inflation hedges

You%u2019ve heard it so often you can probably repeat it in your sleep: Equities are the best protection against inflation. But academic research establishes clearly that it just isn't so: Stocks aren't a good hedge against inflation at all, particularly high inflation.

Earlier this year, the Utah state legislature passed a law making gold and silver coins legal tender. Now, a Salt Lake City-area numismatist hopes to set up a depository system that will allow Utahans to use gold and silver to pay for anything they want.

Analysts lately have loudly proclaimed the end of the dollar, leaving investors looking to stay ahead with a choice of betting on stocks, which have 17% fallen in the last decade, or staying "safe" in very low-yield money market funds. But there is an alternative: commodities.

Recent reports show that several banks have begun advising their wealthiest individual clients to put as much as 10% of their assets into the precious metal. And some are stocking up by the ton.

Rattled by concerns about Dubai's debt, investors fled gold for the safety of the U.S. dollar during early trading on Friday. The move comes as the booming appetite for the precious metal among smaller investors has led to near record prices and shortages of American Eagle gold coins at the U.S....