Gold bugs have suffered one of their worst years in history, says Keith Fitz-Gerald. But the US dollar looks increasingly fragile beyond this period of short-term panic buying. And that means the outlook for gold remains strong. Keith says every investor should ensure gold forms part of their investment strategy for 2009.

This from Money Morning:

If you were counting on gold to boost your returns this year, chances are you’ve been cruelly disappointed. In fact, when it comes to gold-related investments, virtually every category is down, making this one of the worst years in history for gold investors.

So, why is it that the largest of the large futures traders have some of the lowest net short positions in years? And what does this tell us about gold prices in the near future?

I’ll get to that in a minute. But first …

What Went Wrong?

In my analysis, I’ve identified the

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