"Sirs, Is This Just a Correction?" "The 2,980,000-Won Hynix Becomes a Folk Tale"...Self-Deprecating Memes Spread Amid Volatility Fatigue

Self-Deprecating "Meme" Culture Spreads Amid Market Plunge
Investment Sentiment Shifts Rapidly from FOMO to JOMO

The high volatility in the Korean stock market, with daily surges and plunges, is causing individual investors’ collective anxieties to erupt in the form of ‘meme’ culture. From fictional group chat rooms featuring leaders of major Korean conglomerates to parodies of traditional children’s tales satirizing stock price crashes, these humorous yet bittersweet and self-deprecating contents are resonating powerfully among retail investors enduring market uncertainty.

Stock-related memes spreading on social media. Screenshot from social media.

Recently, on social media platforms, parody images of ‘group chat rooms’ depicting the heads of Samsung Electronics, SK hynix, and Hyundai Motor Group have been spreading rapidly.

These images show chat rooms named after Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong, SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, and Hyundai Motor Group Executive Chair Euisun Chung. In the scenario, an investor urgently asks, “Hey, is this just a regular correction?” regarding the future of the market, but the chat participants using the names of the conglomerate heads leave the room one after another, one minute apart, without offering any reply.

This humorous setting—where even the top company leaders are depicted as leaving during a market crash—captures and reflects individual investors’ anxiety and sense of helplessness toward the stock market.

"The Day Hynix Hit 2.98 Million Won"... A Traditional Tale at the Peak

Alongside this, the so-called ‘Hynix Traditional Tale’ is also quickly spreading. Borrowing the format of a story told to children, the meme begins with, “Once upon a time, there was a day when Hynix reached 2,987,000 won.”

Stock-related memes circulating on social media. Screenshot from social media

The story ends with countless people regretting, when the stock price soars, “I should have bought sooner, I wish I could turn back time.” Then, in the tale, God grants their wish by returning the price to the level of a year ago, but when the price crashes, everyone is gripped by fear and no one buys, instead turning away.

This philosophically twists the contradictory investing psychology of small investors: during a bull market, ‘FOMO (Fear of Missing Out)’ pushes people to jump in late for fear of missing their chance, yet when a sharp downturn comes, they hesitate to press the buy button, fearing even further losses.

Recently, investor sentiment has rapidly shifted to ‘JOMO (Joy of Missing Out),’ in which people feel relieved not to be participating in the turbulent market. This reflects how retail investors are moving into a defensive posture amid repeated volatility.

Extreme Volatility... Semiconductors in the Driver’s Seat

The background of this meme boom lies in the extraordinary volatility of the Korean stock market in recent times. Last month, the KOSPI plunged by 22.2% in a single month, and the KOSDAQ index dropped 21.4%, marking the largest single-month decline since the 2008 global financial crisis.

The main driver of market volatility has been identified as the semiconductor sector. With Samsung Electronics and SK hynix together constituting over half of the KOSPI’s total market capitalization, fluctuations in these two stocks repeatedly drive the overall index up or down. In addition, the entry of Chinese semiconductor firms like Changxin Memory Technologies (CXMT), which is listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange’s tech board, has disrupted the artificial intelligence (AI) semiconductor rally, further exacerbating the situation.

Securities analysts expect the index to rebound this month, given the steep decline last month. However, they anticipate that instead of a sharp surge as seen in June, the rise will be more gradual, checking for the bottom in a step-like fashion. It is also advised to keep in mind lingering factors such as the ongoing U.S.-Iran war, uncertainty around U.S. long-term interest rates, the upcoming Jackson Hole meeting, and the remaining earnings releases of major U.S. big tech companies like NVIDIA.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.