“Bulls make money, bears make money, and pigs get slaughtered.” -Old Wall Street saying
We already had our New Year here in the United States, but the Chinese New Year begins today and with it brings the Year of the Snake. The snake is the sixth of the twelve-year cycle of animals that appear in the Chinese Zodiac. Although snakes don’t have a positive connotation in the US, in Chinese culture they have positive symbolism. For example, they are regarded as little dragons and the skin snakes shed is referred to as the dragon’s coat, symbolizing good luck, rebirth, and regality. 🐍
Although we would never suggest investing based on the zodiac signs, it is interesting to note that the Year of the Snake has historically been quite weak for stocks. We noted last year why horned animals tended to be bullish and that played out quite well last year with the Year of the Dragon 🐲.
The 12 zodiac signs appear in the following order: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig. Each sign is named after an animal, and each animal has its own unique characteristics. Someone born during the Year of the Snake tends to partner well with an Ox or Rooster, but things don’t mesh so well with Tigers or Pigs.
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Since the Chinese New Year typically starts between late January and mid-February, we looked at the 12-month return of the S&P 500 starting at the end of January dating back to 1950. And wouldn’t you know it? The Year of the Snake has been up only three out of six times and up an average of less than 1%. Additionally, stocks have alternated between higher and lower since 1953, suggesting this could be a down year.
Here’s how all 12 signs have done since 1950. Historically, the snake is indeed the worst sign, with the Rooster the second weakest. Turns out the Year of the Goat has the strongest returns (maybe there’s something to that “greatest of all time” acronym), but you’ll have to wait till 2027 to see that one again. Next year is the Year of the Horse, which hasn’t been all that strong either. Lastly, we found it amusing that animals with horns saw some of the best returns, with last year’s horned Dragon a good one for the bulls. I did a little more research and it turns out that some snakes have horns, so maybe all hope isn’t lost just yet!
This is all in good fun and of course in no way should you invest based on zodiac signs. For more of our real-time thoughts on DeepSeek, AI, the tech collapse, and more, be sure to read what Sonu Varghese, VP Global Macro Strategist, had to say in DeepSeek: Did China Just Eat America’s Lunch?
There are still a lot of reason to remain optimistic and we discuss many of those in our latest Facts vs Feelings podcast , which you can watch below.
For more content by Ryan Detrick, Chief Market Strategist click here.
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