There are 2 major views on the metals right now.

• the bull is dead
• the bull is hibernating

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On 13 May 2012

Loads of wisdom here and if you have kids the first couple of minutes will be extra special to you.

By Karen Starich

Facebook is set to launch it’s initial public offering on May 18th. The social media giant has an initial target valuation as high as $100 billion. Looking at the astrology for May 18th we can get some clues as to how the stock will do, and the potential risks involved with the trade.

Mark Zuckerberg, co-founder and Chief Executive at Facebook, recently celebrated his 28th birthday making the Sun’s placement in the IPO chart conjoin to his birth Sun. This is a powerful placement for the founder and the company to share in a new creative venture that will carry far into the future.

Looking at the short term trading opportunity for the stock IPO, there are some considerations in the May 18th date that should be taken into account. The strongest aspect for the IPO is a trine with Saturn (steady business model) to Venus in the sign of Gemini (social networking and communications). Venus, however is moving retrograde, and for a corporation’s chart could indicate they may have an initial breakdown that they will have to recover from. The positive trine shows the potential to be practical and overcome a potential setback.

The weakest point in the May 18th chart, and the one that could cause the most immediate difficulty, is a sesqui-square (135 degree angle) between Jupiter (the planet of expansion) and Pluto (the planet of covert agendas). The aspect suggests there could be inconsistent and abrupt changes in business acquisitions that could involve the company in red tape and lead to investor uncertainty. Recently Facebook made two acquisitions, Instagram and Microsoft patents, totally over $1.5 billion. According to some reports the Instagram deal was the sole brainchild of Zuckerberg’s, and the board’s approval was basically “symbolic” after the deal was already done. As of the IPO date the deal with Instagram remains open while the FTC completes a review of the takeover. This could bring some setbacks to the company’s stock the first week of June when there could be negative news regarding the company’s possible over extension and over expansion that could be viewed as a credit risk. Jupiter is also inconjunct Saturn (150 degree angle and shaped like a boomerang) on the 18th, and suggests investors should use very careful deliberation before making any financial move with this IPO.

A good chart to compare is the Linkedin, Inc. (LNKD) IPO, which ironically was on the same date of May 18th last year. The stock soared to $120 and then fell back to $60 within the first month. There could also be turbulence in the general markets at the end of May, similar to last August, so from my view I prefer to let the dust settle on this IPO.

The following is by Karen Starich, who uses astrology to forecast events in the financial markets. Check out Astrology Traders for specific dates and in-depth analysis of future events in the various markets she covers.

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By Chris Ebert

As with all technical indicators, the Option Indices are intended to be tools to help traders plan future trading in a manner that increases the probability of a profit. Last week, it was reported here that the Long Call/Married Put Index (LCMPI) was in danger of reaching a level that would indicate that the current bull market had ended. As of May 10, the Index had not reached that level, although it was very close. It is even closer this week.

The LCMPI measures the strength of a bull market. When long calls or married puts with terms of 112 days, 28 days, and 7 days all become unprofitable, it is a strong indication that a bull market has ended. The LCMPI has not been in negative territory since early December 2011, so a change in the Index would mark a significant change in the sentiment of the market. When emotions change, new price patterns often emerge.

As of May 10, the requirement for the LCMPI to turn negative was that the S&P 500 remained below 1349. Because the Index progresses with changes in market prices as well as volatility, the bar has been raised slightly this week; the SPX now needs to remain above 1369 in order to prevent a change in the LCMPI. Given the current trading level of 1340, that is a very real possibility.

When the LCMPI indicates that a bull market has lost its strength, traders should take note. In order to eliminate false signals, the Index requires that all three periods verify the same market conditions in order for a switch between bullish and non-bullish. Without a sudden, unforeseen rally by week’s end, the LCMPI will be tripped to non-bullish for the first time in about five months. Once it is tripped, it is not likely that it will return to a bullish indicator for several weeks, or possibly months. The requirement, that the Index changes only when all three measurement periods verify the same conditions, is meant to shield traders from noise. A switch between bullish and non-bullish is a relatively rare and significant event for the LCMPI. Continue reading “The Death Of The Bull Is Near” »