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 “Oil, U.S. Treasuries, and gold prices rose on Friday, with crude soaring nearly 6%, on safe-haven buying driven by the escalating Middle East conflict as Israel urged civilians to leave the northern Gaza Strip. – Caroline Valetkevitch, “Oil, Treasuries, Gold Prices Jump Amid Mideast Fears,” Reuters, October 13, 2023.

 The war in Ukraine, along with the unprecedented attacks in Israel by Palestinian militant group Hamas last weekend, may have “far-reaching impacts on energy and food markets, global trade and geopolitical relationships,” Dimon said in a statement accompanying the bank’s third-quarter earnings release. “This may be the most dangerous time the world has seen in decades,” Jamie Dimon said. – Megan Henney, “JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon warns: ‘This May be the Most Dangerous Time the World has seen in Decades’: Sounds Alarm over Economic Outlook Amid Israel-Hamas War,” www.foxbusiness.com, October 13, 2023.

Continue reading… MMA FREE WEEKLY COLUMN FOR THE WEEK BEGINNING OCTOBER 16, 2023 ©

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Stocks rallied Friday even after the release of stronger-than-expected U.S. jobs data and a pop in Treasury yields. The U.S. economy added 336,000 jobs in September, the Labor Department said. Economists polled by Dow Jones expected 170,000 jobs. Stocks posted a stunning turnaround on Friday, after initially falling on the stronger-than-expected jobs report. At its session low, the Dow had fallen as much as 272 points; it surged by more than 400 points at the height of the rally. – Sarah Min and Hakyung Kim, “Dow Soars Nearly 300 Points Friday After Hot Jobs Report,” October 6, 2023, www.cnbc.com.

 Government! Three-fourths parasitic and the other fourth stupid fumbling. – Robert Heinlein, “Stranger in a Strange Land,” G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 1961.

Members of the US Congress are now incapable of doing anything. Financial markets are not surprised that members of the US Congress are incapable of doing anything. Investors only care whether House Republicans can get the extreme wing under control long enough to elect a speaker before the next government shutdown in mid-November. Dr. Paul Donovan, “US Politicians are Incapable of Doing Anything,” UBS Morning Comment, October 4, 2023.

Continue reading… MMA FREE WEEKLY COLUMN FOR THE WEEK BEGINNING OCTOBER 9, 2023 ©

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 The Dow Jones Industrial Average retreated on Friday as investors followed the latest news about a potential government shutdown and ended what has been a tough month for stocks. – Alex Harring, Sarah Min, and Pia Singh, “S&P 500 and Nasdaq Wrap Worst Month in 2023,” www.cnbc.com, September 29, 2023.

This was the week that Venus made its third and final square to Uranus (Friday, September 29). One of the outcomes of a hard aspect between Venus and Uranus can be either a breakout of multi-month support/resistance, or a reversal. In this passage, it is coinciding with breakouts so far. Last week witnessed several global stock indices break one support after another. The same happened with Gold, which fell to a low of 1862.30 on Friday, its lowest price since early March.

Continue reading… MMA FREE WEEKLY COLUMN FOR THE WEEK BEGINNING OCTOBER 2, 2023 ©

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 On Wednesday, Federal Reserve officials surprised markets by signaling interest rates won’t fall as much as previously planned. The tweak might be more important than it looks. In their projections and commentary, some officials hint that rates might be higher not just for longer, but forever. – Greg Ip, “Higher Rates Not Just for Longer – Maybe Forever,” Wall Street Journal, September 22, 2023.

The United Auto Workers is expanding strikes to 38 parts and distribution locations across 20 states, targeting General Motors and Stellantis, UAW President Shawn Fain said Friday morning. The union will not initiate additional strikes at Ford Motor, as the company has proven it’s “serious about reaching a deal,” Fain said. – Michael Wayland, “UAW Targets 38 Facilities at GM and Stellantis for Expanded Strikes,” www.cnbc.com, September 22, 2023.

Continue reading… MMA FREE WEEKLY COLUMN FOR THE WEEK BEGINNING SEPTEMBER 25, 2023 ©

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 The United Auto Workers officially went on strike against the “Big Three” Detroit automakers early Friday, potentially imperiling an already-fragile U.S. economy. An extended work stoppage risks causing billions in damage to the economy…. Still, the strikes are limited in scope so far as the UAW seeks to preserve its $825 million strike fund, which would support a walkout for about 11 weeks by the 146,000 union members. – Megan Henney, “UAW strike Could Slam the US Economy,” www.foxbusiness.com, September 15, 2023.

“It’s the one constant in life. If you build something worth having, someone’s going to try to take it.” ­– Kevin Costner as John Dutton, in “Yellowstone,” Series 3, Paramount Pictures.

Continue reading… MMA FREE WEEKLY COLUMN FOR THE WEEK BEGINNING SEPTEMBER 18, 2023 ©

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 Revisions to economic data are widespread and normal. But occasionally the revisions are so big that they upend our shared understanding of what’s going on. The problem isn’t new, but it’s getting worse. Timely data is typically based on surveys, and even companies can’t be bothered to fill in surveys any more. Early reporting of figures that are later revised away can send investors in entirely the wrong direction. It can embed an understanding of the economy that takes a long time to be corrected. At worst it can lead to the misallocation of capital and influence government policy or interest rates. – James Mackintosh, “Economic Data Lead Markets and Governments Astray,” Wall Street Journal, September 8, 2023.

North Korea-linked hackers have stolen hundreds of millions of crypto to fund the regime’s nuclear weapons programs, research shows. “In recent years, there has been a marked rise in the size and scale of cyber-attacks against cryptocurrency-related businesses by North Korea,” said TRM Labs in a June discussion with North Korea experts. – Sheila Chiang, “North Korean Hackers Have Allegedly Stolen Hundreds of Millions in Crypto to Fund Nuclear Programs,” www.cnbc.com, September 6, 2023.

Continue reading… MMA FREE WEEKLY COLUMN FOR THE WEEK BEGINNING SEPTEMBER 11, 2023 ©

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NOTE: U.S. markets are closed this Monday, September 4, in observance of the Labor Day holiday.

 REVIEW AND PREVIEW

 Hiring cooled this summer and unemployment rose in August, signs the labor market is moderating in the face of high interest rates. U.S. employers added 187,000 jobs last month, while payrolls in June and July were revised down a combined 110,000. The monthly gain in August was well less than the average pace over the prior year, and far below the roughly 400,000 average monthly gain in 2022. The unemployment rate was 3.8% last month, up from 3.5% in July. Gwynn Guilford, ”Job Gains Eased in Summer Months, Unemployment Increased in August,” Wall Street Journal, September 1, 2023.

Imagine the planets as ships at sea. Imagine their movement through the heavens, as seen from earth (geocentric), as waves on the sea. There are eight planets in our solar system, as seen from Earth (not counting the Earth). At various times, each planet will appear to be going backwards through the heavens, which is known as its retrograde cycle. Six of the planets go retrograde at least once during the year. Venus and Mars will do so once every 19 or 26 months, respectively, while Mercury will go retrograde every 88 days or 3-4 times/year. It is not uncommon to see 1-3 planets retrograde at one time. Four is not too unusual. Five or more is considered a lot. Between August 28 through September 3, six planets will be retrograde. On September 3, Venus will turn direct, dropping it back to five. However, the next day, September 4, Jupiter will turn retrograde, making it six planets retrograde once again until September 15, when Mercury turns direct.

Continue reading… MMA FREE WEEKLY COLUMN FOR THE WEEK BEGINNING SEPTEMBER 4, 2023 ©

NOTE: U.S. financial markets will be closed for half a day on Monday and all day on Tuesday in observance of the July 4 Independence Day holiday.

 REVIEW AND PREVIEW

 (Fed Chair Jerome) Powell has signaled that officials are prepared to raise rates at the Fed’s July 25-26 meeting after holding them steady at their meeting earlier this month. “Our commitment isn’t to a particular number of rate hikes; it is to a stance of policy that’s sufficiently restrictive to bring inflation down to 2%,” Powell said. Nick Timiraos, “Jerome Powell Says Next Phase of Rate Rises Will Be Harder to Predict,” June 29, 2023, Wall Street Journal.

 The US decision to freeze Russian foreign exchange reserves is, to this writer, the most momentous decision in international finance since Richard Nixon broke the US dollar’s link with gold in 1971. The long-term consequences of that decision could prove profound consequences, as hinted at by the record central bank buying of gold last year, which has continued into the first quarter of this year – Christopher Wood, Grizzle Research and Quant, June 30, 2023.

The pre-holiday market week was in a celebratory mood for the U.S. and most of the other world stock indices. This was not surprising following the low on Monday, June 26, as Mars squared Uranus, touching off the Mercury/Pluto square in the New York Stock Exchange chart as discussed in last week’s column as a time for a low. This was followed by Neptune turning retrograde on Friday, June 30, a time that often coincides with a state of irrational exuberance. Even though the Fed announced it would likely hike rates soon, which is the policy that led to the large declines of 2022, investors seemed not to care this time around. Perhaps they no longer trust the Fed’s guidance since they have changed their narrative so many times in the last 18 months. That would certainly fit the nature of Neptune.

The path of Gold and Silver was opposite to that of equities until Friday. Gold fell to a new three-month low on our June 29 three-star CRD (geocosmic critical reversal date). But Silver held its low of the prior week for a case of intermarket bullish divergence. Both rallied nicely with Friday’s “Sagittarius Factor” after starting out the day lower. Bitcoin re-tested its yearly high on Friday, but then had a sharp pullback of nearly $2000 when the SEC denied filings from large companies to offer an ETF on the spot Bitcoin market as inadequate. However, the filings can be re-submitted with more complete information. Crude Oil continued to languish near the 70.00 mark, but did in fact, rally the last three days of the week as Neptune, which co-rules this market, turned retrograde on Friday.

SHORT-TERM GEOCOSMICS

Donald Trump vs. Joe Biden—the seemingly inevitable matchup—dramatizes a massive failure: Whoever wins, the country loses. What genius invented this election? – Lance Morrow, “The 2024 Presidential Race Barrels Towards the Rapids,” June 29, 2023, Wall Street Journal.

The holiday week will begin with a Venus/Uranus square on July 2, the first of three that will unfold between now and September 29 due to the retrograde motion of Venus starting July 22. This suggests a very interesting summer, for both Venus retrograde and Venus square Uranus (in the money sign of Taurus) indicate suddenly changing central bank policies that can affect interest rate sensitive markets like Treasuries and currencies. In fact, they can also correspond to sudden reversals in equity, Copper, Corn, and Soybean prices as well. It looks like this may be a summer of unusually high volatility.

After the first Venus/Uranus passage this weekend, along with a Full Moon on Monday, July 3, the geocosmic climate becomes quiet until July 20-22. And then the next big bang erupts as Mars opposes Saturn (war-like and hot), the Sun opposes Pluto (possible threats and danger to crops and life), Jupiter semi-squares Neptune (floods and more irrational enthusiasm or panic), and the biggest bang of them all, Venus turns retrograde. It’s all about money and love, and … why can’t we all get along? Why can’t we be given choices we want instead of only choices we don’t want? Be wary of people who are jealous in matters of love and envious of others who have earned money and success.

LONGER-TERM THOUGHTS

The war, Mr. Prigozhin said, was launched under false premises. Ukraine wasn’t the aggressor. President Volodymyr Zelensky wanted agreements. Russia’s Defense Ministry “is trying to deceive society and the president and tell us a story about how there was crazy aggression from Ukraine, and that they were planning to attack us with the whole of NATO.” This was “a beautiful story.” But “the special operation was started for different reasons”—chiefly to enrich the oligarchs and the ruling elite. “The task was to divide material assets” in Ukraine. – Peggy Noonan, “What Will Prigozhin’s Rebellion Mean?” June 29, 2023, Wall Street Journal.

Jimmy Carter lost the 1980 general election by a landslide to Ronald Reagan, so it’s difficult to understand why Joe Biden continues to follow the Carter ‘malaise’ playbook today. – Mike Watson, “Biden Follows Jimmy Carter’s Failed Middle East Model,” June 28, 2023, Wall Street Journal.

Last week was the aftermath of an incredible previous week which witnessed the one-day surprising mutiny of the Wagner group against the Russian government. The revolt shocked Russia’s leaders because the group advanced unimpeded on its march towards Moscow before suddenly deciding to stand down. What was that about? Although the rebellion was short-lived, it exposed major weaknesses in Putin’s power to protect the country from invasion. Now many geopolitical analysts are calling this the beginning of the end of Putin’s reign of terror. His days may be numbered.

The possibility of an implosion in Russian governance should come as no surprise to readers of these reports and the annual Forecast books over the past few years, and in particular, the Forecast 2023 Book. You read it here first how the 36-year Saturn/Neptune conjunction of February 2026 has an uncanny correlation to the end of Russian governance as it was known prior to that aspect. You also read it here first, in 2020, that the Joe Biden presidency (and his economy) would closely resemble that of Jimmy Carter. Both were elected during the 45-year Saturn/Uranus waning square aspect. You also read it here first that there would be a modern-day renaissance starting around this time (2023-2026), led by inventions and innovations in technology and communications as denoted by Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto all entering new signs similar to what transpired during the Italian and European renaissance of the 15^th century. This, too, was covered in great detail in Forecast 2023, but originally presented in the 2020-2022 books. It just takes a while for the rest of the world and the news to catch up with our understanding of the cosmos and its correlations with historical events and trends.

In the past, we have given different names to these rare periods when long-term geocosmic cycles have unfolded that we think will have a profound, transformational influence on human activity as they did in the past. We coined the phrase “The Capricorn Climax” in the mid-1980s to describe the 1988-1993 period when Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Lunar North Node all conjoined in the sign of Capricorn. That coincided with the fall of Soviet Communism, the Berlin Wall, and the transition of the way the world conducted business, moving from brick-and-mortar retail shopping to the world of online transactions.

As we left that period in the mid-1990s, we pointed our readers to the next powerful configuration involving the outer planets of 2008-2015, a period we coined as “The Cardinal Climax,” for Saturn, Uranus, and Pluto would all be entering cardinal signs (along with Jupiter and Saturn too), forming a powerful cardinal T-square with one another for the first time since the Great Depression. Indeed, it was another economic depression, now called the “Great Recession” of 2008-2011, when many companies and even nations (like Greece) went bankrupt or suffered credit downgrades. The current worldwide debt crisis exploded then under the experimental policies of central banks known as QE (quantitative easing) and ZIRP (zero interest rate policies), and out-of-control fiscal (stimulus) spending by many governments of the world, including the U.S.

And now we are headed into another powerful geocosmic configuration involving the major outer planets. We will henceforth refer to this as the “Aries Vortex.” In February 2026, Saturn and Neptune will both enter Aries in a powerful conjunction aspect at the “world universal degree” of zero Aries. Additionally, Uranus will form a trine Pluto from Gemini and Aquarius, respectively, and their midpoint will be near the zero Aries point. Thus, this is not only a Saturn/Neptune conjunction and Uranus/Pluto trine but also a double sextile aspect between Saturn/Neptune to both Uranus and Pluto. It will look like an arrow with the zero Aries point at the tip, hence acting like a cosmic vortex attracting a powerful energy that brings together the principles of Saturn/Neptune and Uranus/Pluto. According to colleague and Astro researcher Daniel Gordon, who initiated the discussion on creating a name for this cosmic event, nothing like this has happened before. Yes, there are remarkable similarities to the mid-1400s and the European renaissances, but nothing involving the four outermost planets sharing the universal degree of zero Aries, which represents the end and beginning of the astrological signs.

Even though it is not exact until early 2026, the themes of this unusually powerful geocosmic combination are already underway as of December 21, 2020, when Jupiter and Saturn began the 160-year “Air Epoch” (or the “New Aira,” a term coined by colleague Kat Powell) with their conjunction at 0° Aquarius. This was then followed by the ingress of Pluto into Aquarius (the same 0°) on March 23, 2023.

You can see and feel it starting to unfold now. The direction of humanity is undergoing an enormous change of direction, and we are not quite sure exactly where it will end up, typical of Saturn/Neptune. But we experientially know it is happening. We are aware of the dangers as well as the hopes this Aries Vortex poses. We were (and are) prepared for it to happen via our understanding of the correlation of geocosmic cycles to cycles in human activity. After all, this awareness and understanding is the real value of astrology to society.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

 NOTE 1: The Annual Mid-Year 2023 Webinar with Raymond Merriman and MMA Analysts. Save the Date! July 16, 2023, at 12 PM EDT is our annual Mid-Year Webinar. This broadcast will address themes from this year’s Forecast 2023 Book, with updates on the U.S. stock market, Gold, and Bitcoin by Ray; Crude Oil, T-Notes and Euro by Gianni Di Poce; Copper by Matthieu Kaiser; and Soybeans by Wyatt Fellows. Cost is $55.00, and includes access to the live presentation via Zoom, the slides of the presentation, plus the video recording of the live event 24 hours after the presentation. 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 live, the video recording will be available the following day. To register, click here.

 NOTE 2: We have posted the first video of MMA’s new series on “Casual Cosmic Conversations” with Ray Merriman and Antonia Langsdorf-Merriman, being interviewed on current news events by MMA Managing Director (and Ray’s daughter) Alie Schneider. This 20-minute video features their take on the recent Titan submersible tragedy, the new world trends towards a shorter work week and expensive danger-laden adventures, the recent explosion in AI interest as the beginning stage of the “Aries Vortex” cosmic configuration approaching in February 2026 (Saturn/Neptune conjunction at the midpoint of the Uranus/Pluto trine) – or the “Communication Revolution and Technological Renaissance” that is changing our lives. To view our first episode of “Casual Cosmic Conversations,” please click here.

 NOTE 3: THE JUNE ISSUE OF THE MMA Monthly Cycles Report Plus+, edited by Pouyan Zolfagharnia, was issued last week. This market letter is a very popular addition to the MMA Cycles Report (less technical, more visual, high-quality analysis and update 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. The cost for a monthly copy of both reports is $55. That will give you both the most recent June copy of the MMA Cycles Report and the June MMA Cycles Report Plus+ addendum coming out this week. For further information and ordering instructions, please click here.

 NOTE 4: The MMA Monthly Grain Report by MMTA Graduate Wyatt Fellows was also issued last week. This is an exceptional report by a top MMTA graduate who runs a large family-owned farm operation. Wyatt knows the farming business and grain markets from both a cyclical and fundamental point of view. This report is an in-depth look at long-and short-term cycles in Corn, Wheat, Soybeans, and Cotton. The MMA Monthly Grain Report has been extremely accurate in forecasting trends, turning points, and price targets. If you trade grains or are in the farming business and wish accurate timing and understanding of when to hedge your crop, this report is not to be missed! To order, click here.

 NOTE 5: SUBSCRIBE TO MMA’S WEEKLY YouTube show, Geocosmic Week in Review and Look Ahead. Each 5-15 minute FREE episode reviews market activity of the past week and offers a preview of the geocosmic signatures in effect for the next week and beyond. You may subscribe to MMA’s YouTube Channel today at no cost and get alerted when a new weekly episode is released! To view this week’s MMA YouTube episode, click here.

NOTE 6: Now you can listen to a podcast or broadcast of this weekly column by Thomas Miller. The Free Weekly Forecast Podcast is now available on Saturday. Just follow Merriman Market Analyst Spotify to listen to all our episodes. New Podcast episodes will be released every weekend. This is a FREE service and is available to everyone. Checkout out our Podcasts on Apple, Spotify, MMA- Merriman Market Analyst Podcast and on YouTube, Merriman Market Analyst. It makes for great listening!

EVENTS

JULY 16: 12:00 PM EDT: The Annual Mid-Year Market Update Webinar with Raymond Merriman and Team. Save the Date! Starts at 12 PM EDT, which is 5:00 PM GMT, 6:00 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 MMA’s annual Mid-Year Financial Markets Update Webinar. This broadcast will address the following points:

• The forthcoming Pre-Presidential Election Year Trough in stocks

• The November 18 Sun/Mars conjunction in Scorpio and its correlation to trends in U.S. stock markets and Gold
• Has Gold’s (and Silver’s) long-term cycle topped out or is there another new high ahead?
• How high can Crude Oil and Bitcoin go?
• How low can the Euro, Soybeans, T-Notes and Copper fall – and when?
• What can we expect with Venus turning retrograde July 22?
• What are the other major reversal periods for trading this year?

The cost is $55.00, and includes access to the live presentation via Zoom, the slides of the presentation, plus the video recording of the live event 24 hours after the presentation. 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 live, the video recording will be available the following day. To register, click here.

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.

REVIEW AND PREVIEW

 U.S. stocks fell Friday with the S&P 500 index on track for its worst week since the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank in March, suggesting the three-month rally may be coming to an end. “U.S. Stocks Fall to Cap Off Worst Week Since March,” June 23, 2023,  www.marketwatch.com.

Bitcoin hit its highest level in a year amid renewed fervor for digital assets despite a slew of challenges for the industry. – Vildana Haljic, “Bitcoin Hits Highest in a Year as Crypto Rebounds From Scandals,” June 23, 2023, Yahoo Finance, www.yahoo.com.

What an exciting, strange, and tragic week that just ended. And it all started right after Saturn turned retrograde and the New Moon in Gemini squared Neptune the previous weekend, June 16-19, an MMA two-star geocosmic critical reversal date.

It was exciting because Bitcoin started another impressive rally that thrust this “royalty” of the digital currency era to new yearly highs, when just seven months ago, it was engulfed in a scandal and many were forecasting its imminent demise. Neptune rules scandals. It was strange because Yevgeny Prigozhin, head of the Wagner mercenary militia that has been waging the heaviest brunt of the Russian war on Ukraine, lashed out at Russian military leaders, claiming that they launched strikes on his training camps. He even accused the Russian Armed Forces Chief of Staff of leading Russia into war under a false narrative. False narrative – shades of Neptune! It was tragic (Saturn rules loss) because the Titan submersible was on a mission to visit the legendary (Saturn) Titanic luxury cruise liner that sunk (Neptune) over 100 years ago. It disappeared (Neptune), and the lives of all those on board appear to have perished (Saturn with Pluto moving back into Saturn’s ruling sign of Capricorn).

Continue reading… MMA FREE WEEKLY COLUMN FOR THE WEEK BEGINNING JUNE 26, 2023 ©

REVIEW AND PREVIEW

 The Federal Reserve did not change interest rates (it was not a skip, according to Fed Chair Powell). The press conference presumably did intend to sound hawkish, and presumably did not intend to sound economically incoherent. The fabled “dot plots” signaled two rate hikes—given how these are prepared; they are unlikely to be a coordinated Fed message. Powell said pausing allowed the Fed to get more information before making decisions. At a time when data is less reliable, pausing to reflect should be a way of life for policy makers, not a revelation at the eleventh hour.­ Dr. Paul Donovan, “Not the Fed’s Finest Hour,” UBS Morning Audio Comment, June 15, 2023.

In English, redux describes things that have been brought back—metaphorically, that is. For example, if the relationship between two nations resembles that of the United States and the Soviet Union in the late 20th century, one might call the situation a “Cold War redux.” Dictionary, www.merriman-webster.com.

Things are looking up for global equity markets after their strong showing last week. Some, like the German DAX, soared to a new all-time high on Friday. Others, like the Indian NIFTY index, are testing their all-time highs. The Japanese Nikkei exploded to multi-decade highs, while other indices look poised to do the same shortly.

However, this week finds the powerful ringed planet, Saturn, turning retrograde at the same time it forms a favorable sextile aspect with Jupiter, the largest planet in the solar system. Could it be that the elusive sound of a gong everyone is looking for to announce the top of the global economy and stock markets is nearby? It’s always a possibility, and the sentiment is surely bullish, so very few are expecting it. But these are the conditions under which tops form, and the cosmic signatures (mid-June through late July) give the “gong show redux” added gravitas.

In other markets the Dollar is back above the 140 mark against the Yen, but strangely enough the Euro is testing its yearly high against the U.S. Dollar. It’s not the Dollar that is the leader, but rather it is the buffer between other currencies, some of which are rising and others falling. This is causing a mixed impact on Gold and Silver. Gold fell to a new cycle low in the August contract when it fell to 1936 on Thursday before rising again to 1980 the very next day. Silver did not make a new cycle low on Thursday’s decline back to 23.27, but by Friday, it too was up nicely to a high of 24.29. Bitcoin, like Gold, also fell to a new cycle low on Thursday, and then bounced back smartly by over $1700 by Friday.

Continue reading… MMA FREE WEEKLY COLUMN FOR THE WEEK BEGINNING JUNE 19, 2023 ©