Officials at Korea Exchange celebrate during a ceremony to mark the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index’s (KOSPI) breakthrough of the 3,000-point mark for the first time in its history on Jan. 7, 2021, when the index soared 63.47 points, or 2.14 percent, to close at 3,031.68 points. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, Jan. 12 (Korea Bizwire) — With stock prices continue to break record highs in the New Year, many salary workers, homemakers and students who have shunned investments in stocks are experiencing a great sense of alienation.
“These days, the main topic of conversation among my friends is how much they have made investing in stocks. This makes my salary look too small,” said a 35-year-old salary earner surnamed Lee with seven years of work experience.
A 35-year-old homemaker surnamed Park said, “I regret the way I lived my life before. If it’s not too late, I’d like to open an investment account now.”
As such, many people who stayed away from the stock market are feeling a great sense of alienation.
Some experts suggest that such psychological sentiment reflects the increased job instability and liquidity as well as the heightened social risk in the post-coronavirus era.
“This type of psychological sentiment is based on the fact that the rewards and compensation that salary earners can receive from their jobs cannot catch up with the wealth created through investment in stocks and real estate,” said Jung Tae-yun, a professor of psychology at Chung-Ang University.
“Investment is a personal choice but people should think about the value of work. The value of work is not just money,” a psychology professor Lee Dong-gwi of Yonsei University added.
Lina Jang (linajang@koreabizwire.com)
