NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- The eponymous octogenarian editor of the International Harry Schultz Letter may be settling down. But he's settling down in apocalypse mode.

Well over (ahem!) 30 years ago, late for an interview with Harry Schultz for the old Financial Post of Canada, I was sitting on a bollard by an Amsterdam canal, wondering why the devil the directions I had to his latest eyrie were mysteriously incomplete, when my attention was caught by a striking young woman.

She vanished through an unmarked door. On an intuition, I went over and knocked. And there behind it was the Schultz traveling circus, complete with the usual female assistants.

Schultz prides himself on trading. And in those days it applied to women, too. Or at least that was the image he chose to project, along with glamorous globetrotting and international financial savvy.

Times seem to have changed, in that respect, at least. The latest issue of the IHSL, just in, has a graphic account of Shultz's recent stay in a Swiss hospital (Get well soon, Harry!) complete with a graceful tribute to the help of his "joyful mate (for 22 years)."

Hmm. As I recall, 22 was about the average age of the girls surrounding him in Amsterdam.

Maybe Shultz is settling down in his market methods, too. He's had a great run over the past few years, basically by being right on the major trend.

Currently, Schultz is slightly down over the past 12 months according to the Hulbert Financial Digest, negative 1.3% vs. negative 12.53% for the dividend-reinvested Dow Jones Wilshire 5000. But, of course, that's good given his very defensive goals.

And over the past three years, the letter has achieved a 34.10% annualized gain, vs. 5.02% annualized for the total return DJ-Wilshire 5000. Over the past 10 years, the letter has achieved an 8.09% annualized gain, vs. 3.59% annualized for the total return DJW.

In the past, Schultz has reacted very quickly when he judged the major trend had turned against him. For example, contrary to his gold-bug reputation, he switched very adroitly out of hard assets and into bonds after the last gold blowoff in 1980.

Last time I checked, I suspected Shultz was shaping up to do the same thing. See April 27 column

But he hasn't. Last week, very unusually, Schultz put out a special bulletin: "A major global "upheaval" is in progress -- spurred by the one-two punch of run-away inflation and a collapse of the derivatives/credit market -- --which will affect everyone. Many banks are at risk ...We urge that you immediately reduce financial risk via three basic steps: exit the U.S. dollar (or hedge exposure to dollar assets of any kind via futures short selling and/or bank forward contacts), place approx half of your assets into a mix of 90-day to two-year government bills/bonds (Swiss government paper preferred, but any (non-U.S. dollar) First World government paper OK), place almost half of your assets in gold (via a basket of gold futures and/or quality gold shares, with at least 15% in physical gold bars or coins). A small position in oil/food/commodities stocks and special situations is justified."

I am slightly puzzled by this special bulletin, because it's not that much more apocalyptic than Shultz's position for most of this year. See Feb. 18 column

But we can't say he didn't warn us.

Some other Schultz suggestions: "Gold has in the last week (despite the 7/3 correction) given us chart signals that price will not visit the 820 support area again, and technical signs now point to a new high within a few weeks. After some to and fro around $1,000, it will likely move to $1,150, for consolidation in that area ... Prices should move to $1,600 in any case."

"Maybe the neocon troika is going to bomb Iran -- or let Israel do it, with the U.S. ready to take over if need be. Or maybe the U.S. government is about to impose total exchange controls. Or maybe the Amero [a merged Canadian-Mexican-U.S. currency] will be announced as a fait accompli. Or maybe a state of emergency will be announced. Or maybe U.S. government bonds will be frozen for repayment. Whatever. My bet is Iran; some of the other items to follow as a result.

"[A reader] says Japan market best; I agree. Asia is safest market zone (ex China)."