(1 December 2024) There could an undercurrent of tension this week. Saturn’s sense of restraint and pessimism may come to fore as it will form square alignments with both the Sun and Mercury. The Saturn-Sun square occurs first on Wednesday while the Saturn-Mercury square will be exact on Friday. The combined effects of transits could prove to be bearish for the stock market as growth expectations are more likely to be subject to negative revision. With the November jobs report due out on Friday, Dec 5, it is very possible that the employment data could be weaker than expected. Thursday’s Sun-Mercury Rx conjunction also looks difficult, especially since the Moon will be opposed by Mars on that day. Negative implications for financial markets are possible.
The strength of Saturn may also coincide with an unforgiving attitude among governments and leaders. Traditional sources of power such as the church, the judiciary and universities may also assert themselves without taking into account opposition voices or long term consequences. This is therefore not a good week for diplomacy or mutually beneficial negotiations.
Nonetheless, the more harmonious energy of Venus could be more in evidence in the early part of the week as Venus aligns with Uranus and Neptune. Monday’s entry of Venus into Capricorn looks especially constructive as it will form a close alignment with Uranus. The resulting Venus-Uranus aspect should coincide with energetic and rewarding social situations, especially those connected with the arts (Venus) and technology (Uranus). Wednesday’s Moon-Venus conjunction could loosen some of the Saturn-Sun constraints. Wednesday’s Mercury-Jupiter opposition may also enhance productive new ventures associated with communication and transportation. The opposition aspect is somewhat suspect, however, as well-laid plans may prove to be ultimately disappointing.
The other main alignment to watch is the approaching Jupiter-Saturn square. Retrograde Jupiter (22 Taurus) forms a 270 degree square alignment with Saturn (18 Aquarius). This square will be exact on Dec 24 although it will occur for a final time in June 2025 after Jupiter resumes its normal forward motion. We should note that this square is not a full-strength 10th house/270 degree Saturn aspect since Jupiter will be 4 houses and 90 degrees away from Jupiter. While weaker, it nonetheless should be noted as it could reflect a state of conflict and uncertainty between people and things symbolized by both planets. The optimism, faithfulness and future orientation of Jupiter may therefore not enjoy free reign as long as it forms this alignment with Saturn. It is possible that the retrenchment of traditional values embodied in the incoming Trump administration is a reflection of this Jupiter-Saturn dynamic. The constraining influence of Saturn would seem to be more in evidence here since Trump wants to close the border, deport illegal migrants and impose tariffs on imports as ways of protecting native-born US citizens and the US economy.
With Jupiter and Saturn remaining in this uneasy square alignment for the first half of 2025, I would expect the conservative impulse of the Trump presidency to be at odds with the open-ended, more forgiving nature of Jupiter for a while yet. This could manifest as organized resistance to the incoming administration, although I would not really expect any opposition to derail the fundamental elements of Trump’s plans. In terms of financial markets, the forward Jupiter-Saturn square may have a modest bearish bias but it may not manifest at all. The same forward square last occurred in 2005 in the midst of the ‘everything bubble’ bull market and was not bearish.
The larger question concerns what will happen in mid-2025 when Saturn conjoins Neptune. This conjunction last occurred in 1989 and coincided closely with the end of communism and the fall of the Berlin Wall. In that case, the corroding effects of Neptune undermined the order and stability of law-and-order type governments and institutions as represented by Saturn. We could see a repeat of this theme of dissolution of order in 2025 as Neptune will tend to undermine Saturn’s conservatism. It could pertain to policy contradictions within the Trump administration, or may be totally unrelated to events in the US. I would note, however, that the Saturn-Neptune conjunction occurs at 7 Pisces, and this will be within one degree of Donald Trump’s equal 8th house cusp symbolizing obstacles, scandals and sudden events. That could coincide with a very stressful situation for him personally or for the US more generally since the president’s chart is a proxy for the nation as a whole. Nonetheless, the Saturn-Neptune conjunction is likely to manifest in some major way in 2025 as traditional power structures are likely to be undermined and subject to major reform and revision. The question then becomes: what qualifies as a traditional power structure? Right wing populist governments such as Trump’s or globalist neo-liberalism such as NATO, the WEF, and the G20?
