(21 December 2022) US shares have rebounded this week as
recession fears have receded and merchants stay up for a doable
year-end Santa Claus rally.  The Santa Claus rally describes the
seasonal tendency for shares to rise within the second half of December, and
particularly from the primary buying and selling day after Christmas till the second
day of the New Yr.   Consumers this week are due to this fact anticipating some
observe by after Christmas which may stick with it into early January.

However how possible is a Santa Claus rally this 12 months?  Definitely, some
upside this week was pretty possible given how oversold shares had grow to be
after final week’s sell-off.  And the surge within the Japanese yen after the
BOJ shift in its bond coverage can also be seen as typically constructive for
shares because it undermines the greenback.  The rally within the dollar has
been one main motive why liquidity has dried up this 12 months and shares
have trended decrease.

And but the planets don’t very bullish subsequent week.  Not solely is the
worrisome Saturn-Neptune alignment tightening additional, however Mercury turns
retrograde on Thursday, Dec 29 at 4.31 a.m. EST.  The situation of
Mercury, the planet carefully related to issues of commerce and
commerce, can straight affect the inventory market.  As we noticed final week,
the double affliction of Mercury by malefics Mars and Rahu (North Lunar
Node) coincided precisely with a major late week decline.  When
Mercury is weakened or broken on this approach, shares are inclined to fall.

The retrograde station of Mercury is one other such detrimental situation
that’s broadly correlated with declines.  After all, Mercury isn’t
truly stopping and reversing in its orbit; it solely seems that approach
within the sky from our vantage level on Earth.  Nonetheless, this obvious
reversal of its movement is commonly coincident with issues and sudden
developments associated to communication and transportation, along with
quickly worsening market situations.

However we should always word that not each Mercury retrograde station is
equally bearish.  Some Mercury stations are comparatively benign, and some
might even be bullish when Mercury aligns with a benefic planet like
Jupiter.  However when Mercury aligns with a bearish planet on the time of
its station, then the chances for a pullback considerably enhance.

This explicit Mercury retrograde station on Thursday is an
fascinating mixture of influences.  On one hand, its close to precise conjunction
with Venus could be very bullish and will assist help some form of rally. 
However because it occurs, Mercury can also be aligned with bearish Mars by a
135-degree separation.  Whereas this isn’t a conventional Vedic side, it
nonetheless deserves our consideration since all three of Mercury, Venus
and Mars are conjunct within the eighth divisional chart or Ashtamsha (D-8). 
It’s tempting to suppose that the mix of each constructive influences
(Venus) and detrimental (Mars) on Mercury may produce a considerably impartial
outlook late subsequent week.  And but the presence of Mars within the equation
will increase the general draw back threat since Mars aligns and afflicts each Mercury and Venus.

Given this Mars affect, there may be good motive to be skeptical concerning the prospects for a Santa Claus rally after Christmas.

For extra particulars, take a look at my weekly subscriber publication
which is printed each Sunday.   Along with reviewing the important thing
planetary and technical influences on US and Indian shares for the brief
and medium time period, I additionally present an astrological evaluation of potential
upcoming strikes in currencies, gold and oil.

These updates are normally posted midweek.  You will be notified of recent posts by following me on Twitter.