Stock Investment
One subsidiary of our group is placing a public offer today. I have made a "survey" on my colleagues as to whether they will subscribe for the shares or not. Over 85% of the people said that they will not subscribe for the new shares. Among the 85% people, 50% of them do not want to put their money at risk because they have already suffered losses from purchasing the stock of one of our listed associated company. 33.33% said that they have no further money to invest because they either have to repay their home mortgage, or have their money invested in other stocks already. The remaining 16.67% said that they will sit back and watch the performance of the said stocks after they are being traded in the Stock Exchange.
I myself will also not subscribe for the shares. Actually I have not traded for any kind of stocks for several years already. The reasons I don't like to invest in stocks are:
1. I think it is really a waste of time to invest in securities. You have to spend a lot of time in analyzing the performance and prospect of a stock. You also have to spend time in trading the stocks. If you calculate the opportunity cost (the time you could have use to do other things), I would say that the time spent is not worthwhile and is a waste of life.
2. Most of my friends and colleagues lose money in the stock markets. Only a few of them earns a little from it, yet they spend ridiculous amount of time in analyzing and trading stocks.
3. It a very likely that a bear market will come this year, not just in Hong Kong, but globally. The consequences of the subprime mortgage crisis in the US on the global economy has not yet been totally revealed. Personally I think this may not be the perfect time to have the company listed on the stock exchange. But the bosses have their own concern. Wish them good luck!
4. The stock market have becoming more and more volatile nowadays. It is not uncommon for the Hang Seng Price Index to rise or fall by a thousand points in just one day. Many stock traders borrow large sum to invest in the stock markets. They are like gamblers. Many are at the outbreak of mental disorder because of the fluctuation in stock prices. This is no exaggeration. I often hear those stories from newspaper or TV documentaries.
5. The stock prices are often manipulated by the fund managers and the like, and may not have direct relationship with the performance of the companies.
6. As a common citizen, one does not have the "insider information" necessary to predict the stock price.
7. While the Bible is by no means an investment guide, it is predicted that more and more wars, earthquakes, pestilences, famines and fearful events are to be happened in this end of the age. In these unstable circumstances, the stock market will also become more and more unstable.
I hope people will have the wisdom as to how to invest their time and money, and thus their life.