"Keep your gold for the long-term; it's today's best investment," says Mary Anne and Pamela Aden in The Aden Forecast. "Despite normal ups and downs, we strongly believe you'll be glad that you held hold onto your gold."

"Gold, silver and most of the gold shares are about the only markets to show gains so far this year. Everything else is down, and in many cases down sharply. Gold has recently been hitting new, or multi-year highs against the euro, the Dow Industrials, bonds and oil.

"In other words, it's stronger than these other markets. Gold is outperforming them and the percentage gains are greater in gold compared to all of the other markets.

"Simply put, gold is where you want to be. Silver is good too. These are the best markets. That's why we've consistently stressed keeping a large part of your investments in gold, silver and their shares.

"Will there be a recession or not?" asks Mary Anne and Pamela Aden. In The Aden Forecast they note, "The scales are now tipping to inflation," which they view as bullish for gold and silver.

"Sure, the economy will probably slow down in the months ahead and stagflation is also a likelihood. That is, slower economic growth combined with inflation.

"The Fed and the world's largest central banks are working together in a massive, historical concerted intervention to provide all the money and liquidity that's globally needed to keep things rolling along. Money supply, for instance, is soaring at a 16% growth rate, the most in 47 years.

"The latest producer price figure strongly supported our view since it was the highest in 34 years, showing inflation running at a 38% annualized rate. Since producer prices lead consumer prices, this is a huge red flag that big inflation is coming.

"The new record high in the gold price is telling us the same thing, and so are the record highs in oil and the commodity markets. In other words, if a serious recession were coming, gold and commodities would not be soaring.

"Gold is an inflation barometer and the action in this market alone is signaling that inflation will very likely dominate the economic scene in 2008. Inflation is bad for bond prices. It usually means higher interest rates and this time is not an exception.

For 25 years, Steven Halpern, editor of TheStockAdvisors.com, has surveyed the leading financial newsletter advisors asking for their favorite stocks for the coming year. This article is one of 100+ ideas in the Best Stocks for 2008 report.

"The commodity bull market has a long way to run," says Martin Weiss, editor of Money & Markets. "And while individual stocks are inherently more risky than funds, they also have more potential upside. And one area with a lot of upside potential is silver. As such, my top speculative pick for 2008 is Silver Wheaton (NYSE: SLW).

"Silver should ride a tidal wave of fundamentals higher in 2008. Above-ground stockpiles are getting very low, new mine production is lagging, industrial demand is surging and jewelry demand is growing in both China and India.

"And then there's the demand from silver exchange-traded funds, such as iShares Silver Trust (NYSE: SLV), which held over 161 million ounces of silver as of December 7, and keeps growing. India doesn't have a silver ETF yet but should have one in 2008 -- that will bring more demand to bear on the market.

"Silver Wheaton gets 100% of its revenue from silver, and has outperformed both gold and silver this year. It purchases silver from operating mines at a set rate, less than $4 per ounce, insulating it from rising costs. Its production should come in at 13 million ounces in 2007 and rise to 25 million ounces by 2010. Finally, Silver Wheaton has 362.2 million ounces in proven and probable silver reserves.

"The stock isn't cheap, but it is outperforming both gold and silver. And I expect precious metals to head much higher in 2008. Overall, I consider this a red-hot silver play."

This article is part of a 20 article special report on "Metals, miners and money".

"If you are relying on traditional investments to pad your nest for the future, the problems stalking the world economy should be a matter of serious concern," cautions Doug Casey, editor of The International Speculator.

"The $2 trillion or so loss in stock market valuations during the August correction is a precursor of what's to come ... in a best case. The worse case is ... much, much worse.

"Which brings me to the opportunity that the crisis is carrying on its back. For any number of reasons, but first and foremost its use as money in all the world's cultures, throughout all recorded history, gold has begun to find renewed favor with in-the-know investors as the currency of last resort.

"Make no mistake, despite gold's rise from its $255 low in April of 2001 to over $800 as I write, so far, only the thinnest of trickles, a minor fraction of global capital, has made it into gold. When the flight to safety really heats up, the price of gold won't just add dollars, it will add digits.

"If that sounds like hyperbole, remember that, unlike the U.S. dollar, which can be created at the speed of light, the available supply of gold is finite and is painfully slow to change.

"This is a great time to be buying in the gold and silver area," says resources expert Adrian Day. In his Global Analyst newsletter, the money manager and advisor explains, "We are focusing on quality companies in the junior resource sector, following what is traditionally the weak summer period for gold prices."

One favorite of the advisor is Gold Fields (NYSE: GFI), which he notes has a strong balance sheet and long-term reserves. He points out that the stock has been held down as would-be acquirer Harmony sells shares.

In addition, he states, "Goldcorp (NYSE: GG) is one of the strong balance sheets, highest growth outlook, more favorable country risk profiles among the senior miners."

Among silver companies, he says, "Silver Standard Resources (NASDAQ: SSRI) has a strong balance sheet (even allowing for a problem in some commercial paper it holds) of C$242 million, including bullion.

For his portfolio holdings, Neil George often considers stocks that he believes are underpriced due to investor misunderstandings about international markets and political risk. Having lived and work in the U.S., Europe and Asia, he is particularly attuned to geopolitics.

In his Inner Circle, a specalized service designed for risk-oriented investors, he is recommending Apex Silver (ASE: SIL), which he calls his "play on the Bolivian political and mining industry getting itself up on better footings."

He explains that with Venezuela's Hugo Chavez making anti-market noises, investors have grown concerned that Bolivian president Evo Morales will do the same.

Not so, he says. George explains, "As more and more folks understand that the Bolivians aren't Venezuelans and that Morales is no Chavez, we've been getting more buyers who are picking up the bargains in the Bolvian market, such as Apex."

Beyond politics, he explains, a second factor has negatively impacted the shares -- a financial restatement. He explains, "Normally, a restatement is the harbinger of the end for a company. But this time there's a difference. Apex isn't an operating company. It simply owns properties that someday will produce silver and other minerals."

Three of the leading advisory services that focus on the natural resource sector have reaffirmed their bullish posture on silver and issued buy recommendations on their favorite silver stocks.

Mary Anne and Pamela Aden, editors of The Aden Forecast, outline their expected path for the metals: "Technically, silver looks good. It's next resistance is at $14.06 basis March. If it rises and stays above that level, silver could then quickly move up to $14.88, its May high."

They note that silver will remain very strong within its longer term uptrend as long as it remains above the $12.75 level. Meanwhile, they offer a pair of favorite silver stocks - Silver Standard Resources Inc. (NASDAQ: SSRI) and Pan American Silver Corp. (NASDAQ: PAAS).

Each year Steven Halpern, editor of TheStockAdvisors.com, surveys the leading financial newsletter advisors asking for their favorite stocks for the coming year. This article is part of his 24th annual Top Picks Report.

Resources expert Mary Anne Aden, turns to silver for both her favorites for 2007 -- selecting the exchange-traded fund iShares Silver Trust (ASE: SLV) as her conservative investment and Silver Standard Resources (NASDAQ: SSRI) as her top speculation.

In The Aden Forecast she explains, "In recent years, commodities have been rising strongly and this boom is expected to continue in the years ahead. Why? China and other emerging nations have been buying on a grand scale, and it's not only commodities.

"As these countries build and grow, demand has increased sharply for oil, other raw materials, and metals. The strongest commodity has been silver. It's consistently outperformed nearly every other investment, and with reason. More silver is being used than is being produced and it's headed for a world shortage.

"That makes silver a top pick for 2007, and an easy way to profit is to buy the silver ETF, iShares Silver Trust. The best silver share is Silver Standard Resources. Although higher risk than an ETF, this stock is a good way to benefit from silver's potential, and is my top speculative pick for the coming year."