There's an end for every party, and some observers think yesterday may have been just that for commodity stocks, at least relative to commodities themselves. Brad Zigler takes a look at how commodities are faring relative to commodity stocks right now.

After hitting an eight-month high just last week, copper has been on a downward slide, and not even crazy housing numbers can stop it. So what's behind the current price drops, and will the trend be long lasting?

Voices were raised in recent months in favor of doing away with the dollar as a reserve currency, the most strident emanating from exporters of dollar-denominated commodities, such as Russia, and nations like China that hold large swatches of U.S. government paper.

So, what's a reserve currency and why should the buck get the boot... or not?