Some See A Rat In The Year Of The Ox (Economy no bull)

[Dover]

_________________________________ _________________________________


Wall Street Journal
2-9-09

HONG KONG -- About 170 investors with a net worth of at least $1 million each crowded into a ballroom at the Four Seasons Hotel to hear Alion Yeo's views on the markets for the coming year. The audience, clients of European bank ABN AMRO Private Banking, peppered him with questions.

The incoming U.S. president and secretary were both born in the Year of the Ox," said one client. "Is that a problem?"

Mr. Yeo's answer: Yes. The pair of oxen in charge of the U.S. economy could be an accident waiting to happen. Hold out until after January 2010 before investing in the U.S., he advised.

Forget your broker. Here in Hong Kong, when a feng shui master talks, people listen.

Around the world, many people have consulted masters of feng shui -- a Chinese system of beliefs in the influence of stars, geography and the location of objects on people's lives -- for advice on how to maximize their good fortune and well-being through home decor. But in Hong Kong, masters of feng shui (literally "wind and water") routinely weigh in on money matters, too. And after a year of huge financial losses, they're finding an especially receptive audience.

Raymond Lo, a well-known Hong Kong veteran of the feng shui business, says he has seen a steady stream of bankers and high-powered money managers seek out his stock picks and "destiny consulting" in recent weeks, making this Chinese New Year -- the celebration of which ends Monday -- his busiest in a quarter-century. Cosmos Books, one of the city's biggest publishing houses, says sales of feng shui books at its retail stores are up 20% over last year.

William Lee, a 70-year-old retired businessman, decided to consult a feng shui master ...cont'd

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123359885611840153.html




The ox symbolizes calm, hard work, resolve and tenacity.Feng shui master Kerby Kuek predicts "wood" energies would prevent the housing markets from improving in the spring, a series of "chaotic" political upheavals in the summer, and that the economy will be "ignited" in the fall, led by metal-related industries. By winter, he says, housing prices will be going "up and up."Feng shui master Alion Yeo predicts the Year of the Ox will be a difficult year for the markets, with some fleeting recoveries before a "financial act of terrorism" in June or July -- which he suggests could be the result of a hedge fund trying to manipulate the markets. Mr. Alion recommends his clients buy stocks related to the element of fire, like China Mobile and PetroChina, and to sell HSBC, because construction is under way near its Hong Kong headquarters (generally a bad sign when it comes to feng shui).Two feng shui masters consulted by Credit Lyonnais Securities Asia advise investors to expect a volatile "Year of the Brown Cow" -- brown because of the prevailing earth element and cow, rather than a bull or an ox, because of the yin (or female) influence this cycle. Read their predictions at http://www.clsa.com


Wikipedia - Year of the Ox
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ox_(zodiac)

Other 'Ox' Sites:
http://www.springsgreetingcards.com/catalogs/store.asp?pid=247292

[Dover]

1. Financial astrologers tie investors' moves to the heavens'

Financial astrologers tie investors' moves to the heavens'
by Greg Saitz/The Star-Ledger
Wednesday October 15, 2008

Astrologers have one thing to say about the recent market craziness: We told you "A lot of astrologers have been predicting this would be happening with the stock market," said Judith Ryan, an astrologer from Bayonne. "It's going to be sticky. On the plus side, if you have cash when it goes down even more -- which it will -- then that will be the time to buy."

While investors and government leaders have been worrying about mortgage-backed securities, credit default swaps and tight-fisted banks freezing credit, those schooled in the ways of the cosmos have been watching the planetary movements. Notwithstanding Monday's Mountain Dew-fueled rally, they said Saturn, Uranus and Pluto aren't ready to let the bulls run free.


"It's not the bottom. It's not the end of the problems," said Henry Weingarten, managing director of the New York-based Astrologers Fund, which uses astrology as its main tool to manage investments and advise institutional investors.

"Astrologically, it remains challenged for years."

..snip..

There's plenty of blame to go around for why the nation and the world finds itself in such a financial pickle. Greed. Lack of regulation. Too much easy money.

But some astrologers put much of the blame on that pesky one-time planet Pluto. Rumson astrologer Flo Higgins said Pluto is moving from Sagittarius (laissez-faire attitude, not following rules) to Capricorn (conservative, regulated).

"Things have got to be destroyed and rebuilt and that's what's happening in the world," Higgins said. "We're not doomed to eternity like this. It'll be okay, but we have to go through some life lessons."

The turmoil has been good for business for Raymond Merriman, a financial astrologer in Michigan who runs the Merriman Market Analyst. Merriman has been publishing an annual forecast book ($45) for more than 30 years and said he received 108 orders Monday, easily surpassing the 10 to 20 daily sales he usually gets.

Merriman also has a subscription service for various newsletters that range from $249 to $2,500 annually. He said he advised clients at the end of 2007 to move their investments to cash and thought the latest rally would end yesterday or by the latest, Thursday...cont'd

http://www.nj.com/business/index.ssf/2008/10/financial_astrologers_tie_inve.html