Uranus re-enters Aries: beware the black swan

(28 March 2017) It's that time again.  Once every seven years, the planet Uranus changes its sidereal sign.   In keeping with its symbolism of rapid change and rebellion, the Uranus sign changes or ingresses often mark instances of instability and sudden black swan-type developments in world affairs.  To that end, Uranus is due to leave Pisces and re-enter the sign of Aries next week on April 5th according to the Krishnamurthi aynamasha.  The ingress happens two days later according to the more widely-used Lahiri ayamamsha. 

The last time Uranus changed signs was last year on June 23, 2016.  The next day the UK shocked the world by voting for Brexit, thereby launching the beginning of a populist rebellion in the Western world.  The similarly shocking election victory of Donald Trump in the US soon followed as the anti-elite, nativist rebellion evolved into a wider movement.  The rise of right wing populism can't be explained solely in terms of this Uranus ingress but it certainly played a role. 

The important thing to note about Uranus ingresses is that there are usually clusters of two or three ingresses over a one-year period due to its retrograde motion.  The previous cluster of Uranus sign changes occurred in 2009-2010 when it entered Pisces.  Since Uranus moves forward on average of four degrees per year (8 degrees of forward motion followed by 4 degrees of backward motion), it takes about 7-8 years for it to transit through each 30 degree zodiac sign.  We are therefore in the middle of another cluster of a sign ingress.  Uranus left Pisces and first entered Aries last June and then stationed retrograde in July and moved backwards four degrees and stationed direct again in December.  It has has since been moving forward and will enter Aries again next week for a second and final time in this sequence. 

So the question is: what could happen on or near this next Uranus ingress into Aries?  It's important to note that not every ingress brings sudden events.  We already had Brexit with the first of these Aries ingresses so it is possible that this next one may be relative quiet.  In that sense, the instability and eccentric energy of Uranus may have been fully expressed already with the June ingress. 

On the other hand, the second ingress can just quite potent in its own right.  I have previously mentioned in this space the uncanny coincidence of the ingress of Uranus into Sagittarius on Oct 17, 1987, just two days before the biggest US stock market crash in history when the Dow lost over 20% of its value in one day.  This was the second of two Uranus sign ingresses in 1987.  We are now in a similar situation in so far as the second of two sign ingresses will occur next week.  This is likely not a critical similarity but it does offer some support for the notion that the second and final ingress can sometimes be the most powerful. 

 Already there are hints that the Uranian spirit of rebellion and independence is in the air.  Last week, the GOP health care bill aimed at replacing Obamacare failed to even make it to a vote in Congress as the more libertarian Freedom Caucus refused Trump's overtures and threats.  This outcome was not surprising as I saw increasing levels of affliction in the President-elect horoscope (PEOTUS) at the end of March and into early April.  More generally, the Trump presidency continues to be under pressure from all sides here not only because of the increasing Uranian energy but also because Saturn is approaching its retrograde station next week also.  Saturn and Uranus may be working together to upset Trump's aspirations here since Saturn stations retrograde on April 6th just one day after Uranus enters Aries.  That is a very powerful one-two punch. 

There is a real possibility that this Uranus ingress could directly relate to Trump since he has several planets in alignment with the Uranus ingress at 0 degrees of Aries.  His Sun is situated just 60 degrees away at 29Taurus55.  His Saturn is at 00Cancer48 and thus the Uranus ingress at 0 Aries will form a square aspect with his 12th house Saturn.  This may be deductively seen as a surprising loss or disappointment involving secrets, perhaps relating to women or money (Venus).  And, of course, I have also noted that Bill and Hillary Clinton's charts look very positive for the March-April period.  With US politics pretty much a zero-sum game, one would think that any Clinton gains imply more troubles for Trump.

I have also noted that Trump was likely to be on the defensive as long as this Saturn Rx station (3 Sagittarius) is aligned with his natal Mars (3 Leo).  The Saturn Rx station also conjoins Vladimir Putin's natal Mars (3 Sagittarius) so that hints that Trump's Russia woes may continue for another few weeks at least.  I'm reluctant to make any specific predictions here as there are many possible scenarios which could fulfill the symbolism of Uranus and Saturn. 

More Russian revelations are very possible although we could also see something unrelated such as a sudden violent attack or an unexpected geopolitical development which upsets financial markets in a "black swan" type fashion.   The near-simultaneous Saturn station ratchets up the negativity next week so markets may be quite tense in the days around these two heavy duty planetary patterns.  Anything is possible, although with Brexit already out of the way, I would also not be surprised if we simply got more minor developments which further undermined the Trump presidency.  So while we may do well to expect the unexpected, we should not bet the farm on it. Black swans are inherently unpredictable events and yet these planetary patterns suggest they are more likely in the coming days. 


Weekly Market Forecast

US stocks have trended lower since my last post on March 15.  As expected, the Fed raised interest rates and stocks have further weakened since their all-time highs.  The inability of the GOP to pass their health care bill has raised doubts about the Trump administration's legislative competence and that has brought new skepticism about its business-friendly plan to cut taxes.   The Dow has lost 500 points since its high although it put in a strong day today rising 150 points.  India's Sensex has similarly come off its early March high although it is arguably consolidating below technical resistance before pushing higher.  The Sensex is fast approaching its previous high of 30,000 although sentiment has been weaker in recent days. 

This week may well be the calm before the storm.  Tuesday's gains coincided with a bullish alignment of the Moon, Uranus and Jupiter.  However, a more problematic alignment of Mercury and Saturn could take hold on Wednesday and could induce some selling.  Thursday's Moon-Mars conjunction also looks bearish.  The week could well be negative overall although Friday is harder to call.  The early week next week leans a bit bullish so a snapback rally is possible.  But again, the Uranus ingress on the 5th and the Saturn station on the 6th could signal a major shift in the markets.  There is an elevated risk of a "black swan" type-event on this double Uranus-Saturn influence.

For more details and analysis on market trends for this week, this month and this year, please check out my weekly MVA Investor Newsletter.  The newsletter is published every Saturday and includes extended discussion of US and Indian stock markets, as well as gold, oil and major currencies.

Trump's troubles as seen through the PEOTUS chart

(15 March 2017) One of the most fascinating aspects of astrology is how horoscopes belonging to different people, institutions or events can confirm the same reality.  All other things being equal, these different sources of confirming evidence can boost our predictive accuracy about the future.  Like all other human sciences, astrology is not perfect and astrologers make their fair share of mistakes.   But when considering the future prospects of one President Donald J. Trump, it's helpful to be able to go beyond his personal chart and refer to other relevant horoscopes.

This week I wanted to look at the horoscope for the moment when Trump was declared the winner in the November 8th election.   This is the chart of the President-elect of the United States (PEOTUS).  Due to the closeness of the race, Trump was actually declared the winner first by Associated Press at 2.31 a.m. in the early morning of the 9th.  But the first major television network that declared him the President-elect was Fox at 2.40 a.m.  The other networks quickly followed suit a few minutes later.  As a median time, I will use the Fox call at 2.40 a.m. as my working chart for the moment when America and world realized that Donald Trump was the new president.   The total Ascendant range between the different media calls is about three degrees (4 Virgo - 7 Virgo)

We can see how this chart works by seeing the transit hits of significant events in his administration.  Trump's controversial and defeated travel ban against Muslims occurred on January 27 just as transiting Mars (5 Pisces) conjoined the Descendant (7th house cusp) and thereby opposed the Ascendant exactly.  Mars to the Ascendant is a perfect astrological indication for the conflict and disputes which Trump faced as a result of this disastrous and reviled policy roll-out.

One of Trump's high points thus far was his speech to Congress on February 28 when he appeared more moderate and presidential.  Not surprisingly, we can see that the horoscope enjoyed a few nice hits that day.   Venus and Moon (18 Pisces) were exactly opposite Jupiter at 18 Virgo.  Venus and the Moon are related to social approval and happiness while Jupiter symbolizes justice and “right action”.  More broadly, Jupiter represents positive events in keeping with Trump’s well-received speech.  The Sun’s conjunction with Ketu (South Lunar Node) may be interpreted as reflecting the unexpected or surprising quality to the speech after Trump had been roundly criticized for his chaotic approach to governing.  Transiting Mercury was also conjunct the Moon symbolizing communication with the people, perhaps with an added emotional dimension.

Other events are also visible such as the Jeff Sessions' recusal from the Russian investigation on March 3 when Mars (1 Aries) exactly cast its 8^th house/210 degree aspect to natal Mercury (0 Scorpio).  The following day Trump issued his infamous wiretap accusation against Obama.  This occurred when the transiting Sun (20 Aquarius) was exactly square the natal Saturn (21 Scorpio). 
 
These hits are a nice confirmation that this chart does work and can be useful for predicting future trends in the Trump administration.  But the best confirmation in that regard is that nasty Saturn is sitting on the natal Venus (2 Sagittarius).  The first two months of the Trump presidency has been rocky to say the least.  He’s unpopular outside of his base of core supporters and there is a sense that the other shoe may drop at any time whether it’s Russia-related or tax-related or something else.  Saturn-Venus conjunctions reflect a loss of happiness through constraint and restriction. 

The special problem here with this PEOTUS chart is that Saturn is slowing down now ahead of its retrograde station on April 6th.   This means that Saturn has been conjunct Venus for most of his presidency and will continue to be conjunct after the station for several more weeks into the month of May.  While Saturn has its useful side towards getting things done which is arguably true with Trump, a station is usually just too much Saturn for any planet to handle constructively.   It is one big reason why the Trump presidency rife with problems and scandals and why it is so unpopular.  Thus, this Saturn-Venus hit confirms the difficult Inauguration horoscope, as well as the current Saturn affliction in the USA chart and also the ongoing Saturn problem in Trump's personal chart.  All the charts show that the incoming administration would have a difficult time of it out of the gate.

Looking Ahead

The next few weeks are unlikely to bring an improvement in Trump's fortunes.  In fact, they will likely get worse.  There are few things that bear watching in this PEOTUS chart.  

March 16-17 (later this week).  Trump could run into more legal troubles as the Sun squares Saturn and both will align closely with the angles and Venus in the chart.  The Sun-Saturn pairing suggests problems with authority and when you're President, authority is usually legal in nature, either the courts, the FBI or some other agency.  It's also possible that Congress may find new objections to the proposed health care bill. 

March 22-23.  A sharp conflict or military action is more likely as Mars aligns with natal Rahu.  This may not be bad news for him politically, however.

April 1.    A policy success is quite possible as the Sun opposes Jupiter while Venus aligns with the Ascendant/Descendant. 

April 13.  Venus stations in alignment with Saturn and highlights the natal Venus affliction.  This could be bad economic news or just more headaches for Trump. 

April 19-20.  Transiting Mars, Sun and Venus all align with the natal Mars (6 Capricorn) in the PEOTUS chart. And given the powerful placement of the natal Mars, all those planets align with the Ascendant.  This is a potentially serious development that could further undermine the Trump presidency.

Late April and May:  Transiting Rahu will conjoin the equal 12th house cusp.  Depending on whether one uses the True or Mean Node, this hit could take place over a span of several weeks.   This is a time when scandals and secrets are more likely to come to light and be very damaging.  If the Congressional Russia investigation is going to find anything on Trump, I would think it will come out at this time.   Even if they find something, I don't think it's likely that Trump will be blamed.

Nov 4 2018.   Trump and the GOP are very likely to lose big in the midterms.  The multiple afflictions in this chart could even mean they lose both Houses of Congress.  Saturn is exactly aspecting the Moon by its full-strength 3rd house aspect while Ketu is conjunct Mars.  Jupiter is helpful here on the 3rd house cusp but the balance of the chart suggests a significant loss.  And if the Democrats can win both Houses, the impeachment of Trump becomes more likely.   But it's a long time between now and November 2018.  I'll post updates on this fascinating PEOTUS chart as events warrant.


Weekly Market Forecast

US stocks have generally moved slightly lower since last week's market forecast.   The Dow slipped under 21,000 last week and remains there this week.  This mildly negative outcome was not surprising as I thought the Mars-Node alignment this week could put stocks under pressure.  Indian stocks have fared somewhat better after strong state election results in Uttar Pradesh bolstered the Modi government and its reform agenda.  As a result, the Sensex is trading back above 29,000.

All eyes are on Janet Yellen today as the Fed releases its latest policy statement on the economy.  The Fed is widely expected to raise rates although its forward guidance may be more important for the market.  The planets tilt bearish for the rest of the week so I would think the market may not like with the Fed says.  Thursday's Mars-Mercury alignment looks bearish and Friday's Sun-Saturn square also looks problematic.  Early next week also seems to give the edge to the bears as Venus aligns with Mars on Monday.  Could this finally be the start of the long-awaited correction?  We shall see.

For more details and analysis on market trends for this week, this month and this year, please check out my weekly MVA Investor Newsletter.  The newsletter is published every Saturday and includes extended discussion of US and Indian stock markets, as well as gold, oil and major currencies.