"Even Buying SK hynix at 890,000 Won Feels Unsettling" Retail Investors Regret Not Buying More and Turn to Debt-Fueled Investing [World of Retail Investors]

For this novice retail investor, it is a rare winning stock that has delivered unusually strong returns. But these days, she feels a pang of regret every time she looks at her portfolio.
Oh bought SK hynix right after the United States–Iran War broke out. In March, when SK hynix fell to the 890,000-won range, she pressed the buy button while everyone around her was selling.
With about 9 million won in spare cash at the time, she could only afford 10 shares. Even so, it was a significant challenge for a beginner investor.
6 million won for the first time ever. 1 million won in profit.Still, Oh was not feeling great. A friend who bought SK hynix around the same time had enough cash to purchase 100 shares at once, and the thought that her friend's gains were likely 10 times larger left a bitter taste in her mouth."I should have bought more then. I should have stretched myself and bought a little more.
For this novice retail investor, it is a rare winning stock that has delivered unusually strong returns. But these days, she feels a pang of regret every time she looks at her portfolio.For this novice retail investor, it is a rare winning stock that has delivered unusually strong returns. But these days, she feels a pang of regret every time she looks at her portfolio.FOMO in a bull market follows you whether you have stocks or not 'Fear of missing out (FOMO)' was officially added to the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) in 2013. It became an academic term in the mid-2000s, when Harvard University and the University of Oxford studied it as a social pathology.In stock investing, it can be understood as the feeling that the market keeps rising and that you alone will lose out if you do not participate. According to trading psychology, most investors feel FOMO most strongly near the top of a bull market, at times like now.What is interesting is that FOMO is not limited to people who do not own stocks. It also affects investors who are already making profits, like Oh.Typical examples are saying, "I should have bought more" or "I should have picked a better stock. " In psychology, this is also called 'upward social comparison' .
It refers to the tendency to compare yourself with someone in a better position and feel a sense of relative deprivation. Oh's case, in which she compares her returns with her friend's and experiences FOMO, fits this pattern."Should I borrow money and buy more?" Why FOMO is dangerous The problem is that FOMO does not stop at emotion. It can lead to action.For example, it can push investors into chasing stocks at the peak or taking on risk through leverage. That is exactly what happens.As the KOSPI Composite Index has risen, the balance of Margin Loan used for borrowing to invest has also increased sharply.According to KOFIA on the 30th of last month, the Margin Loan balance rose from 27 trillion won at the end of last year to 36 trillion won, hitting an all-time high.
For this novice retail investor, it is a rare winning stock that has delivered unusually strong returns. But these days, she feels a pang of regret every time she looks at her portfolio.For this novice retail investor, it is a rare winning stock that has delivered unusually strong returns. But these days, she feels a pang of regret every time she looks at her portfolio.
That means more people are rushing into the stock market.07.More and more people are jumping on the bull market, or trying to get in now, and FOMO is at the center of it all.
\rThe KOSPI outlook is soaring toward the 10,000 mark.
But the stock market is a living, moving thing.It may seem like it will keep rising forever, but crises can appear at any time.The more FOMO takes hold, the more alert investors need to be.
For this novice retail investor, it is a rare winning stock that has delivered unusually strong returns. But these days, she feels a pang of regret every time she looks at her portfolio.For this novice retail investor, it is a rare winning stock that has delivered unusually strong returns. But these days, she feels a pang of regret every time she looks at her portfolio.For this novice retail investor, it is a rare winning stock that has delivered unusually strong returns. But these days, she feels a pang of regret every time she looks at her portfolio.
bng@fnnews.com Kim Hee-sun Reporter