It's Monday morning and it's the same old, same old: gold surges to a new high; commodities rally; stocks rally; and the dollar is weaker. Traders see this as a no brainer.

Spot gold is strong today, reaching a new high of $1165.45 per ounce, up from Friday's close of $1148.20. On the COMEX, gold traded at $1,165.90, up $19.10 per ounce (each $1.00 equals $100.00). Gold has been spurred higher by central bank and fund buying.

Options traders are betting on gold rising to $1,200 per ounce. That's only $35 away. We could see that in another day of two if current trend continues.

The rally in gold just doesn't want to quit. You are probably wondering what is going on. Central banks around the world hold gold reserves. Periodically, they buy or sell gold, depending on how they view world markets. Right now, central banks are net buyers, the first time since 1988.

A weak US dollar is the main stimulus for central bankers' gold purchases. India just bought 200 metric tons from the International Monetary Fund. Central bankers in Mexico, Russia, the Philippines, all have increased their gold purchases.

It's Monday morning. Looking at the boards, the dollar is weaker and gold climbs to another record high. Spot gold in London traded at $1,133.07 per ounce. The December gold futures contract traded at $1,133.50 per ounce.

Again today, the dollar traded down, with the December dollar contract trading at 75.105, down 32 (prices as of 8:39 EDT). The other precious metals followed gold higher. December silver traded at $17.815 per ounce up 43.5 cents. Platinum was at $1,428.90 per ounce, up $41.20. Palladium traded at $365.15, up $8.40

Late in the evening of November 11, The Daily Telegraph reported that Barrick Gold (ABX) has shut its hedge book because the world gold supply is running out. Barrick Gold's president, Aaron Regent, told the periodical that global output has been shrinking at a pace for nearly 1 million ounces a year since the start of the decade.

At RBC's annual gold conference in London, Regent noted that "There is a strong case to be made that we are already at 'peak gold.'" Regent believes that production peaked around 2000 and has dropped ever since, he adds that Barrick Gold believes the decline will continue because "It is increasingly difficult to find ore."

Gold is trading at $1,118.00 per ounce. What is that number telling us? Pure and simple, the market is telling us that inflation is on the way. The Indian government just bought 200 tons of gold valued at over $7 trillion dollars. In other words they exchanged $7 trillion US dollars for the 200 tons of gold.

At the same time the December US dollar contract traded below 75.00 on a trade-weighted basis. What is that number telling us? Traders are turning in dollars for other investments, mainly stocks and commodities.

Amazon (AMZN) closed at $126.20. AMZN December option implied volatility is at 44, January is at 43; versus its 26-week average of 47, according to Track Data, suggesting decreasing movement.

Market Vector Gold Miners (GDX) is recently up $1.13 to $48.75 in pre-open trading. Gold is recently up 1.11% to $1107.90. GDX November and December option implied volatility of 49 is below its 26-week average of 52, according to Track Data.

Option Update is provided by Stock Specialist Paul Foster of theflyonthewall.com.

Slowly, developing countries are shifting their reserves away from the dollar into the euro and yen. Neil Mellor, strategist at Bank of New York Mellon Corp (NYSE: BK), which has some $20 trillion dollars in assets under custody said: "I don't think there will be an imminent move, but it is quite clear there's a plan to shift reserves to a more balanced portfolio."

Barclays Capital Research reported that central banks placed 63% of new cash in non US currencies between April and July.

Here's a shocker: India's central bank just bought 200 tons of gold.

India paid $6.7 billion to the International Monetary Fund for the gold, securing the equivalent of 8% of the world's annual production. India's move is a clear signal that Asia is moving away from the U.S. dollar.

India's finance minister said the reason for the purchase was that the economies of Europe and the US had "collapsed."

On Friday October 16, CME Group (NYSE: CME) decided that it wants to allow customers across the globe to use gold, physical gold, as collateral on all of its exchange products (alternative investment products, futures and options, etc). The member notice was sent out on late Friday, giving instruction on how the use of gold would work. Firms are allowed to post gold as collateral up to $200 million, the collateral will cover performance bond (margin) requirements.

We've watched stock market numbers bounce around for two years. Unemployment stats have served as unpleasant reminders that, for some, leading indicators haven't translated to reality. We look for so many ways to understand the brutal economic environment with which we've had to contend, and all the choices can make your head spin. So, let's make it simple. Here are eight ways to tack a label onto the financial world in which we live.

1. Lost market value
Total stock market losses from October 2007's top to March 2009's bottom: $11.2 trillion
Total gains in the stock market since the bottom: $4.6 trillion
Lost ground: $6.6 trillion

2. Bad days
Percentage of the 10 worst days in history for the Dow Jones Industrial Average that happened in 2008, by point drops: 60%
Percentage of the 10 worst days in history for the DJIA that happened in 2008, by percentage drops: 30%

3. Mutual funds
Value of mutual fund assets at the end of 2007: $6.5 trillion
... and a year later: $3.7 million
Lost value: $2.8 trillion

But, it got a little better at the end of August 2009: $4.5 trillion (value of assets)