Another day, another record: Gold closes at more than $1,200 an ounce

All that glitters is not gold -- platinum and palladium are on even hotter streaks -- but who cares? The yellow metal hit another nominal record high Wednesday, briefly topping $1,217 an ounce before settling at $1,213, and it shows no sign of melting down anytime soon.

The Incredible Shrinking Dollar is mostly to blame. The Federal Reserve wants a cheap dollar to help boost exports and create jobs, but so far it's just made the buck the biggest geek at the currency prom. Central banks and institutional investors at home and abroad feel pretty stupid holding rapidly depreciating greenbacks, so they're dumping dollars and hoarding gold.