Frank Holmes: After prices fell 10% in December, many investors wondered if the bull market in gold was running out of steam.  That was before Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke swooped in with a “red cape” and fired the bulls back up. Read more…

NYSE:GDXJ, NYSE:GLD

Mike  Larson: Last week, I discussed how the European Central Bank has lost its marbles, launching its own version of quantitative easing. I dubbed it “QE-E.” Read more…

NYSE:EWU, NYSE:UDN, NYSE:UUP

Martin Hutchinson: I’ve made no secret of my aversion to Treasury bonds. Yields right now are irrationally low, and thus do not accurately reflect U.S. credit risk. Read more…

NYSE:IEF, NYSE:TBF, NYSE:TBT, NYSE:TIP, NYSE:TLT

Martin D. Weiss:  The first-ever downgrade of U.S. debt, announced Friday by Standard & Poor’s, hit Asian stocks hard last night and is about to slam into U.S. markets at the opening bell a couple of hours from now. Read more…

NYSE:DOG, NYSE:HYG, NYSE:SH, NYSE:TBT, PSQ