MMA FREE WEEKLY COLUMN FOR THE WEEK BEGINNING OCTOBER 7, 2024

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 Employers added 254,000 jobs last month, the Labor Department said Friday. That was significantly more than the 150,000 economists expected, and marked the largest monthly increase since March. The unemployment rate slipped to 4.1%. Friday’s bumper payrolls report is likely to close the door on another half-percentage-point rate cut by the Federal Reserve at its next meeting in November. It should keep officials on track to lower rates by a quarter point.

—Harriet Torry, “U.S. Hiring Accelerated in September, Blowing Past Expectations,” www.wsj.com. October 4, 2024.

Striking U.S. dockworkers will return to work Friday after reaching a tentative agreement with employers on an improved wage offer. The conditional offer was for a 62% wage increase. The offer is on the table for the next 90 days. If no deal is reached within that timeframe, the proposed wage hike will be pulled from the table

—Bradford Betz, “Dockworkers’ Union Reaches Tentative Agreement, Will Suspend Port Strike Until January,” www.foxbusiness.com/, October 4, 2024.

Beijing’s announcements of economic support last week have fueled China’s CSI 300 blue-chip index to rally over 25% in a nine-day winning streak.

—Anniek Bao and Sonia Heng, “China’s Stimulus Rally Has Already Sent Stocks up 25%,” www.cnbc.com. October 3, 2024.

It was a peculiar week for financial markets. But then again, it was a bizarre week in terms of competing but very significant mundane news events throughout the world that roiled some markets, propelled others, and yet, in most cases, just caused indecisive price movements back and forth. That is, there was the tragedy of Hurricane Helene, wreaking horrific damage and loss of lives across the Southeastern United States, happening at the same time U.S. dockworkers went on strike, threatening to collapse much of the economy if not resolved quickly. But then, it was resolved quickly. Then there were the stunning Israeli air strikes that wiped out much of the major leadership in Hezbollah, which then drew Iran to launch a massive missile attack on Israel, which in turn threatened a retaliation and further dismantling of Iran’s (and Hezbollah and Hamas) military if not their entire political leadership as the world moves ever closer to World War III, a possibility explained in our webinars and Forecast Books over the past two years as peaking 2023-2025. On top of that, there was finally a meaningful vice-presidential debate last week that each side claimed as a victory for their candidate.

With all these events transpiring in just one week, it was no wonder that most global stock indices didn’t know what to do. Most pulled back from the recent highs of Friday-Monday, September 27-30. But the declines were not steep. It was as if investors were confused as to whether the human suffering would lead to losses of business or increased profits due to new demands for services and equipment that would be needed to rebuild.

One stock index that defied this malaise of confusion was China, where the nation’s recent and new stimulus program ignited a huge rally. China’s SSE index exploded from a 5.5-year cyclical low at 2689 on the day of the lunar eclipse, September 18, to a new 17-month high of 3358 on Friday. That’s a spectacular gain of nearly 25% in just eight trading days! Prices also soared in sympathy in the Hang Seng stock index of Hong Kong.

Another market that exploded higher last week in response to the escalation of war tensions in the Middle East was Crude Oil. On October 1, Crude was trading near the lows of the year at 66.33. Three days later, on Friday, October 4, Crude Oil was up to 75.57, an increase of nearly 14%. But that was about it for markets that did extremely well last week. Silver performed fairly well, rising to a new yearly high on Friday of 33.22. But then it pulled back and closed nearly a dollar lower. Gold was like stocks, failing to make a new all-time after last week’s high of 2708. But it didn’t fall too hard either, holding its weekly lows around 2650. Bitcoin’s performance was similar. After making a new multi-month high of 66,426 on September 27, it dropped back slightly below 60,000 on Thursday. However, after the positive payroll reports, BTC rallied back above 62,000. It’s entering a time band for a low that will likely determine if a longer-term cycle trough is in or not. If it is, there could easily be new all-time highs by the end of this year.

 Short-Term Geocosmics

Donald Trump has seen a significant boost in his 2024 election prospects. The Economist’s latest election forecast shows that Trump has a 1 in 2 chance of winning the Electoral College in November, and is forecast to win 264 Electoral College votes. Last week, he had a 2 in 5 chance of winning the election, and was forecast to get 257 Electoral College votes. Kamala Harris also has a 1 in 2 chance of winning the election, according to the forecast, and is predicted to win 274 Electoral College votes, down from this time last week, when she was predicted to pick up 281 Electoral College votes.

—Martha McHardy, Newsweek, October 4, 2024.

Toward the end of the debate, Democratic vice presidential candidate Gov. Tim Walz asked Vance to affirm that Trump lost the last election. “Did he lose the 2020 election?” Walz asked. “Tim, I’m focused on the future,” Vance replied before he pivoted to press Walz about censorship on social media. “That is a damning non-answer,” Walz said. “I’m pretty shocked by this. He lost the election. This is not a debate, it’s not anything anywhere other than in Donald Trump’s world.”

—Ryan J. Reilly, “Damning Non-Answer’: Vance Refuses to Acknowledge Trump Lost the 2020 Election,” www.nbcnews.com, October 1, 2024.

Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon have killed at least seven high-ranking Hezbollah commanders and officials in recent weeks, including the militant group’s chief Hassan Nasrallah, who was assassinated in a strike on his underground headquarters in Beirut on Friday. The strikes have dealt the most significant blow to the Iran-backed militant group since its formation in the early 1980s.

—Kara Fox and Tamara Qiblawi, “Israel Has Killed Multiple Hezbollah Leaders,“ www.cnn.com. October 1, 2024.

Rescue crews in parts of the southeastern US were still searching on Friday for those missing as they entered the eighth day since Hurricane Helene roared ashore in Florida and became the deadliest mainland hurricane in the US since Katrina in 2005. The death toll could grow higher, having surpassed 200 on Thursday, while the sheer scale of the devastation from wind and floods has slowed efforts to find many people’s loved ones and also get supplies to stranded communities and restore power to more than 700,000 people.

—Anna Betts, “US South-East Reels From ‘Catastrophic’ Devastation from Hurricane Helene,” www.theguardian.com, October 4, 2024.

The lunar eclipse of September 18 on Neptune brought torrential and damaging rains around the world. At the same time, Saturn retrograde and in semi-square aspect to Pluto has ignited major war activity in the Middle East. This is the first 1/8 of the 32-37 year Saturn/Pluto cycle that occurred on January 12, 2020, which coincided with the U.S. assassination of Iranian General Qasem Soleimani. At the time, many analysts thought that World War III would start. But then the COVID-19 pandemic commenced shortly after and all attention turned to that threat to human lives. The “war” that could have erupted was put on hold. However, the dynamics of Saturn and Pluto are now back and especially strong from September 10 to October 18.

The first 1/8 phase of a cycle is when the issues present at the conjunction return. This time, the Israeli forces eliminated Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah, in a well-coordinated air strike, followed by the elimination of the following top leaders of Hezbollah shortly after. In the study of astrology, assassination attempts are mostly ruled by Pluto and, to some extent, Uranus. Saturn, in a hard aspect to Pluto is an especially dangerous time. You may remember that the attack on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001, occurred under the position of Saturn and Pluto. It pertains to conflicts – a fight –between power and control, where someone has to lose and be paid back (in the mind of at least one of the parties). This is not a dynamic of joyful celebration but rather fear of escalating danger from nature or human activity. In this instance, danger came via both venues: nature and human activity (hurricanes, floods, war, and retaliation).

The danger may continue, but at the same time, a break may also start arising as Jupiter’s theme of hope emerges next week. The week begins with the waxing Moon in Sagittarius (October 6-9), along with Jupiter turning stationary retrograde (October 9), followed by the Sun trine Jupiter on October 13. Markets may like this arrival of Jupiter energy as the rebuilding process gets underway.

Yet we are not done with Pluto, which turns stationary direct on October 11, followed by a Sun/Mars (war conflicts) waxing square on October 14. I would guess that the floods in the southeastern part of the U.S. are receding, and rescue efforts have led to many beautiful stories of human heroism. But I also think Israel’s war effort is still underway with an aim to wipe out the threat of existence it has endured by those who have wished for its destruction over the past 75 years. With both Jupiter and Pluto changing directions and thus highlighted, there could be a huge retaliatory campaign to seriously decapitate Iran’s (and Hezbollah’s and Hamas’) military and nuclear ambitions. Also, Uranus is not done transiting over Algol (23-24 Taurus). In fact, it will station over Algol from late November through early April. Algol is the fixed star related to decapitation (losing one’s head, one’s mind). This might lead some to wonder about the Republican presidential candidate’s state of mind to continue denying the 2020 election, which may be costing him the 2024 election. It seriously wounded an otherwise excellent debate performance by his VP choice.

But the question remains: how do you trade these aspects, these huge contradictory forces all going on at once? Well, war and natural calamities are, in fact, profitable for many companies. They support higher energy prices. They can also offer support to any commodity markets that benefit from a sense of crisis, such as precious metals and foods (like Wheat). With Saturn and Pluto in hard aspect, this is a crisis period and it favors commodities. However, it doesn’t necessarily lead to a collapse in equity markets, as one might assume. Their patterns are still bullish for the moment, even as the threat of an escalating war rages on.

 ANNOUNCEMENTS

 NOTE 1: LAST MONTH TO LOCK IN THE BEST SUBSCRIPTION RATES!!! THE “ANNUAL MMA FORECAST 2025 PRE-PUBLICATION SALE” is now underway!!!! The sale will run through October 31 and includes our once-a-year discounts on both the annual Forecast book and MMA subscription reports ~

During this pre-order period, the FORECAST 2025 print edition is available at the discounted rate of $55, and the eBook version is available for $45. AND this is also when we offer the best deal on MMA subscription reports! Save 10% off any subscription ($275+) with the purchase of Forecast 2025. For instance, you can save over $300 on a yearly subscription to the MMA Daily Report, which additionally includes the full weekly report (two reports in one!). After the pre-order event ends on November 1, the retail price of the Forecast 2025 print edition increases to $66, the eBook price increases to $55, and the subscription reports return to their normal prices. ORDER NOW AND SAVE BIG BUCKS!

MMA is also offering a special “bundle” discount rate for those who wish to order both the eBook and printed editions of Forecast 2025 for $75. The eBook usually comes out 1-2 weeks before the print edition and avoids delays caused by the postal system, especially for those who live overseas. Yet many readers prefer the print edition, so ordering both via the Forecast 2025 Bundle makes sense. You will receive the Forecast 2025 eBook on December 15, and the print copy will be mailed in mid-December.

MMA’s annual Forecast book is an astrological-themed almanac that has served students of cycles and markets since 1976. It provides a cyclical outlook of the collective world psychology, national economy, geopolitical overview, socio-cultural trends, weather and natural calamities potentials, as well as financial market projections for the U.S. stock market, the U.S. Treasury market, interest rates, Gold and Silver, currencies (the Euro, British Pound, Swiss Franc, and Japanese Yen), Bitcoin, Crude Oil, and Grain markets. Its valuable market timing forecasts are based on the historical correlation of market cycles overlapping with geocosmic planetary cycles. Additionally, it provides the three-star critical reversal dates for each market for the year, which have an 80+% accuracy over the years to trading cycle highs and lows when given an orb of three trading days. The book is approximately 200 pages, 8.5″ x 11″, and has set the standard for all astrological almanacs written today.

The scorecard for Forecast 2024, as of August 15, 2024, is now available for viewing by clicking here.

To pre-order Forecast 2025 now, please click here.

 NOTE 2: YOUR PERSONAL “JUPITER REPORT — YOUR MOMENTS OF OPPORTUNITY” IS NOW OUT!!! This newest product, just released last week, has been created by Raymond Merriman. It is a 30-40 page report that all traders (and even non-traders) will find to be of great value. It identifies the times during the year when Jupiter transits are highlighted to your natal chart. It delineates the meaning of Jupiter’s transits to your natal planets and angles over a 14-month period (including one month before your order and one month after the year ends). Why is this valuable? Because transits of Jupiter identify special opportunities for financial gains, success in one’s career and social life, popularity, and good fortune (luck) when under harmonious aspects and used correctly. However, they can also indicate periods of increased misjudgments leading to losses if Jupiter is afflicted and one is not properly prepared. As an added bonus, each transit is ranked from –3 to +3 in terms of favorability for trading. Traders may find this most valuable! Would you like to know when you are most prone to trading successes or potential misjudgments and losses? You betcha! Cost for your 14-month Jupiter Report is $69.00. Click here to order!!!

 NOTE 3: THE RECORDINGS OF THE MMA 2024 INVESTMENT RETREAT ARE NOW AVAILABLE!

 The MMA 2024 Investment Retreat was incredible – clearly our best ever. Every long-term market presentation delivered on our promise to provide exceptional new research, strategies, and concrete investment steps to build wealth within the time band for long-term cycle bottoms due this decade. Special attention was given to the stock markets of the USA, Germany, and Hong Kong, plus Gold, Silver, Copper, Bitcoin, Wheat, Crude Oil, Real Estate, and interest rates. At the end of each day, there were highly informative interactions between the presenters and the audience.

Presenters included Raymond Merriman (USA), Gianni Di Poce (USA), Ulric Aspegrén (Switzerland), Pouyan Zolfagharnia (UK), Irma Schogt (Netherlands), Rita Perea (USA), Wyatt Fellows (USA), plus special guest speakers Claude Weiss (Switzerland), Aleksandar Imsiragic (Serbia) and Christeen Skinner (UK).

The cost for the recordings of this 3-daty event is $3500. There is a 10% discount for subscribers of MMA Daily or Weekly reports or one-year monthly reports.

MMA Investment Retreat Recording link to purchase: https://www.mmacycles.com/product/mma-2024-investment-retreat/  

 NOTE 4: The MMA Solar-Lunar App will now offer reversal signals on the NASDAQ starting last week to all subscribers! Now, there will be four markets with daily weighted values provided, which include DJIA, NASDAQ, Gold, and Silver. To commemorate the launch of the new NASDAQ feature, we are offering a one-month special rate of $24.99 to all new and existing subscribers (the normal rate is $39.99/mo), starting October 1 and ending October 31.

This app is an ideal tool to have in your back pocket if you are a short-term swing trader looking for high-probability dates that identify isolated lows and highs in the DJIA, Gold, or Silver markets. Since it was first introduced three months ago, it has been uncannily accurate in identifying swing lows and highs in each market. It is available only on Apple products (iPhone and iPad) at this time, although we are getting close to developing it on Android phones, too, maybe by the end of this year.

How does it work? Based on historical frequencies, the higher the weighted value, the greater the probability of a swing trade reversal for the next 1-7 trading days (usually 2-5 days). Built into the app are instructions for ideal setups and explanatory FAQs. It’s pretty amazing!

P.S. The MMA Solar/Lunar App gives each market an average of one trade per week every five trading days. The Solar/Lunar App is designed for “swing trades” looking for 2-5% moves from isolated lows or highs. If you like active trading signals based on solar/lunar combinations, the MMA App is for you!

To learn more about the MMA App, click here. To order the app, go to Apple’s App Store and type in Merriman Solar/Lunar Reversals.

 NOTE 5: Ray Merriman will present his “Election 2024 Forecast” for the Tucson Astrologers Guild on October 12, 1:00-4:00 PM (MST). Attendance may be in person or via Zoom. In this presentation, Merriman will discuss his outlook for the U.S. and the world based on the forthcoming “Aries Vortex.” He will then present his delineation and studies on the two candidates for U.S. President (Kamala Harris and Donald Trump), the relationship of their chart to the U.S. chart, historical cycles of the U.S. election relative to the major transiting aspects underway now, the Federal Reserve Board chart and what it says about the next president, and the relationship of stock market cycles correlated to the party in office and what it projects for this election cycle (is it a crash and soaring to new highs?). The cost is only $35, and thus as good a price as one will ever have for a 3-hour workshop with Merriman. For details and registration, please click here!. Or email info@tucsonastrologersguild.net. Or call 520-216-0217

 Note 6: 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 previous week’s market activity and offers a preview of the geocosmic signatures in effect for the coming week and beyond. Last week’s interview was with MMTA graduate and psychological trading coach Rita Perea, who will be a speaker at the MMA Investment Retreat in Lake Bled from September 19-22.

NOTE 7: MMA’s Free Weekly Column Podcast Is Available on SPOTIFY, APPLE, and AMAZON! Now you can listen to a podcast of this weekly column by Thomas Miller on Saturdays! Thomas has an excellent voice and brings the weekly column to life in a personable and, at times, humorous fashion. Just follow Merriman Market Analyst on Spotify or Apple to listen to all our episodes. A new podcast episode will be released every weekend. This is a FREE service and is available to everyone. Check out our podcasts on Apple, Spotify, and Amazon Music. It makes for great listening!

EVENTS

October 12, 1:00-4:00 PM (MST), Ray Merriman presents his Election 2024 Forecast for the Tucson Astrologers Guild. Attendance may be in person or via Zoom. Cost is only $35, which is as good a price as one will ever have for a 3-hour workshop with Merriman. Click here for details and registration.

March 7-9, 2025: Cosmic Patterns Inc. presents its Convergence 2025 conference in Orlando, Florida. This will be one of the top astrological conferences of 2025 and will include a track on “Research and Financial Markets.” MMA market analysts Ray Merriman, Gianni Di Poce, Pouyan Zolfagharnia, Ulric Aspegrén, and Wiebke Held will speak, along with well-known financial astrologer Christeen Skinner of the U.K. There will also be several well-known professional astrologers speaking, including Lynn Bell, Charlotte Benson, Öner Döşer, Pam Gallagher, Demetra George, Aleksandar Imsiragic, Dr. Lea Imsiragic, Rick Levine, Darri Low Murphy, Anne Ortelee, Joni Patry, Kathy Rose, Gisele Terry, and Fei Cochrane. For further information, please go to https://cosmicpatternsconference.com/. You can also hear and read about this exciting gathering on YouTube (click here). SIGN UP NOW for the best rate before the next cutoff date.

 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.