personality will show up first. But markets are likely to rise and/or fall sharply into these periods and reverse just as sharply.
The problem is that the cause underlying these sharp price swings is likely to be political this time. We are fast approaching the holiday season – the Sun in Sagittarius – which is usually a bullish period for stock markets. But with Uranus, “usually” doesn’t mean things will unfold “as usual.” It’s more likely to be an “unusual” period between now and December 25, because Uranus will dominate the cosmic narrative.
This can be a challenging period in terms of plans not unfolding as expected. But it can also be a time of immense inspiration and new ideas. Stay safe and out of danger, if possible, and cultivate new ideas and see if you can find support for them before launch. They will probably need some adjustment to be accepted, but with those revisions, they could have a great impact. In other words, think independently, but don’t act out your ideas until you first check them out with others who may be affected.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
NOTE 1: THE NOVEMBER ISSUE OF THE MMA Monthly Cycles Report will be released this week. With stock indices making new all-time highs again as we head into the last Saturn/Uranus waning square and Venus retrograde next month, this becomes another important juncture for stocks. It is also an important period for Gold, as one of the strongest planet/sign combinations of all is now underway. Every issue provides MMA’s intermediate-term and near-term outlook for the U.S. stock market, Gold, Silver, Treasuries, Euro Currency, Crude Oil, and Soybeans. Each issue also contains MMA’s original geocosmic critical reversal dates (CRDs) and Solar/Lunar reversal dates over the next several weeks for DJIA, Gold, and Silver, complete with trading strategies for position traders during the next month. If you are not a subscriber to the monthly MMA Cycles Report and would like a copy of MMA’s outlook for financial markets, consider trying this issue for only $35. And keep in mind that subscribers to this report will also receive a complimentary addendum and mid-term report of MMA Cycles, written by MMTA student Pouyan Zolfagarnia, one-three weeks later!
NOTE 2: The annual Forecast 2022 book is on schedule to be delivered by December 15! (print edition, eBook also). The final chapters are now being written and will be delivered to the printer in two weeks. At that time, we will turn in final numbers + 20% for the print edition. If you want to receive your printed copy of the annual Forecast Book, 2022 edition, it would be wise to let us know no later than November 30. Once they are printed, there are no reprints, and four of the last seven years have sold out.
In this year’s Forecast, you’ll discover:
- The importance of the Pluto return in the United States’ chart and its conjunction to the U.S. natal Moon.
- How Saturn in Aquarius square Uranus in Taurus will come close to an exact conjunction for the final time, and its relationship to protest movements urge for individual freedoms and equality, and fights between tech companies and government.
- The New “Era of Moderation” begins
- The outlook for Financial and Commodity Markets in 2022, including The US Stock Market, T-Notes and Interest Rates, Gold and Silver, Bitcoin, Currency Markets, Grain Markets, and Crude Oil, Critical Reversal Dates for 2022…
- PLUS! Much, much more
The cost is $55.00 plus shipping (no shipping costs for eBook version). Order both the print and eBook (Forecast 2022 Bundle) for only $75, a savings of $35.
This year we are again pleased to announce the publication of our Trends for the Twelve Signs 2022 Book, which will include the individual Sun Signs forecasts. This very popular book on the annual outlook for each sign is written by Antonia Langsdorf-Merriman and Raymond Merriman. We will follow a format this year where Langsdorf will cover the health and relationships outlook and Merriman will cover the business, career and overall psychological outlook of each sign for the year. The cost of this book will be $25. Save $10 by purchasing both Forecast 2022 and Trends for the Twelve Signs 2022 together, Forecast 2022 Ultimate Bundle for $70.
This year’s printed and e-Book versions of Forecast 2022 will also be available in these languages:
German: www.mma-europe.ch/
Japanese: https://www.toushinippou.co.jp/
Chinese: www.nodoor.com/
NOTE 3: THE NEW MERRIMAN ON MARKET CYCLES: THE BASICS book is out! The print and eBook versions are available! The first edition of print books is nearly sold out! This new edition contains the most comprehensive and modern listing of 175 long-, intermediate-, and short-term financial cycles in over 40 financial, currency, and commodity markets available anywhere! The book is a clearly written text on the MMA methodology for determining cycles periodicities and recognizing patterns within those cycles. It is a 72-page basic book for those who want to improve their timing skills by integrating cycles analysis with technical studies. It is a glossy softcover, 8-1/2” x 11” with illustrations to demonstrate the correct way to count cycle lengths, identify their phases with instruction on the trading strategies used to successfully trade each phase. The cost of the new version is $35. Order your copy now by clicking here.
EVENTS
January 14, 2022: Zurich, Switzerland: Trends for 2022, sponsored by AstroData, and featuring Claude Weiss, Alexandra Klinghammer, Monica Kissling, Verena Bachman, Antonia Langsdorf, Raymond Merriman and others. This special event will be given online due to COVID-19 meeting restrictions that have been implemented in Zurich at the present time. For more information, contact AstroData at www.astrodata.com.
August 25, 2022: 1:00 PM, Denver, CO, ISAR Conference, 4-Hour Pre-Conference Workshop by Raymond Merriman on “ASTROLOGY AND THE ART OF FINANCIAL MARKET TIMING: HOW TO FORECAST TRENDS AND MARKET REVERSALS”
Financial markets offer objective means to test astrological validity. The Moon changes signs every 2-3 days and is valuable for short-term trading. Planetary stations and aspects identify longer-term market reversals. Approximately 4-5 times/year, markets will form important highs or lows, which are the most favorable times to buy and sell for position traders. This course provides research studies showing the correlation of astrological factors to short-term and longer-term financial markets. The focus will be upon stock markets, precious metals (Gold and Silver), and Bitcoin, and how to integrate astrology with cycle studies to attain optimal market timing skills. Visit https://isar2022.org/schedule/ for further information and register for a great event!
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.