(23 October 2018) Stocks are falling again today as the market begins to digest the fallout of Trump’s trade war.  There is growing concern that China’s economy is in trouble while bellwether Caterpillar disappointed investors with their forward earnings guidance today.  Rising costs and tariffs were specifically mentioned as the reason for the expected sales slowdown.  The Dow has fallen 500 points so far, and is again trading under 25,000 for the first time since early July.  This is all bad news for Trump, of course, as the midterm elections are just two weeks away.

The negative performance is not surprising given this week’s planetary alignments.  Not only is Venus still retrograde (and will remain so until November 16), but it is in close alignment with Saturn.  This introduces an elevated risk of declines.  In addition, Mercury forms a rough 45 degree alignment with Saturn which may add to the overall cautious mood in global markets so far this week.  The Sun is also in a volatile alignment with Uranus and the Lunar Nodes.  It is not a bullish picture to be sure. 

We can also see the current tense alignment manifest in the horoscope of the NYSE.  That Sun-Uranus-Lunar Node (Rahu/Ketu) alignment is hitting the Saturn-Neptune opposition almost exactly today.  Saturn-Neptune operates as a negative axis which will tend to coincide with down days when hit with multiple planet alignments as we have here.  The Sun is the fastest moving of the three and is acting as the trigger planet.  Moreover, transiting Mars is opposite the Ascendant, just a couple degrees away.  This is also a negative influence in this densely packed chart.

The Venus-Saturn alignment is also hitting a key point in the NYSE chart.  Venus is sitting on the IC opposite the MC or 10th house cusp while Saturn is 120 degrees away.  Saturn is also casting its full strength 270 degree square aspect to the natal Rahu (Lunar Node).  The Venus-Saturn pattern here with the MC may not be a clearly negative factor by itself, but the fact that it aligns with natal Rahu (11 Virgo) makes it more likely to coincide with declines than gains.

So what happens next?  The Sun is due to conjoin Venus later this week as both planets will be in alignment with Saturn.  A strong rebound looks unlikely with this pattern and it could well signal another down day or two this week.  Next week looks more promising perhaps as Mercury conjoins Jupiter in early Scorpio on Monday and Tuesday.  Transiting Mercury-Jupiter will also be opposite the Mercury-Sun conjunction in Taurus in the NYSE chart so that offers a reasonable chance for a rebound.

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