02-07-2013, 10:31 PM
FP - A stock market slide, escalated conflict between Japan
and China and more Gangnam-styled success for South Korean singer Psy
will shape the incoming Year of the Snake, say Asian soothsayers.
Those who make predictions according to the study of feng shui -- or
literally "wind-water" -- are influential in many parts of Asia, where
people adjust their lives or renovate houses and offices based on the
advice.
As they bid farewell to the Year of the Dragon, the fortune tellers
warn that the "black water snake" that emerges to replace it on February
10 -- the first day of the Lunar New Year -- could be a venomous one
that brings disaster.
Previous Snake years have been marked by the September 11, 2001
terror strikes that killed nearly 3,000 people, the crushing of the 1989
Tiananmen pro-democracy protests and the Japanese attack on Pearl
Harbor in 1941.
The 1929 stock market plunge that heralded the Great Depression also occurred in a snake year.
Hong Kong's celebrity feng shui master Mak Ling-ling predicts the
stock markets will enjoy a smooth first-half before becoming turbulent
in the second half of the year, which she links to the characteristics
of the reptile.
"It's just like the movement of snakes -- fast, aggressive and sharp, but cunning and tricky at the same time," she tells AFP.
Mak warned that despite early market optimism there would be no full
recovery in the crisis-hit eurozone, while the economy of the United
States would not gather a strong pace until 2014.
She added that President Barack Obama needed to "be less conservative" in his attempts to revive the economy.
Astrologers say this year's snake is identified with the element of
water -- symbolising fear -- that sits on top of the fire element,
representing joy and optimism. They say conflict between the two will
bring turbulence in May.
"This is a disaster year... a lot of things will not go smoothly,"
said Singapore's "Grand Master" Tan Khoon Yong of geomancy consultancy
Way OnNet Group.
"The European Union may split, the euro may be in trouble," the
59-year-old said, adding that the bloc would be threatened by division
in May.
Hong Kong astrologer Chow Hon-ming said a disharmonious May would see
an ongoing dispute between Japan and China possibly escalate into a
"brief" war, as two "snakes" are going to clash according to his reading
of the Chinese almanac.
"May is known as the 'snake month' and it's the Year of the Snake so between May 5 and June 6, these two snakes will meet.
"This is why things will be very intense between Japan and China.
Tensions will rise to a peak and they will possibly go to war."
Chinese fortune telling is based on ancient philosophy and belief
dating back thousands of years that events are dictated by the different
balances in the five elements that make up the universe: metal, wood,
water, fire and earth.
A person's fortune can be calculated by using the exact time and date
of his birth, with the relationship of each of the elements.
The lunar calendar is based on the cycles of the moon and associates
each of the 12 years forming a rotating cycle with an animal -- with the
snake assuming the sixth position out of the 12 animal signs.
China's new leader Xi Jinping and "Gangnam Style" singer Psy, two of
the most famous people born in the Year of the Snake, will see success
despite entering a year matching their Chinese zodiac, usually
considered to be a bad thing.
But China's Xi, born in 1953, and 36-year-old South Korean pop
sensation 'Psy' Park Jae-Sang will be spared, due to their favourable
birth dates and elements.
While the 60-year-old Chinese leader is set to see a smooth
leadership transition in March from predecessor President Hu Jintao,
there may however be the odd bump in the road.
"He needs to watch out for his health. He might suffer a fall in
November if he travels," Chow said, recommending Xi avoids "Europe or
Russia" that month.
CLSA, one of Asia's leading brokerages, creates its own
tongue-in-cheek annual "feng shui index". This year it states that while
stock markets will be volatile in the second-half, the presence of the
market-driving "fire" element gave reason for optimism.
"We've got the fire element so we're pretty hopeful," CLSA analyst
Mariana Kou said, predicting this year markets will have a "decent
finish" this year.
Past Snake years give little encouragement, with the three most
recent ones seeing Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index finish down, falling 33.5
percent in 2001.
"As befits "skin-shedders", Snake years are marked by major
transformation and change -- and sometimes great upheaval," CLSA said.
and China and more Gangnam-styled success for South Korean singer Psy
will shape the incoming Year of the Snake, say Asian soothsayers.
Those who make predictions according to the study of feng shui -- or
literally "wind-water" -- are influential in many parts of Asia, where
people adjust their lives or renovate houses and offices based on the
advice.
As they bid farewell to the Year of the Dragon, the fortune tellers
warn that the "black water snake" that emerges to replace it on February
10 -- the first day of the Lunar New Year -- could be a venomous one
that brings disaster.
Previous Snake years have been marked by the September 11, 2001
terror strikes that killed nearly 3,000 people, the crushing of the 1989
Tiananmen pro-democracy protests and the Japanese attack on Pearl
Harbor in 1941.
The 1929 stock market plunge that heralded the Great Depression also occurred in a snake year.
Hong Kong's celebrity feng shui master Mak Ling-ling predicts the
stock markets will enjoy a smooth first-half before becoming turbulent
in the second half of the year, which she links to the characteristics
of the reptile.
"It's just like the movement of snakes -- fast, aggressive and sharp, but cunning and tricky at the same time," she tells AFP.
Mak warned that despite early market optimism there would be no full
recovery in the crisis-hit eurozone, while the economy of the United
States would not gather a strong pace until 2014.
She added that President Barack Obama needed to "be less conservative" in his attempts to revive the economy.
Astrologers say this year's snake is identified with the element of
water -- symbolising fear -- that sits on top of the fire element,
representing joy and optimism. They say conflict between the two will
bring turbulence in May.
"This is a disaster year... a lot of things will not go smoothly,"
said Singapore's "Grand Master" Tan Khoon Yong of geomancy consultancy
Way OnNet Group.
"The European Union may split, the euro may be in trouble," the
59-year-old said, adding that the bloc would be threatened by division
in May.
Hong Kong astrologer Chow Hon-ming said a disharmonious May would see
an ongoing dispute between Japan and China possibly escalate into a
"brief" war, as two "snakes" are going to clash according to his reading
of the Chinese almanac.
"May is known as the 'snake month' and it's the Year of the Snake so between May 5 and June 6, these two snakes will meet.
"This is why things will be very intense between Japan and China.
Tensions will rise to a peak and they will possibly go to war."
Chinese fortune telling is based on ancient philosophy and belief
dating back thousands of years that events are dictated by the different
balances in the five elements that make up the universe: metal, wood,
water, fire and earth.
A person's fortune can be calculated by using the exact time and date
of his birth, with the relationship of each of the elements.
The lunar calendar is based on the cycles of the moon and associates
each of the 12 years forming a rotating cycle with an animal -- with the
snake assuming the sixth position out of the 12 animal signs.
China's new leader Xi Jinping and "Gangnam Style" singer Psy, two of
the most famous people born in the Year of the Snake, will see success
despite entering a year matching their Chinese zodiac, usually
considered to be a bad thing.
But China's Xi, born in 1953, and 36-year-old South Korean pop
sensation 'Psy' Park Jae-Sang will be spared, due to their favourable
birth dates and elements.
While the 60-year-old Chinese leader is set to see a smooth
leadership transition in March from predecessor President Hu Jintao,
there may however be the odd bump in the road.
"He needs to watch out for his health. He might suffer a fall in
November if he travels," Chow said, recommending Xi avoids "Europe or
Russia" that month.
CLSA, one of Asia's leading brokerages, creates its own
tongue-in-cheek annual "feng shui index". This year it states that while
stock markets will be volatile in the second-half, the presence of the
market-driving "fire" element gave reason for optimism.
"We've got the fire element so we're pretty hopeful," CLSA analyst
Mariana Kou said, predicting this year markets will have a "decent
finish" this year.
Past Snake years give little encouragement, with the three most
recent ones seeing Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index finish down, falling 33.5
percent in 2001.
"As befits "skin-shedders", Snake years are marked by major
transformation and change -- and sometimes great upheaval," CLSA said.