Are you sold on gold? The precious metal outperformed every major equity index in the world in 2008. The question is, can gold—and other precious metals—keep on flying? Or would buying today be buying high and selling low?

Precious metals have always been intriguing to investors because they tend to hold their value. In times of geopolitical crisis or currency devaluation, for example, the value of paper money might fluctuate, but a hard asset will always be worth something. As a result, historically, precious metals have been considered a “safe haven” in times of economic and financial instability.

That brings us to why gold is on a tear today. It declined in 2008 and early 2009 as panicked investors rushed into cash…

Gold was steady on Monday after briefly falling below $990 an ounce, as the euro trimmed some losses versus the dollar, but bullion looked vulnerable to a long liquidation after it failed to stay above $1,000 an ounce.

Gold rose today, Friday, steadying above $931 per ounce as the dollar lost ground versus the euro, with deeper concerns over the U.S. economic outlook also underpinning the metal.

Gold rose above $942 per ounce on Monday, strengthening as the dollar turned lower against six major currencies with slight caution toward riskier assets also proving supportive.

U.S. stocks and oil prices turned south on Friday as investors questioned recent rallies in the face of economic data that still shows a mixed picture of when economies will rise from a deep global recession.

Gold rose in Europe on Friday, building on the previous session’s near 3 percent gains, as Wall Street’s slide to 12-year lows curbed appetite for equities and the dollar tumbled ahead of U.S. jobs data later this session.

Gold did the deed. The precious metal closed over the psychological barrier of US$1,000 last week as the Senate Banking Committee Chairman Chris Dodd sideswiped the dollar.

Gold booms after global strife, Byron King on whether the precious metal is still a buy… Stimulus bill a done deal, details of the final 1,073-page fiasco… States in peril, revenue crash causes budget crisis from California to New Jersey… Wal-Mart surprises Street, Rob Parenteau on retail’s sudden comeback… Stocks dive toward new crisis lows, equity advice from Mayer and Buffett… Plus, have you noticed? One major index quietly up 30% YTD…

Someone sure was excited about Silver Wheaton Corp (NYSE: SLW) Tuesday morning.  It gapped up 2% and kept rising from there.

The news this morning is as grey and damp as the weather.  First, the U.S. stock market did nothing yesterday. The Dow ended down 9 measly points. The Dow is about 10% above its November low; have we seen the rebound already?