To paraphrase the great Steve Martin, todays investors are very passionate people and passionate people tend to overreact at times. An overreaction is exactly whats happened in gold and global markets in recent weeks. While market bulls have been sniffing out data points to support their case, market bears have continued to take a glass-half-empty approach. Gold and China are two areas that have been caught in the bear trap this week, but we believe the gold and China bulls still have room to run.

Golds been knocked down lately, but several enduring factors have conditioned the yellow metal for an inevitable comeback. Since the beginning of 2012, gold has trailed its precious metals peers, gaining only about 6 percent compared to double-digit returns for silver and platinum. At the end of February, gold was especially hard hit, following Ben Bernankes announcement that there would be no additional quantitative easing and the European Central Bank offering additional LTRO loans to banks.

Everyone agrees that its unethical to put the firms interest ahead of its clients. More importantly, a self-serving financial attitude is a breach of fiduciary duties. It may be possible that Goldman Sachs has moral issues, but not all financial firms are morally bankrupt. Nor are thousands of executives and professionals employed in the industrymoms, dads, uncles, aunts, daughters, sonswho are hard-working and acting in the best interest of their customers.

Demand for access to basic needs, an emerging middle class and a never-ending use of global resourcesthese are the primary drivers of major infrastructure projects over the next several years. The infrastructure plans taking place across emerging markets emulate a 1950s America. As these governments help their residents pursue the American Dream of better homes, health care and quality of life, I believe the companies with a strong footprint in these growing markets stand to benefit.

Winning the Pritzker gives Wang credibility on the world stage,. It also gives credibility to Chinese architecture. Zhu Tao, a University of Hong Kong architecture critic, told The Wall Street Journal that Wangs award sends a message to young architects working in the context of explosive urban growth that architecture is a cultural enterprise, not just a commercial enterprise, and that architects are creators of culture. In this globalized world where China is a powerhouse economy, modern Chinese culture is being sculpted right alongside its skyscrapers.

While most analysts dont expect another moon shot rise in China's GDP this year, a 7.5 percent growth rate still exceeds most emerging economies and all developed nations. Advanced economy growth is expected to be meager, slowing from 1.6 percent to 1.3 percent in 2012, according to The Conference Board. For long-term investors learning to appreciate the finer points of the country, we believe China is somewhat like fine wine; it only gets better with age.

What do investors in the stock market need? Trading volume. After daily trading volumes in the S&P 500 Index hit a high in July 2002, volume quickly declined before leveling off, bouncing between 20 and 30 billion shares on a daily basis for a few years. Since its January 2009 high, daily shares traded have quickly spiraled downward. Today, volume is at a 15-year low, with only 7 billion shares traded.

After Apple reached $500 billion in market capitalization, it was inducted into a very elite club of businesses that have reached this size. Only Cisco, ExxonMobil, General Electric, Intel and Microsoft have made it to the $500 billion mark. Since October, the tech companys stock has increased nearly 40%, making it the top driver of the S&P 500 rally. This increase caught the attention of many analysts, including Thomas Lee from J.P.Morgan, who declared that the company is a sector unto itself. At a market cap of just under $500 billion, Apple represents 3.7 percent of the S&P 500 Index.

We expect there to be corrections in the price of oil throughout 2012, just like the ups and downs commodities experience from year to year. While the world is hungry for energy, theres no free lunch on the Periodic Table of Commodities, and historically, from year to year, commodities fluctuate. Crude oil, for example, has seen its share of ups and downs: In 2008, oil lost 53 percent; in 2009, it increased a substantial 78 percent. While oil may remain elevated, use these higher prices to your advantage by owning natural resources companies that benefit from higher prices.

A lack of faith and trust has driven investors to the sidelines and halted the flow of capital in the U.S. According to the Investment Company Institute, investors pulled more than $130 billion from equity mutual funds during 2011. This is a common reaction in the cycle of market emotions where investors generally move from a fear of losing money, to becoming apathetic about the markets, to feeling confident about investments, and finally, to irrational exuberance. Right now, many investors appear to be stuck in an apathy sandpit.

One of the reasons money has found its way back to the market is that low interest rates and a bubble in bonds have upped the attractiveness of equities relative to other asset classes. In fact, many large-cap equities come with a higher yield. This means that investors can wait for the growth, while receiving the income. Overall, it looks like the markets dark clouds are lifting and we could be in for a period of sunny skies in the months ahead.

The cover story of this week

For thousands of years, pharaohs, explorers, rulers and investors have been attracted to gold, as the precious metal has been a vital tool in building and protecting wealth. While gold naysayers focus on the day-to-day fluctuations in price, I believe gold equities and bullion will continue to enjoy maximum popularity, as the Oracle of Omaha puts it, for years to come. The allure of goldwhether it is from Fear or Lovecannot be underestimated.

Bloomberg Markets magazine recently posted a list of the most-promising emerging and frontier markets for investors. Rankings were determined by several investment measures, including GDP growth and ease of doing business.

Its all quiet on the equity front. For the past month, the S&P 500 Index has experienced an unusually calm period of lower volatility. Bespoke Investment Group says the timeframe between December 28 and January 26 has been remarkably lacking in 1 percenters. The firm found that its been more than a year since the S&P 500 has gone 26 trading days without declining one percent. We believe government policies are precursors to change, which is why our investment team continually monitors and tracks the fiscal, monetary and regulatory policies of countries.

Increasingly, Russian companies have begun paying dividends, with some companies paying as much as a 10% annual dividend. As interest rates around the world will remain low or even negative for years to come, dividends offer investors the opportunity to earn income with the potential of appreciation. Although political risks remain, we believe Russia continues to be a hotbed of opportunity for emerging market investors.

Fridays employment data was the latest of a series of data showing marked improvement in the U.S. economy. ISI counted 18 straight weeks of stronger U.S. data including better vehicle sales, same store sales, homebuilding and manufacturing. Also, U.S. money supply is growing at a robust 10 percent year-over-year, greasing the wheels for Americas economic engine, which showed 3.7 percent growth in nominal GDP in the fourth quarter.

We anticipated that the Year of the Dragon would spur an increase in the buying of traditional gifts of gold dragon pendants and coins. Gold buying did hit new records, says Mineweb, with sales of precious metals jumping nearly 50 percent from the same time last year, according to the Beijing Municipal Commission of Commerce. This should serve as a warning to all of golds naysayers. Gold bullfighters bewareyou now have to fight the gold bull while fending off a golden Chinese dragon.

The Economist put together a comprehensive dateline, charting which year China overtook or will overtake the U.S., using 21 indicators of consumption, GDP or spending. It summarizes the significant milestones reached over the last decade or so, reminding us how far China has come. Looking into the next decade, The Economist also plots an estimation of when Chinas GDP will be larger than that of the U.S. China stands to be the largest economy by 2018. However, if China grows faster with all the other factors remaining the same, the countrys GDP could be larger than the U.S.s GDP by 2017.

In volatile markets, small stocks typically lag larger companies as investors flee what they perceive to be risk. However, this love affair with large-caps is generally short lived as investors return to the beaten-up small caps when the turmoil subsides. Historically, small-caps have outperformed their larger counterparts. In 2011, junior miners were shunned, but Global Resources Fund co-portfolio managers Evan Smith and Brian Hicks pointed out to me this week that were beginning to see signs of small-cap strength.

Years ago, China did not have a global footprint, but over the last few decades the country has transformed itself into a global power. It boasts the largest automobile market and the largest consumer of steel, copper, mobile phones, and energy. It has built 18k miles of high speed rail connecting 250 cities with 5.5k skyscrapers. This tremendous infrastructure has amplified and globalized M&A activity, which has a positive effect on commodity-related stocks. For commodity equity investors, BCA says to expect Chinese firms to play an increasingly important role in global capital markets

With rising incomes and increasing urbanization, we believe China is pursuing the American Dream, and the government has shown great determination to build the necessary infrastructure along with a robust urban labor market. On a purchasing power parity basis, Chinas share of world GDP has risen significantly, from around 3 percent in 1985 to a current world share of nearly 16 percent.

The emerging world will push global energy demand 30 percent higher by 2040, according to ExxonMobils Outlook for Energy: A View to 2040. The report contains some interesting projections on what may be in store for the energy sector in the coming decades. The global population is expected to reach a staggering 9 billion over the same period, but it isnt population growth that will drive the increase in energy demand. Instead, rising affluence and higher living standards in regions such as Africa, Latin America, the Middle East and India will be the biggest factors.

Indonesias workforce is growing 7,000 people stronger each day, adding an estimated 21 million people to its workforce by over the next decade. This is second only to India. This growth has given birth to a burgeoning middle class willing to spend money on durable goods such as clothing, personal-care items, home appliances and electronics. Currently, domestic consumption accounts for two-thirds of Indonesias GDP. Weve already seen double-digit growth in sales for televisions, cars, computers and laptops over the past few years. More importantly, this trend is just getting started.

Ive found many people are particularly energized about predicting a hard landing for Chinas economy, but I believe the country is no sinking ship. China isnt fast-approaching an iceberg in the dark of the night like the Titanic. Beijing has long been anticipating the ice chunks and subtly adjusting the rudder around inflation without steering the economic ship too far off course.

If China follows this path, another 30 percent of the population is expected to move to the cities by the year 2030 less than 20 years from now, says BCA. This movement means there will be more than a half-billion city dwellers in the next 20 years or about 200 million new urban households. I believe this urbanization trend just hit the pivotal moment that dramatically shifts certain buying patterns into a higher gear, driving an enormous demand for housing, consumer staples and durable goods.

Our team has put together a great table ranking 19 emerging market countries by how their stocks have performed in each of the past 10 years. Most of the E-7 countriesthe most populous nations in the worldare listed, including Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, Mexico, and Russia, as well as other resource-rich and growing Asian, Eastern European and Latin American countries.

The Milken Institute released its 2011 list of Best-Performing Cities Index and topping the list of 200 large U.S. metropolitan areas was San Antonio, Texas, home of U.S. Global Investors. The Alamo City jumped to the No. 1 spot from last years 14th place. Milkens index measures U.S. cities economic performance based on job creation, retention and quality as well as where businesses are growing and thriving.

What will happen over the next 10 years? I believe the supercycle of growth across emerging markets will continue with rising urbanization and income rates. This bodes well for commodities, especially copper, coal, oil and gold, and well continue to focus on companies that will benefit the most from these much-needed resources.

One trigger where we generally see money move in and out of the market is based on the golden cross, which identifies when the 50-day short-term average crosses above the 200-day long-term average of a stock or index. Over the past 20 years, the golden cross of the S&P 500 Index resulted in surprisingly bullish data. Of the nine times this event has occurred in those 20 years, the S&P 500 averaged a 23 percent increase before the market reversed.The lone exception to this trend was the unusual and very volatile market in 2010-2011. Even then, the S&P 500 only lost a third of a percent.

Diplomatic relations between Iran and the West regarding the countrys determination to enrich uranium have been contentious for some time. However, the current rhetoric and new policies such as the banning of Iranian oil imports have upped the ante.

We believe the winds are shifting to bring needed relief to global investors. Weve seen improving economic data from the U.S. lately, and this positive news from the worlds largest economy, along with an improving Chinathe worlds most populated countryoffsets the negativity in Europe.

In a recent blog post, the Wall Street Journal asked its MarketBeat readers if a share of McDonalds stock or a barrel of oil made a better $100 investment. The share price of the fast-food restaurant topped $100 for the first time ever in late December and rose 30 percent over 2011, substantially beating the overall market. Crude oil prices had less sizzle, only moderately increasing over the year. The three-year picture is a little different, with crude oil more than tripling since its bottom in late 2008. Over the same time, McDonalds increased about 66 percent, says the Journal.

Using annual figures going back to 1950, the January Barometer says the performance of the S&P 500 Index in the first month of the year dictates where stock prices will head for the year. Jeffrey and Yale Hirsch of The Stock Traders Almanac find that the barometer has a surprisingly high accuracy ratio of nearly 90 percent. However, in the last two years, the market defied this trend. Even with these disruptions in the long-term trend, the writers at Almanac Newsletter said last February that they dont know of many indicators with such a strong track record.

China, along with other emerging markets, and the European Central Bank are in the early stages of a global easing cycle, primarily by cutting interest rates to spur growth. Also, the Federal Reserve should remain stimulative. These government actions set the stage for sustained, or perhaps higher, demand for oil. Geopolitical threats remain on the horizon, and could also be a positive catalyst for oil.

Golds short-term and long-term drivers remain intact. Money supply in the worlds largest countries is expanding by roughly 18 percent. Countries like the U.S. and Europe are continuing to print paper, while holding interest rates near zero, as they grapple with debt issues.

As we prepare to bid farewell to 2011 and welcome 2012, its undoubtedly important for investors to start the new year off with as much knowledge about the markets as possible. I saw a great visual over the holiday weekend that captured the effects of the financial crisis. The sky-high leverage ratios of Morgan Stanley, Bear Stearns, Lehman Brothers and Goldman Sachs caused part of the economic weakness, but Nomura points to the policy mistake which forced Lehman Brothers to declare bankruptcy as the reason GDP plunged so significantly.

As Chinas appetite for commodities slowed this year, much of the worlds copper demand went with it. Despite this softening in demand, Macquarie Research thinks the red metal could see a rebound in 2012 because copper mines are struggling to supply the marketplace with adequate reserves. Macquarie says, Global copper mine output has continually disappointed forecasts and, more importantly, market needs over a number of years now, despite the strong financial incentive not only from high copper prices but also high by-product prices.

Yale and Jeffrey Hirsch from The Stock Traders Almanac have scrutinized the performance of the Dow Jones Industrial Average over 177 years of presidential cycles. Beginning with Andrew Jackson in 1829, election years have averaged a 5.8 percent gain in stocks. In fact, 29 out of those 44 election years have resulted in gains for the Dow.

Followers of The Stock Traders Almanac are probably familiar with the January Effect that shows how small-capitalization companies have historically crushed large-cap stocks during the first month of the year. According to Yale and Jeffrey Hirsch, small-caps have delivered a forceful blow to their larger counterparts in 40 out of 43 years from 1953 through 1995.

Back on August 22, I wrote that gold was due for a correction and that it would be a non-event to see a 10 percent drop in gold. I wrote, This would actually be a healthy development for markets by shaking out the short-term speculators. This mornings gold price of $1,590 is about 15 percent from the high, which is a little greater than predicted, but a non-event just the same. I believe the long-term story remains on solid ground.

For some Eastern European investors the geographic proximity to the eurozone has been too close for comfort, with the Russian MICEX Index declining about 20 % year-to-date. However, stronger fiscal and monetary stances in Eastern Europe compared with its western neighbors warrant a 2nd look. Eastern European countries generally have experienced higher GDP growth along with less debt, so financing costs have less of a negative effect on GDP than in Western Europe. In most of Eastern Europe, every one percent increase in the cost of funding only detracts about 0.5 percentage points from GDP.

Analysts at U.S. Global Investors scrutinize research reports and study Bloomberg data to help our investment team gain first-mover advantage. Today, I asked research analyst and Shanghai-native Xian Liang to share how he combines analyses from third-party reports with boots-on-the-ground observations to find the best opportunities Asian markets have to offer.

As central banks print money and increase supply, currencies become devalued. Whereas in the recent past, one currency may be reduced in value compared with other currencies, this time there is global competitive devaluation as excess liquidity is put into the system. Historically, this excess liquidity has made its way to riskier assets, i.e. stocks and commodities. Gold is generally a benefactor of this flight to riskier assets as many investors see it as a store of value. This chart illustrates the interconnectivity of gold and global money supply growth.

Indonesias workforce is growing 7,000 people stronger each day. This is second only to India as Asias fastest growing workforce. CLSA says this growth has given birth to a burgeoning middle class willing to spend money on durable goods such as clothing, personal-care items, home appliances and electronics. Currently, domestic consumption accounts for two-thirds of Indonesias GDP. Weve already seen double-digit growth in sales for televisions, cars, computers and laptops over the past few years. Indonesia appears well positioned for future growth.

One way to gauge support for the price of oil is to calculate the breakeven price. In other words, what is the dollar amount per barrel that would be required for an oil-producing country to balance its fiscal budget? Analysts at Carnegie Investment Bank recently put together this chart, which illustrates the breakeven price needed for some of the worlds largest oil producers. Combined, these countries are expected to produce 30% of the worlds oil in 2011 Carnegie says. Note: these prices are for Brent crude, which have been $10-$15 per barrel above West Texas Intermediate prices this year.

This economic and cultural DNA is difficult to reproduce elsewhere. There are many advantages to starting a business in the U.S., including an open immigration policy, excellent universities, a large domestic market, and venture funding. What stops other countries from having their own version of Silicon Valley are obstacles such as rigid labor laws, bureaucratic hassles, regulations and access to debt instruments. Similar hindrances seem to have sprouted in the U.S. in recent years in the form of regulations.

Correlations will decrease along with volatility as we get more clarity on the eurozone crisis and see signs of stability in the global economy. Volatility fell this week, with the CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) declining 20 percent. This could be related to the news that November U.S unemployment unexpectedly dropped to 8.6 percent, U.S. auto sales in November were the strongest in more than two years, and preliminary data on holiday retail sales appears to be strong. According to Bloomberg News, Black Friday sales hit a record high this year, with consumers spending $11.4 billion.

Back in August, we discussed the precarious proclamation that Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez was shipping his countrys gold reserves home for safekeeping. On Friday, we learned Chavezs chosen transportation method for Operation Gold was through the air after the first shipments arrived to much fanfare in Venezuela. Some believe Chavezs announcement of Operation Gold was a catalyst for the August run up in gold prices, but there is no way to be sure. However, the impact could be significant if other countries employ a similar strategy.

With a middle class that could to balloon to 1.4 billion people by 2030, China has become a lifeline for automakers looking to keep their profits afloat in a weak global economy. Through October 2011, more than 15 million new vehicles have been purchased in China. Thats about 3 percent higher than a year ago. Toyota, Audi, Volkswagen, BMW and Nissan are all searching for ways to tap into this fast-growing market. One of the countrys biggest success stories is General Motors (GM), which has positioned itself as one of the most recognizable and highly sought after cars in China.