The U.S. economy added 304,000 jobs in January, according to data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The report follows a 35-day U.S. government shutdown. It also marks the 100th straight month of jobs growth. However, the report also included a sharp downward revision of December’s jobs gains. January’s wages also grew at a much slower-than-expected pace. – Fred Imbert, “Dow Rises After Strong Jobs Report, Post 6-Week Winning Streak,” https://www.cnbc.com, February 1, 2019.
"The case for raising rates has weakened somewhat," Powell said during a news conference following this week's two-day Federal Open Market Committee meeting. The statement came after the FOMC decided to leave its benchmark interest rate target unchanged at 2.25 percent to 2.5 percent. In addition, the committee vowed to take a "patient" approach toward further hikes. – Jeff Cox, “Fed Chair Powell Says the Case for Raising Interest Rates ‘Has Weakened.’” https://www.cnbc.com, January 30, 2019.
The amount of gold bought by central banks in 2018 reached the second highest annual total on record, according to the World Gold Council (WGC). Central banks bought the most gold by volume since 1967, according to the industry research firm, which also highlighted it was the largest amount since former U.S. President Nixon Richard's decision to end the dollar's peg to bullion in 1971. The WGC said the bulk of the buying was carried out by a handful of central banks with Russia leading the way as it looks to swap out dollars from its portfolio... The Federal Reserve is reported to hold the most, amounting for almost three quarters of the nation's foreign-exchange reserve pot. - Davide Reid, “Central Bank Gold Buying Hits Highest Level in Half a Century,” https://www.cnbc.com, January 31, 2019
The Jupiter-in-Sagittarius Bullish Express keeps charging right along. For the sixth straight week, and ever since the mini-crash from early October into December 24, many stocks markets of the world have been rising. On the day of the announcement, the Dow Jones Industrial Average leaped up 434 points, closing above 25,000 for the first time since December 4.
The Federal Reserve Board added energy to the rally last week when it announced it would pull back from raising short-term rates for the moment, a decision that markets cheered. Both stocks and treasuries soared on that announcement.
Commodities also liked the idea of stable interest rates. Gold and Silver both rallied smartly last week, with Gold trading above 1330 for the first time since last April. Ever since our special reports on Gold issued in August, when Gold fell to 1167, the yellow metal has been in a very bullish pattern, right in line with those reports pointing to the start of a new long-term 31.33-month cycle. The start of all long-term cycles is bullish. Silver also performed well last week, crossing above $16.00 for the first time in six months. Crude oil enjoyed a positive week as it closed above $55.00, a level not seen since November. Soybeans rallied to $9.30/bushel last week too, something not seen since June 2018. It still has further to go to get back to the levels it traded at before the trade dispute and tariffs started with China.
“I think Donald Trump is unqualified to be the president. No one in America wants to see him removed from office and not re-elected than me. I can promise you I am not going to do anything to be a spoiler in all of this.”
“Howard Schultz doesn’t have the ‘guts’ to run for President! Watched him on 60 Minutes and I agree with hm that he is not the ‘smartest person.’ Besides, America already has that!” Trump tweeted. – Ronald J. Hansen, “Schultz Visits ASU, Vows Not to be a Spoiler in 2020,” USA Today Network, January 31, 2019.
And there you have it. As questioned before, and now answered, Donald Trump is the smartest man in the world, in his objective (?) analysis. His base loves this confidence.
However, will he win in 2020? In play in 2020 are the conjunctions of three of the ten outmost planets in our solar system, which is a very rare geocosmic event. If we just look at the six possible conjunctions between Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto, we will see that 2020 is the first year since 1993 that we have had a new synodic cycle involving such planets. That is a very long time between new synodic cycles involving these planets, and indicates that 2020 will be the end of many long-term planetary cycles and the start of many new ones. As a correlation, this also means it will be the end of several long-term political and economic cycles too, not to mention many long-term financial market cycles. It is why we have labeled 2019 as the “set up” for the powerful transformational changes we see coming up in 2020-2031. The theme will be “Something old, something new.” And something major along the lines of what happened in 1960-1968, the last time Jupiter and Saturn rolled through Capricorn (the “old”) together on their way to Aquarius and a series of major conjunctions and hard aspects of Saturn and Pluto involving Uranus (the “new”). We will discuss this topic in more detail in next week’s Forecast 2019 Webinar (see Announcements below).
Yet, there is one thing that merits noting in regards to the entry of Howard Schultz, founder of Starbucks, in his decision to consider running for the office of USA President in 2020. During the times when Saturn and Pluto conjoin, nearby to the time of Jupiter conjunct Saturn, great leaders emerge upon the world stage. In particular, the Jupiter/Saturn conjunction of December 17-19, 2020 is extremely significant because it marks the start of a 200-year period when “The Great Mutation” will take effect. That is, each of the 20-year Jupiter/Saturn conjunctions for the next 200 years will shift from earth signs to air signs. It represents a major shift in the collective psychology, type of leadership and world dominance, and a change in the arc, or direction, of human history. To Mundane Astrologers, this is huge.
Shorter-term, Venus will enter Capricorn this Sunday, February 3, where it will remain until March 1. Venus in Capricorn will be very alert regarding fairness in long-term agreements and deals. The Capricorn wants to do business, and will seek a long-term arrangement. Venus wants such agreements to be balanced and fair, with each side receiving 50% of the benefits and making 50% of the sacrifices. It is an excellent planet-sign condition for achieving mutually beneficial compromises. Compromises will be the key word. Without compromise on both sides, there will be no deal or agreement. It is not apt to accept any effort in which others try to negotiate a one-sided advantage, or are unwillingly to make any concessions, although under Jupiter square Neptune, such efforts to gain an advantage are likely to be present. In February, we can see many situations arising where this dynamic will be present: the next step in the threat to shut down the government if the other side doesn’t give in to its demands, the USA-China trade talks, and the next meeting scheduled in late February between President Trump and the North Korean leader Kim Jung-un.
Perhaps within the month we will see if indeed Mr. Trump is the smartest man (person) in the world. Or perhaps Xi Jinping, Kim Jung-un, or Nancy Pelosi. Venus in Capricorn suggests that the one who is the most fair and focused will carry the day. Venus in Capricorn values maturity. Those who exhibit impatience, aggression, or arrogance, or who seek to deceive others in order to gain an advantage, are not likely to fare very well during this month.
Disclaimer and statement of purpose: The purpose of this column is not to predict 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 oftentimes report 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 will likely affect human activity in the times to come. The author (Merriman) will do this from a 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 hence financial markets of the day. 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 assume any responsibility at all for those individual decisions. Reader should understand that futures and options trading are considered high risk.