Merriman Weekly Column

MMA FREE WEEKLY COLUMN AND COMMENTS FOR THE
WEEK BEGINNING AUGUST 13, 2012

Raymond A. Merriman ©
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The end of a Mercury retrograde period is usually a very flat trading time with little volatility. Unless Mars, Jupiter, and/or Uranus signatures are also in force, most world stock markets will exhibit very narrow price ranges. That was certainly the case last week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, for example, did not have a single day last week in which the price range was at least 100 points until the rally in the last 20 minutes of trading on Friday. That could change this week since Mercury ended its retrograde motion on August 8. This new week will find both Mars and Uranus in major aspects to other planets. The same was true last week in precious metals, which had their largest price movements on Friday, August 10. The markets appear to be winding up for next week.
Best Trades of the Past Week

The best trade of the rather quiet week was in currencies again. The daily report of Tuesday, August 7, for the September Euro currency, stated, “Aggressive traders are long with a stop-loss on a close below 1.2140, after covering 1/3 of these longs for profit last Wednesday. Let’s take profits on another third now and buy back on a decline to 1.2250 or lower.” The buy order was repeated Thursday-Friday, August 9-10. On Tuesday, August 7, the Euro opened at 1.2402, which was the profitable exit point on the longs. The Euro rose to 1.2448 that day and then dropped to 1.2245 on Friday before reversing back up at the end of Friday to close near 1.2300.

Short-Term Geocosmics

Last week was probably the calm before the storm. You could see market pressures building up and starting to be released late in the day on Friday as Mercury starts increasing its forward velocity following the end to its stationary retrograde motion of August 8.

The buildup of pressures is also signified by the Mars-Saturn conjunction that unfolds on Wednesday, August 15. The markets need a release, and so do the investment and trading communities of the world. But Mars-Saturn can be a rather hostile combination, for Mars is war-like and aggressive, while Saturn can be punitive and thwarting to grant the wishes of others, no matter how sensible they might be. This conjunction takes place in Libra, on the Jupiter-Neptune conjunction of the New York Stock Exchange chart, and in opposition to the Saturn in that same NYSE chart (born May 17, 1792). Generally speaking, this is an aspect where others act out of frustration, which usually gives a negative result. Just ask yourself how many times did expressing the full fury of your anger give you a good result, or the result that you had hoped for? Not too often. So we might anticipate politicians going after one another with the same old arguments as before, and this time they might work because the object of those aggressions finally produce the “break point” simply out of frustration. Maybe Mitt Romney will finally feel forced to release his income tax records for more than two years as Team Obama relentlessly chides him to do. Maybe Obama will finally release his college records as Team Romney has demanded he do as well, in this race to see who can be the least transparent candidate for the public’s vote. Personally, I would love to see Obama’s college grades in anything dealing with numbers: economics and math. Everyone knows his gift with words. But does he have any talent for numbers?

But back to the markets, which of course is all about numbers. In addition to the Mars-Saturn conjunction of August 15, next week will also find Venus making a T-square to the Uranus-Pluto square on August 15 and 16. This is also known as a “translation” of Venus (money, as in currencies and stocks) to Uranus (sudden news) and Pluto (debt and taxes). The value of things is apt to change sharply around those days. And with transiting Mars so prominent in aspect to planets in the NYSE chart, we can look to stocks as the leader of this possible change in trend. Additionally, both of these aspects (Venus to Uranus-Pluto and Mars to Saturn) have to do with weather and grain prices. Hot and dry may finally break now.

It’s all a prelude to the second passage of Uranus-Pluto in waxing square, which is coming up September 19. It’s more pressure of a different nature that will be building up, and one of the areas that is apt to reflect this buildup is precious metals, for Mars will soon be entering Scorpio, the sign of “reckoning” when it comes to debt and taxes, but also of special interest to metals. The debt crisis is far from over. In fact, it’s just about to have another incarnation with Mars entering Scorpio August 23-October 6, followed by Saturn doing the same for three years, beginning October 15. The stock market is still due for a 30% or greater decline unless the tax hikes coming up January 1 are repealed. This rally is probably just a sucker rally to draw the public into it before the final big bang comes up. Don’t be caught off guard.

Longer-Term Thoughts

Last week’s column reported on President Barack Obama’s 51st birthday, or solar return. We assumed he would be in Chicago that day, but instead he started the day in Washington D.C. and ended it at Camp David. That alters the position of the sky somewhat, as seen from Washington D.C. at 9:03 AM on August 4 instead of 8:03 AM from Chicago. It changes things somewhat.

His solar return Sun moved from the secretive 12th house to the more powerful 11th house of Congress. If he wins, he may have more support from Congress than many assume at this point. But Jupiter has also moved from the 10th house to the 9th, which is still a strong position for re-election, but maybe not as strong as it would have been in Chicago, in the 10th house of career. The Moon and Neptune in Pisces moved from the 7th house of allies to the 6th house of employees. This can be a signature of deception, disappointment, or disillusionment. Maybe it is better that his employees and servants disappoint or deceive him than his allies. In either case, he still finds Jupiter, planet of exaggeration and luck, in a hard aspect to the angles and the Moon.

Overall, it’s not a bad solar return for being re-elected. But it is also not a great solar return for finding personal happiness and support for his visions. He still seems dissatisfied with matters of work and may be overly critical of others. At its best, he will do things himself instead of relying upon others, and find that he does a better job than those he appoints to do things for him. He may become a compulsive perfectionist for minute details, making it extremely hard for others to please him. Therefore, in the quest for peace and harmony, they may leave him, or be asked to leave. He needs to consciously work at reducing the stress in the work place, for the sake of others as well as for his own well-being, lest it make him vulnerable health-wise, especially in the area of nerves and emotions. The more relaxed he is, the better it is for himself and everyone around him. The more stressed out he becomes, the more difficult it is for himself and others around him. His success and happiness this year are more a function of his ability to manage his emotions and nerves than anything else. This probably requires great faith on his part, as denoted by the afflicted Moon in Pisces, opposite his solar return ascendant in mid-Virgo. Can he do it? Anyone can do it if they understand the dynamics of what they are working with. That’s the beauty of astrology. It reveals our conditions and our choices, but ultimately each of us make the choices and hence affect the outcome.