The economy may be perking up (maybe), but the dollar's still worse for the wear, and you know what that means: Now's a great time to buy gold. In fact, the yellow metal looks ready to break through a very key level - and once it does, there'll be no turning back, says gold market expert James Turk.

Specializing in international banking, finance and investment, Turk is the editor of the Freemarket Gold & Money Report and the co-author of 2004's eerily prescient "The Collapse of the Dollar." Turk is also the founder and chairman of GoldMoney, a leading provider of gold, silver and platinum bullion worldwide.

Recently, Hard Assets Investor associate editor Lara Crigger chatted with Turk about the future of gold, including why investors should choose physical gold over "paper" gold, whether we're nearing "peak gold" and why September will be a key month for gold owners.

Lara Crigger, associate editor, HardAssetsInvestor.com (Crigger): In a recent commentary, you predicted gold will soon climb above $1,000/oz and stay there. Why do you think so?

James Turk, editor, Freemarket Gold & Money Report (Turk): I expect it to happen fairly soon, maybe September, October. Really, I've been expecting it all this year, and there's finally enough momentum now in the gold market, I think, to take it higher.

The reason is really quite simple: When you debase the dollar, you're going to get a higher gold price. And the federal government and Federal Reserve are clearly on a path where the dollar is being debased. The government is spending and borrowing too much, and the Federal Reserve is just churning out currency. In that kind of environment, a higher gold price can be expected.

Actually, that's what's happened all decade long. Gold's up eight years in a row, at an average annual return of 16.3%. This is the ninth year gold is up, and it looks like it's going to finish out the year even higher than it is at present.

Crigger: Can gold really keep up this pace?

Turk: The real question is: Can the Federal Reserve keep destroying the purchasing power of the dollar? The answer is probably yes. So as a consequence, the gold price will continue to go higher.

The $1,000 level is very significant, in that it's going to be like an international "buy" signal. As well as gold has done this decade, it's still not being widely followed. It's not really on many people's radar screens. But once it goes over $1,000, that will be a worldwide news event that will attract a lot of attention to the gold market.

Crigger: Right; people will see that $1,000 price point and think, "I've got to get my hands on that right now."

Turk: Exactly. Certain levels are important psychological points. For example, look at the Dow Jones Industrial and how long it took to get above 1,000. Then, when it finally did break above 1,000 in 1983, it just kept going. Obviously there was some backing and filling along the way, but that major uptrend lasted for 17 years.

So when gold goes through $1,000, I expect it will just keep going as well. There's already been a decade-long bull market, and I think we've got many, many years left before this bull market breathes its last.

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