We may be in the middle of a pre-Christmas rally, but Andrew Gordon says next year’s economic outlook is dire. Job losses are soaring and consumer spending is drying up. And the great unwinding of the credit cycle is not done yet. Andrew says the Dow is due another swoon, perhaps all the way down to 6,000.

This is no ordinary downturn. After the biggest credit bubble in history, we face a correction on an unimaginable scale. Make no mistake about it: This is a credit-cycle bust that the government cannot stop. The losses are already catastrophic. And the massive unwinding is nowhere near finished yet…

Gold bugs have suffered one of their worst years in history, says Keith Fitz-Gerald. But the US dollar looks increasingly fragile beyond this period of short-term panic buying. And that means the outlook for gold remains strong. Keith says every investor should ensure gold forms part of their investment strategy for 2009.