MMA WEEKLY - Financial Astrology commentary, Market timing, MMA Cycles, The Merriman Market Analyst

The printed version of Forecast 2014 will be translated into several different languages again this year as follows :

- Chinese Dutch Deutsch Japanese Russian Spanish Italiano

Each of these will also offer the English version of Forecast 2014, as will our Chinese distributor : "Your work is essential to anyone who is serious in this field. I can't thank you enough for it".

Go to the sheet for Downloading the video for the Ultimate book on stock market timing.

The Market Week in Review :

With my schedule here in Europe, I don't have the luxury of waiting for markets to close for the week and then writing my column. The last markets I track are Gold and Silver, with their 5:15 PM, EST close, which equates to 11:15 PM here in Europe.

So instead, you will read more about my personal experiences when overseas, through the eyes and mental processes of an astrologer. I don't really know why I am sharing more of myself, my life, my inner thoughts, than before. Perhaps it has to do with progressed Mercury now going retrograde in Pisces in my chart for the next 19 years. You are going to learn more about how astrology works in these columns than before, and especially during those weeks when I travel, for these reports will come out earlier than when I am stateside.

Short-Term Geocosmics :

There are two major geocosmic concerns coming up in the next ten days. The first is the Sun entering a T-square formation with the Jupiter-Saturn opposition (January 19-22). The second is Mars turning retrograde in Virgo (January 24 through April 14).

The Jupiter-Saturn opposition is unusual because it is not quite exact. It is one degree away from exactness, and it happens as Saturn is in the last degree of Libra and Jupiter the first degree of Taurus, so they aren't even in opposite signs. This is known as an "out-of-sign" opposition. And when the planets are in last and first degrees of signs that are not the "norm" : for this aspect, it usually means "changing conditions". Something is changing related to Jupiter (growth, optimism, and expansion) and Saturn (contraction and fear). Together these two planes pertain to a "judgment". Could it be that some country gets a credit downgrade and fears of a global meltdown abound again ? Or is it more to do with something in the mundane field of law ? One side wants to expand, the other wants to contract, and with the Sun right in the middle, the result may be paralysis (i.e., gridlock). This is not new, but yet something is different about this case. It would seem that a law could be passed that might restrict freedom, take away certain liberties and assumed rights, but done quietly, and maybe without even a vote. Yet in a few weeks or months, people begin to realize what happened when they weren't paying attention to what was taking place today. It's like a shadow growing ever larger over the landscape. It's the same landscape, but it looks a little different, a little less clear and brilliant.

Mars turning retrograde is also interesting because it often coincides with war threats. This may be even more the case now that Uranus is in Aries, home to Mars. But Mars is in Virgo, so the threats may be related to work issues and a perceived lack of economic opportunities. This is in effect through April 14, so we may see some powerful worker strikes taking place that could cripple the distribution of needed goods throughout the world. Maybe Iran does close the Straits of Hormuz, for Virgo is opposite Pisces, which rules oil.

The bottom line is that these two signatures indicate a change of collective psychology and also political direction. And this can directly cause a change of trend in many financial markets.

Longer Term Thoughts :

For this week, and most weeks when I travel, I will just have a chat with you about Astrology and the times we live in. You can deduce long-term market consequences from these thoughts because I will try to describe the nature of reality we collectively experience (a very large task, but then again, I do have Mercury in Sagittarius, sign of “ large thoughts ” ).

For me, these days clearly reflect the life of a trader and the life of a market trading analyst/advisor. It's the corresponding experiential reality of transiting Uranus in Aries, hitting in hard aspect to one's (my) Sun and Mars in Capricorn. I am all of that, and quite a few of you are some of that, because many of you have planets in the first 7-8 degrees of cardinal signs, which is where my own natal Sun and Mars are located. If you don't have the Sun there, chances are you have another planet, lunar node, or angle there. A lot of you are undergoing the same cosmic initiation and/or transformation I am experiencing. The only difference between us may the degree of awareness - consciousness - that this happening. But if I can put it in words, you will recognize it. That is one of my roles as writer of this column, especially when I travel.

So most of you reading this column have something important in the first 7-8 degrees of cardinal signs, and that part of us is experiencing the measure of Uranus and Pluto right now. We have been experiencing this since the 2008-2015 Cardinal Climax began. If you took a survey of people who are into astrology right now - like those of you reading this column that this Financial Astrologer loves to write every week - I think you would find the majority of this audience KNOWS that this is true. We are all intrigued with figuring out what this period means for us personally and for the world that we inhabit.

And one thing we are discovering is that we are all connected. That is Uranus too - the internet, the "Digital Age", that we have been living out the past 20-30 years. We are conversing with the world. What is it ? What is Uranus ? Why is it that we can never quite describe it, except to say that "it's different this time" (not to be confused with the recent economic book of the same title, which is well worth reading) ?. It's different because we, as individuals, are connected to one another as never before. And we want this idea of freedom. We want economic freedom and we want the social freedom of escaping isolation and loneliness. There is a shift of power in the world taking place back to the individual, and this does not bode well for governments that are trying to grow their power over the individual. The individual is breaking out.

But let's get back to me (I told you Uranus in Aries squares my Sun now), because I can only relate what I am going through and how different it is, yet how consistent this inconsistency is with what we know we don't know about Uranus. We know that Uranus represents extremes. It can break through any boundary, just as it breaks through multiple support and resistance levels in financial markets in an eye blink. Just like that - crash or lightning bolt - we are in a new world, a different reality, because we broke through to the extremes - and even beyond them. And we ask in wonderment: "Where are we now ? Where are we going next ?. ".

So for this trader/analyst/advisor, the extremes have been personally experienced in markets these past couple of weeks. And I suspect many of you experienced that too. On the one extreme was this call I made in Gold and Silver via "special alert" notices sent to subscribers on December 28-29. I called the bottom about as close as any analyst has ever called a bottom, time-wise (within the half hour). I mean if I do say so myself - and why not ? Uranus is squaring my Sun... I can brag on my blog if I want to. Do you have any idea what an adrenaline rush that is for a trader ? I do, and so do many of you now. Welcome to my world these past two weeks, where only the sky is the limit.

And welcome to this other side of my world too, which is a little more Plutonian. At just about the same time my perfectly wonderful and ego-satisfying "Uranus square Sun" experience kicked in, the stock market also soared to a new cycle high, which was exactly the opposite of what I expected to happen past the first day of this year. Pluto kicked into my world. Why is it with Pluto you can never get a break, or you can never bask in the sunshine for more than a minute before storm clouds start to gather ? The stock market didn't turn before the calendar did.

For me, life is easier when I am right with modest gains in both those markets at the same time, instead of huge gains in one and not-so-small losses in the other. I don't like extremes. I am a Capricorn, and the instructions for this life are : he likes his boundaries respected. Yet... there is something electric and magical about those times that you do exceed those boundaries, when you allow yourself to be taken to those extremes and beyond.

We are all experiencing things for the first time now. That's the nature of Uranus going into Aries. And as a human community, we are about to experience many more things for the first time in 2012, and lasting into 2015. Uranus in Aries is squaring Pluto. The energy, the force, the new realities, is already unfolding.

And here's the thing that concerns me about ... me, and how I see it all coming down. What if it doesn't go as expected, which is to say, what if it doesn't crash and burn ? What if there are no earthquakes and tsunamis and no more overthrows of repressive world leaders ?. What if the world economies don't collapse and the Euro Union doesn't break up or transform in some way ?. What if the USA election 2012 is peaceful and civil and not negative with accusations of the other side of being the agent of destruction on the eve of destruction in a nation that is entering its decline ? What if markets didn't fall hard this year, and instead rallied to new all-time highs amidst an economy that shows greater job growth and falling unemployment ? What if ? These are things that most of us don't expect will happen. But it's the Uranus-Pluto square, and these are the themes that have happened historically under this configuration (i.e. 1931-1934, 1876-1878). What if this time THAT was different, and instead of insanity and hysteria, it was smooth and successful ? That would be unexpected, wouldn't it ? That would be Uranus too, wouldn't it ?.

Well... if that happened, I would say we are all experiencing Neptune in Pisces. If you are an astrologer, you know this is an important 14-year transit that is about to begin as well. You know Neptune rules Pisces, so it will be strong - as strong as Neptune can be in Pisces (an oxymoron...Neptune's strength is in its gentleness, its quest for peace). This should be interesting with Uranus in Aries at the same time, whose quest is for combat and winning in competition - or by any means possible, even ruthless ones. That is at the forefront too until 2018.

But I keep coming back to Uranus square Pluto. That is part of Pluto's charm in Capricorn : it just keeps coming back, over and over again, until it gets corrected or healed. Here, we are talking about the world debt and how it could be literally exploding (Uranus-Pluto = explosive debt ; Pluto in Capricorn = consequences of past behavior ; Saturn in Scorpio 2012-2015, = the "Day of Reckoning").

What is it about Uranus and Pluto that we are going through together now? I don't know. None of us do, because we've never been through something quite like this. We can feel it, we experience it, we see it happening all around us and all over the world. We know NOW, and we know the future is going to be exciting and probably dramatic, but the form it will take ? It's shape-shifting. As I look at this new world with these new eyes, it's all shape-shifting, and I know on some level, that's true for most of you.

Personal update : I still see things in multiple images. My vision seems like it is getting a little better some days. But I still see multiple images. I am adjusting to it, and still have faith that I will see normal again soon. And beyond that, I see many things differently. It's like a new world. I want to thank so many of you for your wonderful letters of encouragement these past six weeks. You are amazing. My life is amazing because of people like you. I will continue to write and hopefully guide wisely (or at least entertainingly), as long as I can. I suspect I will continue on for at least 19 more years. And I expect these to be my most exciting and illuminating 19 years of this lifetime. Yours too, I hope.

I look forward to seeing many of you in Amsterdam next weekend.

To be continued... (next week)

Announcements :

MMA's"Forecast 2012 Book" The printed version of Forecast 2014 went out Wednesday and Thursday, December 14-15. Domestic purchasers should receive it now. Overseas people need to allow 5-8 business days. It's 200 pages - out largest ever - and packed full of information about the economy, USA Presidential election, social and economic trends, and of course, financial markets with their all-important three-star critical reversal dates (the one and two-star reversal dates are covered in the MMA Cycles Report, as well as weekly reports). The annual Forecasts Book , written by Raymond A. Merriman since 1976, is one of the most unique, affordable, and accurate glimpses into the coming year. Utilizing the study of cycles and geocosmic factors, this annual Forecasts book outlines forthcoming trends pertaining to political, economic, and financial markets throughout the world. For further information, please go to the front page of our web site. There you can also place your order for the Forecast 2012. Or call us at 1-248-626-3034.

If you wish to hear more about this year's Forecast 2012 Book, please visit our YouTube channel. There is a new video there highlighting three great market calls from last year's book, plus a preview of this year's book. It should be quite a year coming up!

Our E-Book version of the Forecast 2012 Book is now out as well in two different formats. The first is our own version, which contains both the text and the calendar-ephemeris for 2012. The cost for this is $55.00, or $35.00, depending on whether you also ordered the printed version too. The second is through Apple ITunes, which covers I Phone 4 and 5, and the I Pad. This format only costs $39.99, and is available in nine countries. It does not contain the advertisements or the planetary calendar and ephemeris in the back.

If you have ordered the E-Book version of Forecast 2014 from us, and have not yet received it, let us know at once, at ordersmma@msn.com. If you have already ordered the hard copy, you may then add the EBook version for $35.00. If you wish to order the"bundle" of both at $90.00 plus postage, please go to bottom of page and then click"bundle" on the order form for an additional $35.00.

The E-Book version of Forecast 2014 on the I Pad, or I Phone, is now up and ready to download as of Thursday, December 15. You can now order it if you have an email address registered via one of these 9 countries (USA, UK, Australia, France, Canada, Italy, Portugal, Slovenia, and Spain). Just go to ITunes, and then"Library", then"Store", then in the field titled"Search", type in"Forecast 2012" or"Raymond Merriman" (without quotation marks). We are still waiting approval from Amazon.com Kindle.

If you wish to hear more about this year's Forecast 2012 Book, please visit our YouTube channel at http://www.youtube.com/RaymondMerriman. There is a new video there highlighting three great market calls from last year's book, plus a preview of this year's book. It should be quite a year coming up!

Our new 2013 MMA Catalogue of products and services is now out!!! You can download it in PDF. The ordering page is the last page of the catalogue. This is especially useful for those outside of the USA, since we do not mail these out by mail unless requested.

If you are an active short-term trader, or even if you are an investor who likes to keep up with our current thoughts on financial markets, you may be interested in our Weekly or even Daily Market reports with short-term trading recommendations, (see a sample there, of the weekly). It is the only way I keep in touch with traders on a daily or even weekly basis, as I no longer offer personal consultations. These reports give in-depth analysis of the DJIA, S&P and NASDAQ futures, Euro currency (cash and futures), Swiss Franc, Dollar/Yen cash and Yen futures, Euro-Yen cash, T-Notes, Soybeans, Crude Oil, Gold and Silver. The daily reports cover all stock indices listed above, as well as futures in Euro, T-Notes, Soybeans, Gold and Silver. Both reports provide trading strategies and recommendations for position traders as well as for shorter-term aggressive traders. Subscription to the daily report also includes the weekly report.
If you want more information call our offices at 1-248-626-3034.
These reports are extremely valuable to those who trade ETF's (Exchange Traded Funds). In the words of one of our subscribers :"I am really pleased with your recommendations through the Daily and Weekly Trade Recommendations. I have used them to trade gold and silver stocks in my IRA. In the last eight years I increased my account from $60,000 to $712,000. Thanks for your excellent publications". - Bryden C., Small Business Owner, Illinois.

The Ultimate Book on Stock Market Timing, Volume 5 : Price Objectives and Technical Analysis is out !. The comments and reviews are starting to come in, and we will post them here over the next few weeks".I am a long time Merriman Market Analysis Newsletter reader. It has never ceased to amaze me how accurate those levels are given in the newsletter. I often wonder how Ray calculates those levels. By setting up my trades using those levels together with his timing methodology, I have profited greatly. I sincerely feel that Volume 5 of the series finally gives the whole investment community the full story about Ray's lifetime work and the complete description of his financial astrology methodology. It will be a great treasure to all serious market participants". Kenneth Laio, Trader and Chief Technology Officer, Sequoia Media Inc., Beijing, China.
It took two years to write this one, which is par for each of the five books of this series that started in 1997. That was around the time I decided I wanted to"tap into the soul of the stock market", like there is such a thing. Turns out there is, in my opinion. But it depends on how you interpret"soul". If you accept that it is a connection between the observable and the intuitive, that patterns do exist and like oracles, they oftentimes do reveal the future, then it exists. This is a book describing the tools that serious traders that I know use. I use them. Many of my subscribers use them, although not that many know how I calculate price targets to go along with market timing. This book identifies the formulas I personally use to calculate price targets, and the trading plans I find that work using these market timing and technical indicators. This book is packed with powerful tools (signals), and if you take the time to learn these tools properly, your chances of being a successful trader will increase tremendously, IMHO. The book is 300 pages, printed in perfect bind format, gloss cover, 8-1/2" x 11" size. The retail price of this new book is $144.00. The publication of Volume 5 will complete the project that started in 1996, and covered approximately 1600 pages of studies and strategies for all types of traders and investors, using our market timing methods. In all, this is a complete and unified approach to analyzing (and trading) financial markets, and especially stock markets. If you are interested in this unique and integrated methodology for analyzing and forecasting stock indices, you can save big bucks by ordering all five volumes, or choice of any four now, or just go to www.mmacycles.com and scroll down to the announcement. If ordering all five volumes, you will save $99.00 !.
For more information on this book, go to YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PnplAS5m2AI, describing this new book. It is"the missing link". You may want to check this video out, as it contains some interesting long-term tips. You can also download that video there and read more comments.

The monthly MMA Cycles report and its companion MMA Japanese Cycles and MMA European Cycles reports went out last week. If you are subscriber to any these monthly reports and did not receive it, let us know at once via our email.

This week's monthly MMA Cycles Report will have a special report on Gold and Silver. We will review the recent decline and what it says about the longer-term cycles' outlook.
- This report covers our long term analysis of the stock market (DJIA and S&P futures), Gold, Silver, T-Notes, Euro and Swiss Franc currencies, grains and crude oil. It also provides the list of geocosmic and solar-lunar reversal zones for the 1-2 months. This report comes out Monday night to subscribers.
- The MMA Japanese Markets Cycles report covers the Nikkei, JGB Bonds, and the Dollar-Yen.
- The new MMA Europe Cycles report covers the German DAX, Swiss SMI, and Netherlands AEX stock indices, each in english only and will be available on Wednesday.
For subscription information, please go to our web site , or call us at 1-248-626-3034. If you are not a subscriber, you can check this service out on a 2-month trial basis for only $50.00.

Upcoming Events :

January 21, 2012 : Amsterdam, Netherlands "Forecast 2012". 1:00 PM - 3:30 PM, followed by a 60-minute private meeting with MMA Subscribers. Sponsored by Schogt Market Timing. Call 31-(0) 294-415-917 for further more information, or this link.

March 1 and 3, 2012 : Hong Kong, China".Forecast 2012" on Thursday, March 1 and a full day intensive on"Financial Market Timing" on Saturday, March 3, with emphasis on Gold, Silver, Currencies, and Equity Markets for 2012. Organized by Earlthorn.Com at the Excelsior Hotel, Causeway Bay, Hong Kong. Contact Teresa Wong at 852-2529 1211 (phone), or by e-mail at earlthorn@hknet.com. A special 90-minute private meeting with MMA Subscribers will follow the workshop on March 3 .

March 9-11, 2012 : The 8th Annual Balkan International Conference, Belgrade, Serbia. Featuring a workshop on Financial Astrology with Raymond Merriman.

April 19 and 21, Boulder, Colorado".Forecast 2012" with Raymond Merriman, plus a workshop on"Financial Market Timing", focusing on equities and precious metals. Sponsored by ROMA. For more information and registration, contact dralagifts@msn.com.

May 24-29, 2012 : UAC !!! The world's largest astrological conference. Taking place at the New Orleans Marriott Hotel. Go to www.uacastrology.com. There will be an awesome Financial Track, featuring some of the top Financial Astrologers and researchers in the world.

Summer 2012 : San Diego, CA. Topics and date To Be Determined.

The MMA Catalogue of products and services for 2013 is now out!!! You can download it in PDF. The ordering page is the last page of the catalogue. This is especially useful for those outside of the USA, since we do not mail these out by mail unless requested.

We are pleased to announce that the Spanish publication of"Basic Principles of Geocosmic Studies for Financial Market Timing" has just been completed. For more information and ordering, please contact www.lecochonsideral.info/semana.html.

We also have our new CD available :"The Cardinal Climax 2008-2015 : Investment Opportunities and Dangers". This 75-minute CD outlines the most powerful geocosmic configuration of our lifetime : The Cardinal Climax of 2008-2015. This presentation examines the historical, long-term geocosmic signatures that are present 2008-2015, how they correlated to economic crises in the past, and how they will likely impact various financial markets and investment opportunities this time. In fact, many of the themes are already underway. Approximately 75 minutes, with PDF file of charts used: $25.00 plus postage.

I am oftentimes asked for recommendations of a money manager who uses my methods, since I won't manage other people's money. The thing is, almost all money managers I know use their own systems. But many subscribe to my services and share my thoughts about the future of the economy, various financial markets, and how to position one's portfolio along these lines. One money manager who subscribes to our services that I would suggest for those looking to structure a longer-term portfolio, such as a retirement account, is Duke O'Neill of Boulder, Colorado. He can be reached at dukeoneil1@gmail.com, or 1-(303) 545-5837. For those looking for a professional trader of commodity and futures contract might consider Ted Lee Fisher at ted.fisher@comcast.net. Ted is a legend in financial futures and has a seat on the CME. Both are very knowledgeable of the tools I use, of the way I am looking at markets, and yet each makes their own decisions as to exactly when to enter and exit any market. They will be more than happy to assist you.

To the above list, I would also like to recommend long-term MMA subscriber Erwin Brunner of Zurich, Switzerland. Mr. Brunner is the founder of BrunnerInvest AG. One of his five funds was awarded the"Best in-house fund of funds" in the world recently. Mr. Brunner is a former director of the Swiss Banking Corporation (today it is known as UBS), and a general director of Rothschild Bank in Zurich. As an independent wealth manager for high net worth individuals and institutional clients only, he places his clients into the funds of the best performing fund managers in the world, via his own research and experience. For high net worth readers interested in Mr. Brunner's funds, please contact him through www.brunnerinvest.ch.

The newly revised The Sun, The Moon, and Silver Book : Secrets of a Silver Trader, is now out. This is a book that you will use as a reference guide for...many, many years. It identifies all the key Sun-Moon combinations that have a higher (and lower) than expected probability of correlating with 4% or greater reversals in COMEX Silver. It also identifies"Big Range Days" - those days in which the range of Silver is most likely to be 3.5% or more of the price of Silver, which is a great tool for day traders. This book fulfills the dream of all traders: high probability winning trade possibilities, with minimal market exposure. It is that"extra edge". And Silver is a great market to trade now. The cost is $125.00. For ordering on line.

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 cycle’s 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 these 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.

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