"Waiting Only for 'This Moment' to Buy Stocks; I Won't Buy Now Even with a Knife to My Throat"... Hwang Hyunhee's Remarks from 3 Months Ago Resurface

With the KOSPI at 8,400, he stressed, "Hold cash"
"This is a market for pros; wait until year-end"

As South Korea's stock market has fallen over the past three months, struggling to recover, a video has resurfaced in which comedian Hwang Hyunhee warned investors about three months ago, near the start of the downturn, not to invest in stocks at the time.

Hwang Hyunhee shares his views on the stock market and investment principles. Screenshot from the Lee Hongryeol TV YouTube channel.

On the Lee Hongryeol TV YouTube channel, in a video released on July 21, Hwang was asked about his investment plans and stressed, "You shouldn't even consider entering the stock market right now."

"In a volatile market where prices swing 7-8% a day, it's difficult for ordinary investors to respond," he said, adding, "This is currently a market that favors those skilled at short-term trading."

"A possible year-end correction... It could be triggered by 'AI bubble' concerns"

Looking ahead, he said a market correction was likely. "Wait until the end of the year. Articles may come out in the United States asking whether the artificial intelligence (AI) bubble is about to burst," Hwang said. "That could naturally lead to a market correction."

"I'm holding cash right now," he continued, emphasizing, "Even with a knife at my throat, I wouldn't invest right now." Describing himself as a "cycle investor," he also shared his rule: "I only buy when the market has fallen more than 30% from its previous peak."

As a specific investment strategy, he recommended buying in stages. The approach is to divide KRW 100 million into five KRW 20 million portions, then buy sequentially starting when the market is down 15% from its previous peak and adding a portion for every further 5% drop. He mentioned ETFs that track the Nasdaq-100 and S&P 500 indexes (QQQ and SPY) as investment options.

"Study before buying right away"

However, he stressed the importance of developing long-term investment skills, saying, "Studying should come before pressing the buy button right now." He recommended André Kostolany's The Art of Thinking About Money and Howard Marks's The Most Important Thing, saying, "Reading these two books properly will change how you see the market."

Stock indexes and exchange rates are displayed in the dealing room at Hana Bank's headquarters in Jung-gu, Seoul, on the 16th. Yonhap News Agency

When the video was released, the KOSPI closed at 6,820.60, while Samsung Electronics stood at KRW 255,000 and SK hynix at KRW 1,842,000. Based on closing prices on June 26, the day before the video was filmed, the KOSPI was at 8,411.21, Samsung Electronics at KRW 339,500, and SK hynix at KRW 2,673,000, according to the production team.

Since then, in about three and a half months, the KOSPI has plunged more than 30%. At the close on October 16, it stood at 5,668.05. Samsung Electronics was at KRW 217,000 and SK hynix at KRW 1,265,000, down about 36% and 53%, respectively, from their levels when the video was filmed.

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