FINANCIAL CYCLES WEEKLY UPDATE #0344 – November 2-8, 2003 with TIM BOST

COMMENT: Hooray! Hooray! The economy has suddenly miraculously gotten better! It’s time to celebrate wildly and buy more stocks!
That was the message last week when the government released its Q3 GDP figures. In an electrifying surprise, the GDP came in at a mind-boggling 7.2%, way above even the most optimistic estimates, and all thoughts of corrective actions and bearish trends vanished immediately.
This huge jump in the GDP means that suddenly there is more discretionary income to spend for businesses as well as for individuals, so capital spending is likely to increase and the economy is now aggressively on the way up. As businesses grow, they need to create more jobs, so the unemployment rate should also soon start to improve. And on top of that, the earnings reports that have been coming in are looking pretty good! Before you know it, we’ll be out of the financial woods once and for all.
At least that’s what all the euphoria would have us believe. Experience has taught us, however, to be a bit more cautious, if not downright suspicious. So we feel obliged to pause for a moment and look behind the numbers.
It’s not that we don’t like good economic news, mind you. We’re truly ready to see genuine improvement in the business climate, and we’ll take all the good news we can get. Some of the positive trends are certainly verifiable—like the number of IPO’s, for example—there were only 5 IPO’s in the First Quarter of this year, and 4 in Q2, but the number jumped to more than 20 in the Quarter we just completed!
Even so, the GDP figures should be prefaced with the standard reminder that past performance is no guarantee of future results. After all, in Q1 of 2002, the first GDP numbers that were released showed 5.8% growth, but the GDP fell to 1.4% in Q2. Immediately after that, in Q3 2002, the GDP was an optimistic 4.0%, but it again fell to 1.4% by the end of the year. So last week’s enthusiasm is not necessarily an indicator of things to come.
That’s not to mention the numbers behind the numbers. Auto sales were up sharply, contributing 1.2 percentage points of the 7.2% jump in GDP—but that was because automakers were almost literally giving away the vehicles as they pushed to clear out their inventory in preparation for the new model year. Last week’s announcement of a drop in unemployment was also misleading, since it was based on revising the unemployment figures for the previous month upward, to create the impression that the picture is now getting brighter. And commercial lending continues to be extremely low—it has been in a downward trend since early 2000, and despite repeated efforts at economic stimulus the lending rate doesn’t show any signs of turning around.
Oh, and by the way, some of those hot earnings numbers deserve a second look, too. A number of corporations have made fairly drastic changes in the way they account for the impact of taxes on their profits, and this move alone is making earnings look a lot better than the old methods of accounting would suggest.
Again, our aim here is not to try to make good news look bad. We would be irresponsible, however, if we failed to mention the Emperor’s New Clothes. All of these rough spots in the economic picture could have a sudden and unexpected impact on the equities markets, so traders need to be extremely cautious right now. And when we add in the potential impact of a Uranus Station and a Lunar Eclipse taking place on the same day, the situation looks even more treacherous. At present, we’re moving into long positions as well as short ones in the stock market, viewing each stock as a special situation and paying close attention to our trading rules.


THE WEEK AHEAD

Earnings season is slowing down this week, but we’ll get reports from Clear Channel (CCU), Emerson Electronic (EMR), Gillette (G), Prudential (PRU), Tyco (TYC), Cisco Systems (CSCO), Fox Entertainment (FOX), Hartford Financial (HIG), and Qualcomm (QCOM). On the economic front, we’re looking for reports on October Auto and Truck Sales; September Construction Spending, Factory Orders, and Consumer Credit; and October Unemployment, Nonfarm Payrolls, and Average Hourly Earnings; as well as the ISM Manufacturing and Services Indexes and the Q3 Productivity numbers.
With a Void-of-Course Moon all day on Tuesday and during the first two hours of trading on Friday as well, this is a week requiring careful planning and evaluation from active traders. That’s not the biggest news astrologically, however. Heliocentric Mercury moves into Sagittarius on Monday evening; Mercury’s heliocentric transit of that sign is a fairly reliable indicator of increasing gold prices, with the other precious metals typically following suit. When the metals move up, it can be associated with many things, including increased international strife, a sudden crisis or act of aggression, the collapse of a social or governmental structure, or a major dip in the stock market. And with a Sun/Neptune square also in play, there may even be some outright deception involved.
The biggest astrological hot spot comes at the end of the week, though, with a Lunar Eclipse just 12 hours after a Uranus retrograde station. The eclipse can be a tension-filled time in itself, but the Uranus station adds a huge amount of volatility to the mix. Be on the lookout for sudden explosions and/or big surprises that can shake things up considerably, with an impact next weekend that could easily carry over into the following week. Take precautions in and out of the markets; don’t be caught napping!
Have a great week!


GLOBAL EQUITIES MARKETS LAST WEEK

With only a couple of exceptions, it was a very positive week for all of the world’s equities markets, with stocks moving broadly to the upside.

Dow Jones Industrial Average – up 2.28%
Dow Jones Transportation Average – up 3.04%
Dow Jones Utilities Average – down 0.02%
S& P 500 – up 2.12%
NASDAQ Composite Index – up 3.57%
Russell 2000 – up 4.30%
London FTSE-100 – up 1.15%
Paris CAC-40 – up 3.27%
Frankfurt DAX – up 5.89%
Sydney All Ordinaries – up 0.50%
Tokyo Nikkei – up 2.17%
Hong Kong Hang Seng Index – up 3.87%
Singapore Straits Times Index – down 0.16%


FINANCIAL CYCLES MODEL PORTFOLIO


POSITIONS CLOSED DURING THE PREVIOUS WEEK: ROSS, UPFC, SHRP.

We closed three portfolio positions during the previous week, with one winner and two losers producing a net profit of $460.00.

On October 27 we bought to cover 500 shares of Ross Systems, Inc. (ROSS) at 18.42, taking a loss of $90.00 (a 0.99% loss in 5 trading days).

On October 28 we bought to cover 500 shares of United PanAm Financial Corporation (UPFC) at 17.75, taking a profit of $750.00 (a 7.79% gain in 16 trading days).

On October 29 we bought to cover 400 shares of Sharper Image Corporation (SHRP) at 28.75, taking a loss of $200.00 (a 1.77% loss in 1 trading day).

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POSITIONS ADDED TO THE PORTFOLIO DURING THE PREVIOUS WEEK: STCR, NWRE, SHRP.

We bought 400 shares of Starcraft Corporation (STCR) at 36.25 on 10/27/03, setting our initial stop at 32.88.

We sold short 500 shares of Neoware Systems, Inc. (NWRE) at 18.50 on 10/28/03, setting our initial buy stop at 19.25.

We sold short 400 shares of Sharper Image Corporation (SHRP) at 28.25 on 10/28/03, setting our initial buy stop at 28.75.

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YEAR-IN-REVIEW MODEL PORTFOLIO ACTIVITY

Since the beginning of the year we have had a total of 139 completed trades, with 79 winners and 60 losers bringing us a total net profit of $44,186.00. The largest profit for a single trade has been $9,240.00; the largest single-trade loss has been $900.00; the average profit per trade has been $317.88. The mean duration of our trades has been 10.4 trading days.

During 2002 we had a total of 195 completed trades, with 119 winners, 74 losers, and 2 break-even trades bringing us a total net profit of $50,956.00. The largest profit for a single trade was $5,100.00; the largest single-trade loss was $1,055.00; the average profit per trade was $261.31. The mean duration of our trades was 12.7 trading days.

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CURRENT POSITIONS IN THE MODEL PORTFOLIO

Commercial Capital Bancorp (CCBI) – bought 600 shares at 17.15 on 10/20/03; currently 18.77. Raise stop to 17.25.

Lifecell Corporation (LIFC) – sold short 1,000 shares at 6.94 on 10/14/03; currently 6.10. Lower buy stop to 6.36.

Neoware Systems, Inc. (NWRE) – sold short 500 shares at 18.50 on 10/28/03; currently 16.95. Lower buy stop to 18.40.

Qlogic Corporation (QLGC) – bought 200 shares at 51.15 on 10/14/03; currently 56.05. Raise stop to 53.99.

Roslyn Bancorp (RSLN) – bought 500 shares at 23.50 on 09/30/03; currently 27.05. Raise stop to 25.70.

Starcraft Corporation (STCR) – bought 400 shares at 36.25 on 10/27/03; currently 43.10. Raise stop to 40.45.

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STRONGEST MARKET SECTORS LAST WEEK

Semiconductor Equipment & Materials; Copper, Specialized Semiconductors, Security & Protection Services; Scientific & Technical Instruments.

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WEAKEST MARKET SECTORS LAST WEEK

Wholesale Computers, Long-Distance Carriers, Hotel & Motel REITs; Drugs Delivery, Automobile Dealerships.

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KEY ASTROLOGICAL EVENTS THIS WEEK

November 2
Heliocentric Mars parallel Heliocentric Hades 00:48 EST
Heliocentric Venus semisquare Heliocentric Neptune 09:53 EST
Sun semisextile Zeus in right ascension 10:02 EST
Heliocentric Mercury contraparallel Heliocentric Cupido 10:16 EST
Heliocentric Mercury parallel Heliocentric Mars 14:32 EST
Void-of-Course Moon 14:40 – 14:52 EST
Heliocentric Mercury parallel Heliocentric Hades 15:12 EST
Mars quincunx Zeus 15:41 EST
Venus enters Sagittarius 16:42 EST
Heliocentric Mercury contraparallel Heliocentric Jupiter 17:32 EST
Sun sesquiquadrate Hades in right ascension 18:00 EST
Mercury square Neptune in right ascension 18:16 EST Mars sesquiquadrate Vulcanus 20:06 EST
Heliocentric Mars semisquare Heliocentric Uranus 21:43 EST
Mars sesquiquadrate Apollon 23:20 EST

November 3
Sun square Neptune 01:54 EST
Heliocentric Venus parallel Heliocentric Saturn 02:27 EST
Saturn opposition Chiron in right ascension 02:53 EST
Mercury sesquiquadrate Kronos 07:48 EST
Heliocentric Mercury semisextile Heliocentric Venus 09:45 EST
Venus parallel Cupido 12:14 EST
Mercury trine Saturn in right ascension 14:57 EST
Mercury sextile Chiron in right ascension 15:35 EST
Venus quincunx Kronos 18:42 EST
Heliocentric Mercury enters Sagittarius 19:12 EST
Heliocentric Venus parallel Heliocentric Uranus 19:24 EST
Venus sesquiquadrate Saturn in right ascension 20:07 EST
Venus semisquare Chiron in right ascension 21:12 EST

November 4
Void-of-Course Moon begins 01:36 EST
Heliocentric Venus enters Capricorn 02:27 EST
Mercury parallel Neptune in right ascension 06:27 EST
Mercury parallel Neptune 06:29 EST
Mercury sextile Jupiter in right ascension 07:40 EST
Heliocentric Mercury square Heliocentric Uranus 09:01 EST
Venus conjunct Mars in right ascension 10:30 EST
Heliocentric Venus opposition Heliocentric Kronos 12:39 EST
Mercury semisextile Pluto 15:05 EST
Mercury contraparallel True North Node in right ascension 16:04 EST
Mercury contraparallel True Lunar Node 16:48 EST
Heliocentric Mercury sesquiquadrate Heliocentric Mars 18:42 EST
Heliocentric Mercury semisquare Heliocentric Chiron 20:14 EST
Heliocentric Earth square Heliocentric Neptune 23:28 EST


November 5
Void-of-Course Moon ends 00:02 EST
Mercury sesquiquadrate Kronos in right ascension 01:26 EST
Heliocentric Mars square Heliocentric Chiron 01:55 EST
Heliocentric Venus sextile Heliocentric Uranus 03:00 EST
Heliocentric Mercury in 24th harmonic to Heliocentric Pluto 10:13 EST
Venus square Uranus in right ascension 10:42 EST
Venus in 24th harmonic to Pluto 11:03 EST
Mercury contraparallel Admetos in right ascension 11:31 EST
Mercury contraparallel Admetos 11:59 EST
Heliocentric Mercury square Heliocentric Jupiter 12:12 EST
Venus quincunx Kronos in right ascension 13:29 EST
Uranus semisquare Chiron 13:40 EST
Sun trine Saturn 18:23 EST
Heliocentric Mercury semisextile Heliocentric Poseidon 21:17 EST
Mercury opposition True Lunar Node 22:26 EST
Heliocentric Venus in 24th harmonic to Heliocentric Chiron 22:59 EST

November 6
Heliocentric Venus parallel Heliocentric Mars 00:30 EST
Hades trine Apollon 00:37 EST
Mercury opposition True North Node in right ascension 00:44 EST
Jupiter trine Chiron 03:28 EST
Mercury semisextile Pluto in right ascension 04:35 EST
Mercury in 24th harmonic to Poseidon 05:03 EST
Venus contraparallel Vulcanus in right ascension 05:18 EST
Venus contraparallel Vulcanus 06:25 EST
Heliocentric Mercury sesquiquadrate Heliocentric Vulcanus 11:04 EST
Heliocentric Mercury sextile Heliocentric Zeus 12:13 EST
Heliocentric Mercury quincunx Heliocentric Saturn 13:41 EST
Sun sextile Chiron 14:21 EST
Sun sextile Jupiter 15:33 EST
Heliocentric Mercury semisquare Heliocentric Apollon 15:39 EST
Heliocentric Mercury conjunct Heliocentric Cupido 20:08 EST
Mercury opposition Admetos 23:02 EST
Heliocentric Venus in 24th harmonic to Heliocentric Pluto 23:19 EST

November 7
Mercury opposition Admetos in right ascension 02:21 EST
Sun parallel Chiron 03:05 EST
Sun parallel Chiron in right ascension 03:11 EST
Heliocentric Venus contraparallel Heliocentric Jupiter 04:23 EST
Heliocentric Venus trine Heliocentric Jupiter 04:39 EST
Venus semisextile Poseidon in right ascension 04:47 EST
Sun trine Mars in right ascension 07:37 EST
Void-of-Course Moon 09:16 – 11:29 EST
Venus semisextile Poseidon 10:46 EST
Mercury in 24th harmonic to Cupido 11:48 EST
Mercury trine Vulcanus 14:44 EST
Mercury semisquare Zeus 15:02 EST
Mercury quincunx Hades 16:09 EST
Mercury semisextile Apollon 16:51 EST
Heliocentric Mars trine Heliocentric Pluto 18:22 EST
Heliocentric Venus sextile Heliocentric Poseidon 18:33 EST

November 8
Sun square Neptune in right ascension 00:40 EST
Heliocentric Mercury sextile Heliocentric Neptune 06:18 EST
Mercury semisextile Apollon in right ascension 06:38 EST
Heliocentric Earth semisquare Heliocentric Kronos 07:29 EST
Uranus direct station 07:45 EST
Heliocentric Venus sesquiquadrate Heliocentric Admetos 11:56 EST
Heliocentric Mars sesquiquadrate Heliocentric Jupiter 12:08 EST
Venus contraparallel Saturn in right ascension 13:38 EST
Venus contraparallel Saturn 13:39 EST
Mars semisextile Neptune 14:35 EST
Lunar Eclipse Full Moon 20:18 EST
Heliocentric Venus square Heliocentric Zeus 20:42 EST
Mercury semisquare Zeus in right ascension 21:25 EST
Sun sesquiquadrate Kronos 22:23 EST
Mercury quincunx Chiron in right ascension 23:41 EST

November 9
Venus conjunct Cupido 01:52 EST
Venus contraparallel Hades in right ascension 03:11 EST
Venus contraparallel Hades 04:38 EST
Venus sesquiquadrate Vulcanus 04:38 EST
Sun trine Saturn in right ascension 04:39 EST
Mars semisextile Neptune in right ascension 05:01 EST
Venus sextile Zeus 05:36 EST
True Lunar Node direct station 05:45 EST
Venus conjunct Cupido in right ascension 06:47 EST
Venus semisquare Apollon 07:51 EST
Venus semisquare Apollon in right ascension 10:00 EST
Sun sextile Chiron in right ascension 18:00 EST
Void-of-Course Moon begins 21:59 EST

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STOCKS TO WATCH: AMTD, APCC, INFA, PETM, SPLS.

Ameritrade Holding Company, Inc. (AMTD)
First Trade Date: 03/04/1997; 09:30 a.m.
Trading Strategy: With transiting Jupiter in opposition to its First-Trade Sun, AMTD has experienced some solid price appreciation recently. It is the planet Uranus, however, which has defined support and resistance for this stock, as is particularly evident when it is graphed geocentrically at 30.675 to correspond with its First-Trade position. A couple of weeks ago AMTD tried to cross this line and failed; with a Uranus station coming up the line should provide even stronger resistance during the next week or so. We’re betting that AMTD has built up enough strength to challenge that resistance successfully, however, and if it breaks through the line at $14.50 it will gain even more energy. Our plan is thus to add a long position in AMTD to the Model Portfolio this week, setting our initial stop at 12.25.

American Power Conversion (APCC)
First Trade Date: 07/22/1988; 09:30 a.m.
Trading Strategy: When APCC gapped upward last Friday, it not only reflected the energy of Jupiter hitting its First-Trade Ascendant; it also broke through a resistance level that had been in effect since the spring of 2001. This is a very bullish signal for this stock, which is rather dramatically illustrated by taking a look at two planetary lines projected onto a price graph: the True North Lunar Node mirrored at 34.5 and heliocentric Jupiter in the 24th harmonic. APCC closed on the Jupiter line on Thursday at 17.90; when it closed after Friday’s strong performance it did so at 20.29, which was the next exact increment of heliocentric Jupiter. The Lunar Node line, which has pinpointed key resistance and support in the past, will be merging with that Jupiter line in the coming weeks, and our guess is that it will be adding to the support for this stock as it continues its upward move. Our plan is to add a long position in APCC to the Model Portfolio this week, with an initial stop set at 18.40.

Informatica Corporation (INFA)
First Trade Date: 04/29/1999; 09:30 a.m.
Trading Strategy: As Jupiter passes over the INFA First-Trade IC this week, we are likely to see the stock continue its upward price move. We don’t see much to sustain the drive past that point, however. A glance at a price chart for the past year reveals that INFA has been moving at the speed of Mars—a clear picture of the planetary dynamics behind the price action is revealed by four geocentric lines: Mars at 21.225; Chiron at 24.93; Cupido at 24.275; and Poseidon at 21.35. The recent Mars retrograde period coincided with the retracement in this stock, while the Mars direct station provided the extra kick that sent INFA into a higher price range. Cupido and Poseidon have helped provide boundaries for Informatica’s trading range in the past; it’s worth noting that the zone between these two lines is much narrower at the current prices for this stock than it was in the lower octaves—unless INFA can continue to pick up some extra juice from Mars, it’s likely to vibrate between 10.27 and 10.95. All this adds up to a picture in which we’re ready to short this stock. That’s our plan for the week, unless we get a couple of consecutive closes above 10.95. We’ll set our initial buy stop at 11.15.

Petsmart Inc. (PETM)
First Trade Date: 07/23/1993; 09:30 a.m.
Trading Strategy: What an interesting time it is for this stock! As Uranus slows down to make its retrograde station this week, it is exactly conjunct the PETM First-Trade Saturn. At the same time, transiting Jupiter is crossing the First-Trade Ascendant, with slow-moving Zeus moving into position for a conjunction with First-Trade Jupiter. Geocentric price lines for Saturn at 32.9 and for the True North Lunar Node at 25.1 are helpful in understanding the price action for PETM; the stock has moved past two Node lines in the past couple of months, with significant bursts of energy each time. Currently, however, PETM is slowing down in its upward progress, and has twice failed to penetrate a Saturn line at about 26.50 successfully. We’re thus ready to sell PETM short this week, setting our initial buy stop at 26.55.

Staples Inc. (SPLS)
First Trade Date: 04/28/1989; 09:30 a.m.
Trading Strategy: With Jupiter crossing the First-Trade IC for this stock, we’re anticipating a brief pop upward, followed by a price decline—an ideal scenario for selling it short. There are a couple of other factors at play, however: transiting Saturn is conjunct First-Trade Vulcanus, and transiting Chiron is conjunct First-Trade Saturn and Neptune. From our perspective, these additional dynamics add to the negative potential here, so we’ll be putting on that short position this week, setting our initial buy stop at 27.39.


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ASTROLOGY & HISTORY

Our historical calendar reminds us that exactly 86 years ago, on November 2, 1917, British Foreign Secretary Arthur James Balfour issued the famous “Balfour Declaration” in the form of a letter to Lord Rothschild, informing the Zionist Federation of His Majesty’s Government’s sympathy with “the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people.” The Balfour Declaration not only marked a significant turning point in British foreign policy; it also helped trigger an international movement that was to lead eventually to the establishment of Israel and to decades of contention and bloodshed, not only in Palestine, but throughout the Arab and Muslim worlds.
The repercussions of the Balfour Declaration have continued to be felt to this day, of course, from terrorist bombings in Indonesia and Israeli air strikes against the homes of suspected bomb makers to al Quaida’s efforts to usurp the monarchy in Saudi Arabia and Paul Bremmer’s efforts to keep the Shi’ite clergy under control in Iraq. It is, in short, impossible to comprehend today’s geopolitical events and their economic ramifications without at least a passing knowledge of the history we would prefer not to repeat.
That’s especially true in Iraq, where another key date from 1917 recently came to our attention. It was March 11, 1917, when Iraq was still known as Mesopotamia. On that date Baghdad fell to invading British troops under the command of Lieutenant General Sir Stanley Maud. The British India Army had tried to conquer Mesopotamia in 1915-1916 but had failed, suffering a crushing defeat at Al-Amara. In 1917, when the city fell, Sir Stanley Maud made the following proclamation: “To the people of Baghdad: we come here not as conquerors but as liberators, to free you from generations of tyranny. . .” from the Ottoman Empire.
Needless to say, liberation and autonomy were not exactly what the British really had in mind. Sir Mark Sykes of the British Foreign Office and M. Georges Picot of the French Foreign Office had already secretly negotiated the “Sykes-Picot Treaty,” in which France and Great Britain agreed to divide up the Ottoman spoils as new colonial territories for themselves. That treaty was not public knowledge, however, and for a year or so, the Shi’ite religious leaders encouraged the Iraqi people to cooperate with the British—at least until it became apparent that the British were in no hurry to give the Iraqis full independence.
After a period of passive resistance to the British, both the Shi’ite and Hawza religious leaders gave the nod to armed attacks. Starting in October, 1919, active skirmishes and guerilla attacks against British troops were mounted, first in the Kurdish area in northern Iraq and then in Karbala and Al-Najaf in the south. After Sheikh Mohammed Taqi Al-Shirazi saw his son forced into exile, he issued a fatwa which prohibited Iraqis from cooperation with the British occupation in any way.
By the summer of 1920, a full-scale armed revolt against the British was underway. Under the direction of Winston Churchill, the RAF dropped mustard gas bombs on Kurdish villages. More than 15,000 Iraqis and 450 British were killed before the revolt was finally put down in October, 1920. As the smoke cleared, it became apparent that it would be impossible for the British to maintain Iraq under direct colonial rule. Instead, a quasi-autonomous Iraqi government was established under a British mandate. Although it was not fully an “Independence Day” for Iraq, the events of the 1920 revolt are a celebrated part of the national history that has been taught to Iraqi schoolchildren ever since.
As is all too often the case, we seemed doomed in our ignorance to unwittingly repeat the mistakes of history—unless, of course, we can apply the insights of astrology and assimilate some of the lessons history has to offer.
When it comes to the history of Iraq, we note that the first few degrees of Virgo are an astrological “hot zone” in key horoscopes for the country. The British establishment of the Iraqi monarchy on August 23, 1921 at 6:00 a.m. Baghdad time took place with 4° Virgo rising and Apollon (vanity and expansion of territory) at 1° Virgo. The October 3, 1932 chart for Iraqi independence features Cupido (a cultural group uniting for a common purpose) at 1° Virgo. And most importantly, the July 14, 1958 horoscope for the Iraq Republic (when Saddam Hussein came to power) includes a very tight and extremely potent Pluto/Zeus conjunction at 0° Virgo. It would be hard to imagine a more fitting astrological signature for “weapons of mass destruction” than Pluto/Zeus!
Early Virgo is thus a common element in the astrological patterns that hold sway when there is a regime change in Iraq. We have to note, however, that this was not the degree area emphasized when Baghdad fell to the British in 1917—nor was it significantly in play when the Bush “shock and awe” bombardment of Baghdad took place in March of this year. Neither of those events represented real changes of regime, in spite of their impact on the Iraqi people.
It was in September, 1920, with the Iraq revolt in full swing, that this astrologically sensitive area was activated, with Jupiter at 3° Virgo in opposition to and contraparallel Uranus at 3° Pisces. There have been seven Jupiter/Uranus oppositions since then, but only the most recent one—on August 30, 2003—also activated this same degree area. Once again Jupiter was not only in opposition but also contraparallel to Uranus, and once again the Virgo/Pisces axis has come into play, with Jupiter at 0° Virgo and Uranus at 0° Pisces.
Just as the British discovered in 1920, an attack on Iraq when this degree area is being activated can have devastating consequences, even if you claim to be taking action ”not as conquerors but as liberators.” Since the end of August we have seen increased ferocity in the counter-attacks against Americans and Iraqi collaborators, as well as against the NGO representatives thought to be aiding the American cause. Measured in dollars or in human lives, the cost of maintaining an occupying force is clearly going to be much more than $87 billion a year. It’s a factor that needs to be considered in all of our economic projections and personal portfolio planning—unless we suddenly decide to wake up to the lessons that history and astrology provide.




FINANCIAL CYCLES (ISSN 1055-8527) is published by Taylor-Bost Consulting and edited by Tim Bost at Post Office Box 1657, Sarasota, FL 34230-1657 USA. Phone: 941-953-3545. Fax: 941-953-3732. Email: timbost@pipeline.com. Entire contents copyright 2003 Timothy L. Bost. No portion of this Weekly Email Update or its printed version may be reproduced without the publisher's written permission. Subscriptions to FINANCIAL CYCLES are $39.00 per month for weekly updates by email or fax, payable by monthly billing to a major credit card. Advance payment options (by credit card, check, or money order) are $228 for 6 months, $432 for 1 year or $815 for two years. All subscriptions are payable in US funds only— Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Diners Club, and Discover/Novus accepted; please make checks or money orders payable to Taylor-Bost.

By providing a source of independent market analysis, the purpose of FINANCIAL CYCLES is to foster the growth of person-centered business and investment astrology; to enhance the development and dissemination of financial literacy and prosperity consciousness; and to explore the use of technical analysis and financial astrology in promoting an esoteric spiritual understanding of economic trends, geocosmic cycles, geopolitical events, and market movements. FINANCIAL CYCLES is a general interest publication which is prepared from astrological information, news reports, cycle projections, and market observations which are believed to be accurate and reliable, but which cannot be guaranteed. Portfolio and trading reports in this publication do not include taxes and transaction fees, which should be taken into consideration by prospective traders and investors. Even with accurate information, past performance is no guarantee of future results. Speculation in securities and commodities involves considerable financial risk, and readers who plan to invest or speculate in securities or commodities mentioned in FINANCIAL CYCLES have the complete responsibility for making themselves fully aware of all the risks involved before they invest. The editor may or may not have positions in the securities and commodities discussed in this newsletter, and the information in FINANCIAL CYCLES should in no way be understood or construed as a solicitation or an offer to buy or sell any products or securities, nor should the material published in this newsletter be considered buy/sell advice.

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posted by Tim Bost @ 11/02/2003 11:09:32 PM