Gold futures are on a tear. According to the Wall Street Journal (subscription required), December gold futures rose $10.90 to close at $967.50 per ounce. Yesterday's high was $972.70, its highest mark since June 5.

The market moved up when buy stops were hit at $960 and $961.965 in the spot market and $963 on the Comex. A "buy stop" is an order to buy above the current price. Traders often place "buy stops" to test the upward momentum of the market or they use specific chart points that signal a turning point in the market. If the stops are hit it usually means that a trend is in place, in this case an uptrend.

It was reported on Sunday, June 21, that Anglo-Swiss mining company Xstrata has proposed a merger of equals to the board of Anglo American ADR (NASDAQ: AAUK), hoping to create a new, more competitive mining giant. Rumors have been milling about for a while.

Together, Anglo American and Xstrata would have a market capitalization of approximately $68 billion, (AAUK's $35 billion + XTA.L's $33 billion) and be larger than Rio Tinto plc ADS (NYSE: RTP), which ended the trading day last Friday with a capitalization hovering over $42 billion.

Why would you sell platinum and buy palladium? There are two main reasons. The first is that the spread (the price difference) between platinum and palladium has widened to over $1,000, making platinum extremely expensive.

Let's see if there is a reason for the widening of this spread. According to the Johnson Mathey's survey for 2009, there was deficit of platinum supplies amounting to 375,000 ounces, while there was a surplus of palladium supplies of 460,000 ounces. For 2009, Johnson Mathey is predicting the price of platinum in the $950 to $1,350 per ounce range and palladium to trade between $180 and $280 per ounce. We should mention that Johnson Mathey, the London-based metals firm, is one of the largest and most respected metals dealers in the world.

Rampant inflation seems likely at some point in the future, as demand for commodities increases and the pain of running the government's printing press full time comes back to haunt us. So once again I am revisiting Anglo American ADR (NASDAQ: AAUK).

How can you protect yourself against the pain of inflation? One thing to remember is that although cash is king -- as we are told every day -- cash will not perform well in a highly inflationary environment. What usually performs well are things that you can hold in your hand, that you can touch and that other folks want.

Now that I want to buy things, what kind of things do I want to buy? How will I know what things to buy? Where will I put these things? What if I buy the wrong things?

From my perspective the answer to all of these questions can be found in AAUK, which I most recently wrote about five weeks ago Chasing Value: Anglo American on sale.

Since the company has mining operations on six continents and owns reserves in most every natural resource, precious and not, you will be diversified geographically and in breadth of resources -- things, that is, things people want.

On more than one occasion, "my pal Warren" has commented that folks have no fear about buying stocks at the top of the market but give them a chance to buy that same stock on sale at half the price and they have no interest.

Last March I was lamenting a lost opportunity to buy Anglo American ADR (NASDAQ: AAUK) at $26 or $27 before it popped to $34 a share. I wanted it at a price it never dropped to, and I did not get it (Chasing Value: Anglo American -- great pick, but alas...).

Then the market started dropping, and dropping some more until finally things were looking pretty bad and I decided it was time to make my play. I recently bought in at $11.69. and it has bounced up and down since then, closing on Thursday November 6, at $10.37, dropping from $12.13 a day earlier.

Since last spring the bottom has fallen out of the commodities market. If you have pondered the idea of buying into a diversified fund focused on mining and mineral assets, then the following profile may depict a stock for you.

• The UK-based company owns significant stakes in global producers of platinum (75%, Anglo Platinum) and diamonds (45%, De Beers S.A.). In addition, Anglo American has interests in ferrous and base metals, and industrial minerals; it also is one of the world's largest independent coal miners. Though it used to have a majority stake in AngloGold Ashanti, Anglo American has reduced its share to 17%. The company controls assets around the world.

Just a few metrics that may be of interest: AAUK is paying over a 5% yield, has a forward P/E ratio 3.2, and almost 30% profit margins. As the following 10-year chart indicates, the stock is almost down to where it was way back then.



Given that the world is printing money unabashedly, and that China and India are not going to stop growing, I think the current prices for coal, gas, diamonds, gold, silver, platinum and all else are destined to go up dramatically after we all take a deep breath. I have no idea what will happen in the short term, but in the long term I believe inflationary pressures will be significant.

Owning a company like Anglo American that is diversified around the world with significant exposure to both precious and semi-precious materials, as well as basic commodities, seems like a good place to invest, if you have the courage to buy it on sale as I believe it is now.

Sheldon Liber is the CEO of a small private investment company and the principal for design and research at an architecture & planning firm. He writes the columns Chasing Value and Serious Money. Disclosure: I own shares of AAUK.

Among the many investment pontificators you will find in the media, I pride myself on laying everything out on the table, good calls, bad calls and even my unfortunate periodic stupidity. All of my 2008 picks are down to a varying degree, making me look none too smart in the opening weeks of the year.

Among the stocks I like, Anglo Amercican PLC (NASDAQ: AAUK) has gone down from the $30 level where I recommended it to around $25 a share today. Its 52-week low is $23.38, and its high was $38.75. It pays a dividend currently yielding about 2%.

Early this morning, this was reported: Anglo American Enters Into Exclusive Discussions To Acquire Control Of The MMX Minas-Rio And MMX Amapa Iron Ore Projects. AAUK is a partial owner now and seeks full control of these Brazilian copper mines. Under the leadership of Cynthia Carroll, who became chief executive of Anglo American, it has been refocusing its business structure, planning sales of its building material division Tarmac for $6 billion, while it has also been reducing its stake in gold miner AngloGold Ashanti.

There has been a push to get big in copper, and all of the news out of South America supports this theme. Meanwhile MarketWatch reported China now world's largest gold producer; foreign miners at door. China is now producing more gold than South Africa, which has been the top producer since 1905.

What are the best speculations and investments among metals, miners, and other resource plays? To find out, I turned to 20 of the nation's leading newsletter editors, as well as speakers from the recent New Orleans Conference, a leading forum for resource advisors.

Their current top ideas cover a wide diversity of ideas, from gold and silver, from alumina and copper, to platinum and palladium. These picks cover markets from Chile to China and from Canada to Russia. These ideas also range from large cap, well-established, and diversified companies to small cap, development-stage junior speculations.

Readers should only consider these ideas as a starting place for their own research and should keep in mind the caveat that any stock you buy should only be considered within the framework of your own time horizon and risk parameters. Meanwhile, here are 20 different advisors assessing various aspects of the metals, mining, and resources sectors: