Trump's actions under scrutiny in new Jan 6 commission testimony

(28 June 2022) It's been a tough week for former President Donald J. Trump.  Today's Congressional testimony in the January 6 commission highlighted Trump's angry and agitated behavior that day in which he tried to take the wheel of the presidential limo in order to drive towards the ongoing riot at the Capitol.  While Trump has dismissed the White House staffer's testimony as untrue, it nonetheless creates bad optics for the former president in the lead-up to the midterm elections in November. 

Of course, it is unclear how politically relevant the commission's findings will be in November given the more current concerns such as the Supreme Court's abortion ruling, surging inflation and the geopolitical dangers of the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.   But in the short term, the House hearings are proving to be a big negative for the GOP as they try to deflect and distract attention away from the more alarming and unsavory aspects of the January 6 events.  

We can see Trump's compromised situation in his horoscope.  Today's testimony occurred as both Mars and Pluto formed hard aspects to his Venus-Saturn conjunction in the 12th house.  This is a very difficult alignment.  Pluto has been opposing Trump's Venus-Saturn conjunction for several months and represents powerful, coercive forces that seek to undermine his status.  Venus is the ruler of the 10th house of career and status and it is placed in the 12th house of concealment and loss. 

The faster-moving Mars influence is more specific to this week's testimony and reflects the attack (Mars) on his status (Venus).  The rest of the week may well bring additional embarrassments for Trump since the Mars square to Venus will tighten.  On Thursday, the Moon-Mars-Pluto t-square will hit his Venus very closely indeed.  I would think that Trump's reputation could take a further beating this week. 

Zooming out a bit, Trump's larger problem is that he is in the midst of tense aspects from two different outer planets.  Pluto will remain in opposition to his Saturn and Venus throughout this year and into 2023.  This will make it more difficult for him to move ahead and realize his goals for the next 12-18 months.   In addition, transiting Neptune (1 Pisces) is square to his Sun (29 Taurus).  A Neptune-Sun square is generally regarded as an unwelcome influence that saps vitality and creates confusion, deception and a loss of life direction. 

Interestingly, Neptune stationed retrograde today and thus became more powerful in its damaging effects on Trump's Sun.  Slow-moving Neptune will remain in a fairly close square aspect with Trump's Sun for the rest of 2022.  This suggests that his reputation will stay tarnished for a while longer and political influence is likely to remain in a weakened state. 

But Trump's status and influence could begin to recover in 2023 as Neptune will move out of alignment with the Sun.   As it happens, this will coincide with the usual campaign launch dates for 2024 presidential election.  As incredible as it seems, Trump's chart actually has some very strong features for November 2024 --  stationary Jupiter on his Sun, and Uranus on his Midheaven (10th house cusp) to name just two obvious ones.  While I haven't fully analyzed his chances of winning a second term, his chart definitely warrants further investigation.   More to come on that front in the weeks and months ahead.


Weekly Market Forecast

Stocks are continuing to move in a sideways chop in recent days as inflation concerns are keeping interest rates elevated.  US markets extended their bounce last week but look less bullish this week after today's sell-off.  Last week I thought stocks would be vulnerable to declines around the time of the Mars-Saturn-Rahu alignment from about June 23 to June 27.  That forecast missed the mark somewhat as stocks were surprisingly bullish on Thursday and Friday and only finally declined today -- one day after the exact Mars-Saturn aspect.  That is always the challenge with astrology -- while we can measure the planetary geometry exactly, the timing the manifestation of a planet's effects requires more interpretation. 

Even though Mars is just now moving past its exact aspect from Saturn, it still within range and thus makes the market vulnerable to further downside.  Also, Mars is due to form a 90 degree alignment with Pluto on Thursday and Friday.  This suggests that stocks could stay under pressure for a few more days yet.  As I noted last week, the transit outlook in the NYSE chart still looks difficult and is unlikely to see substantial recovery anytime soon.  Saturn (0 Aquarius) will stay in close 60-degree aspect to the natal Moon (28 Pisces) well into July while transiting Rahu (27 Aries) aspects natal Mars (27 Leo).  Neither of these are considered bullish influences. 


For more details, check out my weekly subscriber newsletter which is published every Saturday afternoon (EST).   In addition to reviewing the key planetary and technical influences on US and Indian stocks for the short and medium term, I also provide an astrological analysis of potential upcoming moves in currencies, gold and oil.

 

 

Powell reaffirms the Fed's commitment to fight inflation

 

(22 June 2022)  Jerome Powell was in the hot seat today as the beleaguered Fed Chair tried to defend his record in an appearance at the Senate Banking committee.  While the Fed has come under a lot of criticism in recent months for being behind the curve and waiting too long to raise interest rates, Powell reaffirmed his intention to reduce inflation even if it means pushing the economy into recession.  The hawkish testimony saw stocks stage a midday reversal, finishing slightly lower by the close.

Investors are now seemingly trapped between two equally bad outcomes -- the prospect of runaway inflation that acts as a drag on consumer spending and recession, which brings more unemployment and a decline in economic activity.   While bond yields have come off their recent highs in anticipation of an imminent peak in inflation, Powell's comments are a reflection that recession fears are growing, even if the direct result of the Fed's aggressive rate hikes. 

Stocks are trying to break their losing streak this week as Tuesday's session saw a strong, if oversold, bounce on the Mercury-Moon-Jupiter alignment.  However, the next few days don't augur well for stocks as Mars aligns with Rahu and Saturn.  Since all three of these planets are classified as natural malefics, there is a greater likelihood of declines as we head into next week.  Saturn will cast its full-strength 3rd house/60 degree aspect to Mars (exact June 27) while Mars forms an exact 30 degree alignment with Rahu this week.  The negative impact of these three planets is more likely to resonate with the market since they will align with the natal Moon and Mars in the NYSE horoscope.  The prominence of these malefic influences will make it harder for stocks to rise much further in the near term.

The other thing to note is that Saturn is now retrograde and is therefore approaching another exact 60 degree aspect to the natal Moon (28 Pisces).  Saturn is generally a bearish influence on the Moon and its slow velocity here is likely to further increase its potential for damage in the coming weeks.  Using the 8.52 a.m. chart for the NYSE, Saturn is due to reach its theoretical maximum influence on the Moon on August 8.  Even with the uncertainty about the birth time of the NYSE horoscope and hence the correct position of the Moon, the ongoing affliction by Saturn is going to be a negative factor on sentiment. 

On the plus side, at least Rahu will soon be separating from its aspect with natal Mars (27 Leo).  This should represent a gradual weakening of this negative factor, even if it may not be enough to offset the ongoing Saturn influence.  So while bear market rallies will still be possible during the course of this Saturn-Moon aspect, but the potential for a powerful, V-shaped rebound looks low for the next several weeks.

For more details, check out my weekly subscriber newsletter which is published every Saturday afternoon (EST).   In addition to reviewing the key planetary and technical influences on US and Indian stocks for the short and medium term, I also provide an astrological analysis of potential upcoming moves in currencies, gold and oil.

Stocks tank, now in bear market ahead of Fed decision

(13 June 2022)  What goes up, must come down.  Stocks got hammered again today as investors hit the panic button on inflation worries amid a slowing economy.  Bond yields soared to their highest levels since 2011 as markets prepared for higher rates from Wednesday's FOMC meeting.  While Fed Chair Powell had previously indicated a 50-point hike in June, it now seems more than likely that the Fed will raise 75 points after Friday's CPI data showed inflation rising at its fastest pace in 40 years.

The US may be entering a particularly unstable period here as the air is finally coming out of the Covid bubble.  All those trillions in stimulus from the Fed and the government artificially pumped up the economy during a time when the value of goods was actually falling due to lockdowns and high unemployment.  The bursting of the Covid bubble is just another instance of the classic inflation story where too much "free" money (QE, stimulus checks, generous unemployment benefits) is chasing too few goods, thus causing prices to rise. 

Now that the party's over, the hangover begins.  Stocks are falling back down to earth as the Fed is forced to tighten in order to combat inflation.  While stocks have already fallen more than 20% -- thus crossing the bear market threshold -- they may well be destined to return to their pre-Covid levels as value finally returns to a state of equilibrium. 

While the current astrological situation can be analyzed several different ways, the ongoing Saturn-Neptune alignment remains front and center.   Saturn is currently almost exactly 30 degrees away from Neptune and thus forms a resonant angle that is a divisor of a circle.  Saturn-Neptune aspects are invariably bearish and this one is especially bearish since Saturn is moving very slowly following its retrograde station on June 4.

But Saturn and Neptune often form similar alignments every 2 or 3 years and the market does not suffer such a major sell-off.  Why is this one any different?

One very important reason is that the the Saturn-Neptune alignment is also resonating with two other outer planets -- Uranus and Chiron.  We can see that both pairs of planets are separated by about the same number of degrees -- about 30-31 degrees.  This is very unusual planetary set up and provides a kind of conduit for Saturn's bearish influence to manifest more strongly.  In Western terms, we could say that the midpoint of Saturn (1 Aquarius) and Uranus (22 Aries) is conjunct the midpoint of Neptune (1 Pisces) and Chiron (21 Pisces).  The Saturn/Uranus midpoint is at 11 Pisces and the Neptune/Chiron midpoint is also at 11 Pisces.  For added emphasis, 11 Pisces also happens to be the current location of Jupiter. 

What makes this alignment especially powerful is that all four of these planets are moving slowly.  Saturn is the fastest of the bunch at three degrees per month but since it is retrograde, it is moving just half a degree in the month of June.  As outer planets, Uranus, Neptune and Chiron all move at slower rates, with Uranus moving about one degree per month, and Chiron and Neptune moving even slower.  The point here is that this slow motion train wreck of an alignment remains within range for an unusually long time and thus is very powerful.  In fact, this alignment moved within a one-degree range back in April, just as stocks started their second leg lower.  It will remain within that same one-degree range until August.

Typically, alignments involving slow-moving planets require faster-moving trigger planets to release the stored bearish (or bullish) energy.  Venus apparently acted as a trigger late last week as it conjoined Uranus and therefore may have activated the alignment during the CPI-driven sell-off.  The bad news this week is that Mars is due to conjoin Chiron on Wednesday and the FOMC meeting.  This could serve as another trigger for a release of more negative market sentiment. 

One caveat is that Mars (20 Pisces) is already very close to Chiron (21 Pisces) and thus today's decline should be seen as at least a partial manifestation of this energy.  It is therefore possible that some of its impact has already manifested.  Tomorrow's Full Moon is no doubt also part of this story, especially since it aligns fairly closely with Saturn and Neptune.  The Sun exactly squares Neptune and aligns with Saturn on Wednesday and suggests a cautious mood where the Fed is more likely to aggressively tighten.  While there is always some uncertainty predicting the exact timing of any transit manifestation, we should watch for a possible shift in sentiment after the Fed meeting as Mars begins to separate from Chiron.


For more details, check out my weekly subscriber newsletter which is published every Saturday afternoon (EST).   In addition to reviewing the key planetary and technical influences on US and Indian stocks for the short and medium term, I also provide an astrological analysis of potential upcoming moves in currencies, gold and oil.

Is the US headed for a recession?

 (7 June 2022) So far, 2022 has been a very challenging year.  The pandemic hangover, Russia's invasion of Ukraine, rampant inflation and sky-high gas prices, and now the prospect of a recession around the corner.  After contracting 1.4% in the first quarter on pandemic-related disruptions, the US economy still looks weak here in the second quarter.  Based on the most recent data, the Atlanta Fed's GDPNow indicator estimates that Q2 growth has slumped to just 0.9%.  With consumers tightening their belts in response to inflation, discretionary spending has fallen significantly in recent weeks.   Indeed, there is now a very real possibility that the second quarter will post the second consecutive negative GDP print, thus fulfilling the definition of a recession.

While there are good economic reasons to expect a recession sometime in 2022, it is worth noting that the astrological influences are also strongly inclined in that direction.  The horoscope of President Joe Biden is heavily afflicted, especially those chart factors that are associated with economic vitality.   As president, Biden symbolizes the nation as a whole so that the ups and downs of his chart can be applied to the fortunes of the US generally.  

As I have noted previously, transiting Saturn is in an extremely difficult influence for Biden.  It stationed retrograde a few days ago at 1 Aquarius and is will move backwards until late October when it stations direct at 24 Capricorn.  Even looking at the transit picture alone, the current Saturn-Neptune 30-degree alignment reflects the current global malaise with regards to inflation, pandemic fatigue and war fears.  While Saturn is now separating from its alignment with Neptune, its next major planetary alignment is a near-exact square with Uranus in September. This will be another very onerous influence upon global affairs which suggests heightened uncertainty, unrest, and geopolitical instability.

The outlook worsens further when we apply the transits to Biden's horoscope.  Saturn, the planet of restriction, caution and pessimism, casts its full-strength square aspect to his natal Mercury (28 Libra) for the rest of the year with additional exact hits due in early August and late December/early January.  Mercury is a key planetary significator of the economy since it signifies commerce, trading and transportation.  When it is afflicted by Saturn, people tend to take fewer risks, so credit dries up and economic activities are constrained.  This, in turn, can lead to a negative GDP and higher unemployment.  Mercury is doubly afflicted by the aspects of Saturn and Mars in late June (see chart).  This could well coincide with more bad economic news that elevates the risk of a market pullback.

And Biden's problems don't just come from Saturn.  In October, Biden's Mars (military action, conflict) will be afflicted by the conjunction with Ketu and the opposition from Uranus.  This Mars affliction is serious and could represent a few different things.   It increases the possibility of some kind of direct military involvement of the US, or more mundanely, Biden and the Democrats will suffer huge losses in the November midterm elections.  Since the electoral losses seem very likely at this point, I suspect the Mars influence will manifest as something worse.

The picture doesn't improve much in 2023 either.  Once Saturn resumes its normal forward motion in October, it will go on to square his Sun-Venus conjunction (4-5 Scorpio) in February and then cast is third house aspect to the Moon (8 Aries) in March.  This is an unbelievable series of bad Saturn transits that is likely to see the economic and social situation in the US deteriorate further.  While it is possible Q2 may end up avoiding a negative GDP print, the ongoing assault from Saturn here points strongly to a recession later in the year or in early 2023. 

And to top it all off, Biden is due to enter the Saturn dasha period this September.  His Jupiter-Rahu dasha won him the White House in 2020 as both planets are well-placed.  Jupiter is in its most exalted degree in early Cancer in the 9th house of good fortune, while Rahu is in the 10th house of status and achievement.  Although a natural malefic, Rahu actually does very well in the 10th and 11th houses where it confers high status and a generous income. 

But all that Jupiter-Rahu energy comes to an end in September and will be replaced by a double dose of Saturn, as both minor and major dasha lord.  Biden's administration is rapidly sinking in the polls and appears impotent to cope with inflation or soaring gas prices.  And that is under the more favorable Jupiter-Rahu!   Things are therefore likely to get substantially worse under Saturn. 

Needless to say, the prospect of an imminent recession isn't good news for the stock market.  Stocks have already fallen almost 20% this year.  Thus far, stocks have only declined as a reaction to inflation and the anticipation of higher interest rates.  Investors have yet to fully price in a recession.  Once a recession becomes apparent, markets will likely fall further.

For more details, check out my weekly subscriber newsletter which is published every Saturday afternoon (EST).   In addition to reviewing the key planetary and technical influences on US and Indian stocks for the short and medium term, I also provide an astrological analysis of potential upcoming moves in currencies, gold and oil