Weekly column: Uranus ingress, Burry's bets, and the tech oligarchs

Review

“Signs of an AI bubble abound: Stock valuations have become uncomfortably rich, AI-related debt is ballooning, and a sustainable financial model for the technology has largely yet to emerge. Now Michael Burry, the investor who famously predicted the subprime-mortgage bubble bursting two decades ago, is betting that two stocks at the heart of the artificial-intelligence trade are set for a fall.

 Burry bought options that will pay off if shares of Nvidia and Palantir drop, according to a securities filing on Monday. The bets involve more than $900 million of Palantir shares and more than $200 million of Nvidia shares at current prices.”

—Asa Fitch, “Michael Burry Returns With Two Big Shorts: Palantir and Nvidia,” The Wall Street Journal, November 4, 2025.

Since discovering astrology, I have been drawn to the idea of linking past market crashes with planetary movements to anticipate the timing and nature of the next financial bubble. I do not claim to have uncovered the full system, but it remains a worthy pursuit. In studying the 2008 crisis, I noted that Uranus, the planet of disruption and the boom-bust cycle, was in the water sign of Pisces. While Ray has correlated this period with a 77% fall in crude oil (an asset ruled by Pisces), I propose a broader view. Uranus occupied the water trigon of Cancer (homes and real estate), Scorpio (debt and credit), and Pisces (complex and obscure financial instruments such as mortgage-backed securities and collateralized debt obligations). These opaque products encouraged reckless risk-taking and fueled the bubble that eventually burst. With Pluto, the planet of manipulation, entering Capricorn, it was clear that the true architects of the collapse were the banks and financial institutions.

What, then, are the heavens revealing to us now, and is Michael Burry’s trade well-founded? Uranus has begun its ingress into Gemini, and after a brief return to Taurus, it will remain there for seven years from April 2026. The air signs govern the mind, ideas, communication, and technology, while Gemini rules programming, media, software, transportation, and trading. With Uranus, the planet of innovation, in Gemini, the sign of intelligence, the next boom-bust cycle may well emerge in artificial intelligence. As Pluto advances through Aquarius, the mantle of power shifts from the banks to the new tech oligarchs, the wealthy figures driving the AI revolution, who may be overvaluing its promise and burdening their enterprises with excessive debt. In short, while he may be a little early, Michael Burry does seem to be on the right track.

All three U.S. stock markets closed down this week, on the back of concerns over the monetization of AI technology and the vast circular spending within the industry. Consequently, the NASDAQ saw the biggest weekly drop since April. This was also reflected in Japan’s Nikkei, which formed an ATH early in the week, before giving it all back and dropping 6.7%. In fact, most indices fell across the board from the Australian ASX 200 to India’s Nifty, the UK’s FTSE 100, and the German DAX. China’s SSE index was more resilient, closing the week up, but still not able to take out last week’s ATH following the positive news of the U.S.-China trade talks.

In the Americas, the real talk of the markets has been Argentina’s Merval, having rallied over 90% over 7 weeks, following Milei’s decisive win in the 2025 mid-term elections. The Merval has now broken out of the bearish price channel that it has been in since January 2025. Brazil’s Bovespa index continues to rally to a new ATH this week. South Africa’s JSE has experienced a minor drop for three weeks following the October ATH.

The precious metals continue their consolidation within the bounds of the prior week. Bitcoin and Ethereum remain within a bearish pattern, putting in new lows in the time band for a primary cycle trough. Bitcoin ends its 30^th week, having formed its major cycles in the 10^th and 20^th weeks. Crude Oil continues its long consolidation under the heavy presence of Saturn in Pisces. The grains continued their spectacular rally following the return of Chinese demand last week.

Short-term geocosmics

We had an important week of geocosmic activities with Mars opposing Uranus on Tuesday. In the geopolitical world, we saw President Trump and Putin ramp up the military (Mars) rhetoric around nuclear (Uranus) testing. We also saw the unfortunate crash (Uranus) of a UPS cargo plane as it exploded into a ball of flames a day after Mars (fire) joined Mercury (postal service) in Sagittarius (airplane).

With Venus squaring Pluto on Friday, many markets closed lower. Over the weekend, Mercury turns retrograde on Sunday, November 9 (2° Sagittarius), followed by Jupiter’s retrograde on Tuesday, November 11 (25° Cancer). Together, these planetary shifts mark an important critical reversal date and appear to be setting up a potentially strong trading opportunity across several markets. 

Longer-term thoughts and opinion

“Zohran Mamdani won his race for mayor on Tuesday, and it wasn’t close. The people have spoken, for better or worse, and his voters were willing to take a risk on his radicalism in the name of change. We’ll soon learn if the 34-year-old Assemblyman has a pragmatic streak or sees his mission as making the city that never sleeps a socialist lab experiment.”

—The Editorial Board, “Zohran Mamdani Captures New York,” The Wall Street Journal, November 5, 2025.

The New York City mayoralty is one of the most powerful and visible local offices in the world. The city’s economy rivals that of many countries, and the office is often a stepping-stone to higher power, which is why Zohran Mamdani’s win has created such a buzz. Mamdani is widely seen as an idealistic but pragmatic progressive leader who blends grassroots activism with policy depth. He is young, charismatic, possesses intellectual rigor, and a sharp sense of justice, often described as both bold and collaborative. His leadership emphasizes inclusion, social equity, and moral clarity, often associated with the air signs of Aquarius and Libra. To understand the man, I turned to his natal chart.

The first thing that caught my attention was all the key 0° fixed sign placements. His Ascendant is 0° Leo, which explains his charisma and magnetic presence that draws attention as he radiates with confidence. His Sun is in Libra in the third house, making him a master communicator, persuasive, tactful, and seeking justice. The presence of Mars (0°  Scorpio) also in the third house adds a strategic drive beneath the calm exterior. He knows exactly when to push and when to charm, yet he can be razor-sharp when agitated. His Mercury is on the IC, which suggests deep intellect and insight, allowing him to resonate with the masses and reach the heart of the issue. With a Uranus-Neptune conjunction in the sixth house, Mamdani is a visionary reformer of public institutions and services. Yet arguably the most important placement is Saturn bang on his Descendant at 0° Aquarius, along with the Moon also in Aquarius and the seventh house. People will project trust and stability onto him (Saturn), as he embodies the future-oriented, humanitarian archetype of Aquarius. The mix of Leo-Aquarius polarity gives him both the regal presence to lead and the progressive ethos to represent the people.

Having just written the chapter on the upcoming transit of Jupiter through Leo (Jun 2026 – Jul 2027) for the Forecast 2026 book, it was interesting to note that this transit often brings great leaders to the foreground. The likes of Mahatma Gandhi, Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King Jr., Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, Reza Shah Pahlavi, Gamal Abdel Nasser, Franklin Roosevelt, Winston Churchill, and Joseph Stalin all shone bright in the history books as Jupiter transited the leadership sign of Leo. Jupiter was within a 5-degree orb of his ascendant when he won and will be transiting both his and President Trump’s first house. This is likely to propel them further into the limelight. It’s also worth noting that President Trump won his second term as Jupiter, the great benefic, was transiting his Sun sign of Gemini last November.

Yet the more important signature within Mamdani’s chart is his Saturn at 0° Aquarius. This is the exact degree of the December 2020 great conjunction between transiting Jupiter and Saturn, right on Mamdani’s structural axis of partnership and public engagement. The Great Conjunction is supposed to result in major social or political shifts, marking a new era in air signs. For Mamdani, this began a new era of visibility and legitimacy in the public sphere as he was first elected into public office as the representative of District 36 in November 2020. This week, Jupiter (25° Cancer) and Saturn (25° Pisces) were in a harmonious trine, reactivating that 2020 seed. This is the “reward phase” of the synodic cycle. He won the office of mayor with the Full Moon on his Midheaven and transiting Venus on his natal Sun. The real test and challenge for Mamdani will come at the opposition phase between Jupiter and Saturn, 2029-2031.

Looking at the synastry chart between Trump and Mamdani and without going into a lot of detail, the most interesting placement for me is Trump’s natal Jupiter conjunct Mamdani’s Sun. Jupiter expands whatever it touches. Trump’s Jupiter on Mamdani’s Sun amplifies Mamdani’s presence. It suggests that, paradoxically, Trump’s influence (even as a critic or rival) helped Mamdani grow in popularity. Mamdani’s ideals and political identity (Sun in Libra) found a broader platform in response to the Jupiterian (wealthy elite) figure Trump represented. Therefore, Trump’s criticism and threats to the people of New York, ironically, inflated Mamdani’s visibility. Mamdani was not wrong in identifying this influence when he asked Trump to “Turn the volume up” in his victory speech!

As always, I will end this week’s column with Aquarian advice from the poet Saadi, who devoted much of his writing to the ethics of rulership and the wise exercise of authority. I would urge all leaders to read Saadi’s Golestan (The Floral Garden) and Bustan (The Orchard), so that we might yet have a chance to build heaven on earth. Golestan, Book I: On Justice, Governance, and Counsel:

“The king who walks the path of justice,

His name shall endure in the goodness of time.

 If he longs for his memory to live in blessing,

Let him not turn the hearts of the sorrowful away from kindness.”