Blue Monday is another example ( same as Big Mac Index) that sometimes a quasi scientific formula meant as a joke becomes popular in serious life.
A man named Cliff Arnall must have hated Mondays. He created and popularized the theory of the most depressive day throughout the year, which falls just today – January 16. Blue Monday is always the Monday of the last full week of January. Therefore due to depressive feast we check if bad humor touched markets, or the feast of Martin Luther King gently alleviates depressive moods.
Why today?
Why Cliff Arnall chose last Monday with a full week of January and gave him the nickname not necessarily most sympathetic “depressing” ? Employee of Cardiff University ( In The Guardian was printed a statement from Cardiff University distancing themselves from Arnall: “Cardiff University has asked us to point out that Cliff Arnall… was a former part-time tutor at the university but left in February “ ) in his work devoted to the subject said that to designate a specific date was used specially developed mathematical formula that takes into account psychological factors (failure to meet the provisions of the New Year), meteorological (short day, no sun) or economic (time for repayment Christmas debts on credit cards).
According to Arnall state of our mental health can be determined by the formula:
where
- W=weather,
- D=debt,
- d=monthly salary,
- T=time since Christmas,
- Q=time since failing our new year’s resolutions,
- M=low motivational levels,
- Na=the feeling of a need to take action
Even the calculation were considered and rejected as pseudo-scientist by academic environment, the term Blue Monday has gained in popularity, and people have another reason to complain – which may prove to be the perfect way to celebrate depressing Monday.
Are markets also feeling blue?
No sun, Christmas debt and the feeling that the holidays are still so far can definitely act depressingly on Monday spent at work – interesting, however, is if the Blue Monday syndrome also can be seen on markets.
Certainly the British pound sterling cannot name today’s session the most successful:
Looking at the European stock market and currency, we see no clear reason to tell that that Blue Monday clearly rebounded in the markets. Apart from GBP no instrument is exceptionally depressed due to the most depressive day of the year.
