Gold firmed today, Thursday, as weakness in the dollar prompted interest in the precious metal as a currency hedge, with some physical demand after the previous session’s fall also supported prices.

Gold steadied today,  Tuesday, erasing earlier gains, as the dollar recovered lost ground against a basket of currencies, reducing the precious metal’s appeal as an alternative asset.

Iron Ore Rising… Is the current rally in stocks is just a bear market variety, or is it the real thing? The debate has been going on for quite some time now…

Stocks, base metals and crude oil made further headway last week. Long-term US bond yields came down a bit following a successful 30-year bond auction and some pro-Treasurys comments from Japan’s finance minister. The dollar dipped while commodity-link currencies rallied.

U.S. data sparks flight to dollar…  Oil slips, traders fret over demand outlook…  Traders await ECB rate decision on Thursday.

Diversification proved largely futile in 2008, as assets across the board came crashing down. But the right combination of hedges and ’safe havens’ can still return big profits, says Eric Roseman. He gives three investments that every portfolio should include in 2009.

The base metals were all in the green in light post-Christmas trading on Monday. Copper noodled around within a tight 4-cent range the whole day, finishing at $1.3115/lb., up more than 2 cents from Friday. Nickel had a good day, advancing to $4.409/lb., up 17 cents. Zinc moved slightly higher, closing at $0.5164/lb., up three-quarters of a cent. Aluminum posted a modest gain to $0.6868/lb., up more than a penny, while lead had a very strong day, adding nearly 4 cents, to $0.4177/lb.

Almost everything we use in modern society contains large amounts of raw materials. And they can’t be mined fast enough to keep pace with demand, especially from emerging markets. Lundin Mining Corp. (NYSE:LMC) is a strong Canadian mining company, with no debt and world-class assets. And it is a steal at today’s beaten down prices.

The base metals were mixed on Friday. Copper bottomed below $1.48 in the pre-dawn hours, but then pushed higher until the late morning, when it came off its highs to finish at $1.5752/lb., up 5½ cents. Nickel rose from the pre-dawn hours to mid-morning, trailed off, but then rallied late to close at $4.5503/lb., up 9¼ cents.

Copper prices have fallen off a cliff since June, and not even China’s massive stimulus has bucked the trend. But Sara Nunnally says one Chilean mining firm is still planning a major expansion in production over the coming years. This could mean big profits for the company’s three major financial backers (AAUK, XTA, MITSY)… provided they survive the current commodity slump.