In late February, the United States, together with Israel, attacked Iran. The market initially believed that the war would be a &#34;quick victory,&#34; but it has unexpectedly lasted for over a month. Even though U.S. President Trump announced last week that victory had been achieved in Iran, there are still no signs of the conflict coming to an end. The well-known financial KOL Hong Kong Suo Luo Si stated in an interview with Sing Tao Daily that he believes the U.S.-Iran war will be difficult to resolve in the short term. Even if the conflict truly ends, oil prices will likely remain high, and there is a significant chance it will evolve into a stagflation environment. If he had 1 million yuan to invest now, he would lean towards a conservative approach, allocating 10% to gold, 5% to oil, and heavily investing in companies with pricing power in the stock market.
Reporter: Ye Chuo Wei
One-click to watch the video: If you had $1 million today, what would you buy? Hong Kong Suo Luo Si: 30% in ETFs, heavily invested in stocks with pricing power | Million-dollar portfolio
The U.S.-Iran war broke out at the end of February, causing significant fluctuations in the global financial market. Hong Kong Suo Luo Si admitted that the market performed well in the first two months of this year, and his personal portfolio reached a new high at the end of February. However, with the sudden outbreak of war and a sharp rise in oil prices, the market shifted from expecting interest rate cuts to potential rate hikes. His holdings in long-term bonds and tech stocks experienced a 5.5% loss in early March. Due to the change in fundamental market factors, he decisively &#34;adjusted his positions,&#34; selling long-term bonds, increasing oil stocks, and reducing tech stocks. Ultimately, he recorded about a 2.3% return in March, stating, &#34;If I hadn't adjusted my positions and admitted my mistakes, I might have suffered significant losses now.&#34;
<h2>High Oil Prices Likely to Lead to Stagflation</h2>
He believes that the U.S.-Iran war will be difficult to resolve in the short term. Even if the conflict ends, the oil and gas facilities in the Middle East have already been damaged and will take time to recover. High oil prices will continue, for example, the current level of $70 for long-term futures, and rising industrial costs cannot be ignored. Coupled with less-than-ideal U.S. economic data, &#34;there is a significant chance it will evolve into stagflation.&#34;
&#34;If you had 1 million yuan today, how would you invest?&#34; Hong Kong Suo Luo Si stated that he would lean towards a conservative approach, first keeping 20% cash to &#34;buy the dip,&#34; then allocating 10% to gold, choosing the value gold ETF (3081) listed in Hong Kong. In addition to coping with a stagflation environment, confidence in U.S. Treasury bonds continues to decline, and he believes that central banks around the world will continue to reduce their holdings of U.S. debt and increase their gold holdings. Additionally, holding 10% in gold is also a hedge against &#34;black swan events.&#34; For oil, he plans to allocate 5% to the oil stock ETF (XLE) listed in the U.S., believing that many long-position funds will also increase their holdings in the oil sector as &#34;insurance&#34; following the recent closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
<h2>Tobacco Stocks and McDonald's Have Greater Pricing Power</h2>
In terms of stocks, the focus is also on defensive positions, starting with U.S. tobacco stocks Philip Morris (PM) and McDonald's, which together account for 35% of his portfolio due to their significant pricing power. &#34;I like pricing power, which means companies can raise prices at any time,&#34; he expects to perform well in a stagflation environment. For example, tobacco stocks have high pricing power, and the public is less sensitive to price changes; McDonald's also benefits during inflationary periods due to its large number of stores.
Following the same stock selection logic, he allocates 5% to the famous luxury brand Hermès listed in Europe, stating, &#34;The consumption of wealthy individuals is actually not too affected during stagflation.&#34; He also allocates 5% to the biotechnology ETF, EFUND Biomedicine (3186), as this sector has performed well during past inflationary periods
<h2>Hong Kong Stock Exchange's Offensive: Investing in Tech Stocks for Global Progress</h2>
In terms of offense, he chose the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (388) and the Nasdaq ETF (QQQ), each accounting for 10% of his funds. He believes that with China's strong development of AI, related companies will continue to raise funds in Hong Kong, benefiting the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, which also has pricing power and high gross and net profit margins.
As for tech stocks, he admits that even in a bear market, investors should hold a small portion of tech stock ETFs, as technologies like AI reflect the progress of human society. Not investing in tech stocks is akin to shorting the progress of today's world, which will only lead to being eliminated by the world.
<h2>If Stock Trading Doesn't Work, Young People Should Invest in Index Funds Monthly</h2>
During his time at Hong Kong Polytechnic University, he started trading stocks, worked part-time, and ventured into entrepreneurship, but found that investing suited him best, achieving financial freedom through investments. He humorously claims that his personality is suited for investing because when faced with difficulties, he tends to retreat and give up, allowing him to easily &#34;cut losses&#34; when making wrong investment decisions. For young people who want to replicate his path to financial freedom, he encourages trying short-term trading, but if after a few years they find it unprofitable, &#34;then simply invest in index ETFs monthly, don't complicate things, and spend the remaining time working hard.&#34;
Although he started with stock trading, he gradually realized the investment philosophy of &#34;foundation + core,&#34; where the foundation is primarily income-generating stocks, and the core consists of growth companies. He generates dividends from this long position each year, using leverage for short-term trend trading. He says that using dividends for short-term trading can limit the amount invested, &#34;and when there's no financial pressure while trading, it becomes more objective.&#34;
He often encourages his &#34;trading friends&#34; to build an income-generating &#34;foundation,&#34; even if it's as simple as buying one lot of HSBC (005) for dividends. &#34;At first, you might think dividends aren't much, but receiving money every quarter will gradually cultivate the understanding that stocks can generate income.&#34; Additionally, he has noticed that many investors are often fixated on outperforming the market, admitting that only fund managers have this need, while ordinary investors should pursue absolute returns, making money every year regardless of market conditions.
When discussing financial freedom, he says many define it as earning enough not to work, but in his view, it means being able to do things one enjoys, such as being a &#34;financial KOL&#34; and discussing the stock market with netizens. &#34;In the old days, like my mother's generation, it was about going to the stock brokerage,&#34; but now this has moved online. He mentions that sometimes netizens discover stocks worth trading, recalling a memorable instance two years ago when Adobe was about to release earnings, and a startup had just launched a new AI service, with a netizen suggesting that Adobe might be affected. &#34;That night, we all researched together, and I really placed a bet, buying Adobe puts, and then when the earnings were released, it indeed dropped by one and a half percent.&#34;
Related Articles:
Financial expert Lin Changheng plans retirement investments, focusing on high-yield Hong Kong stocks with leverage to earn 10% interest｜Million Fund
Fighting doesn't mean buying oil and gold guarantees victory; don't turn a boat into an &#34;aircraft carrier.&#34; Lu Churen recommends the Australian dollar for both financial and interest income｜Million Fund
Defensive strategies against war and private credit crises; He Qichong: Long stock positions account for 30%, savings bonds outperform fixed deposits｜Million Fund
Huang Guoying asserts that the stock market is &#34;bull-bear intertwined&#34;; mindless buying in the M7 era is over, carefully selecting three major themes and 14 stocks｜Million Fund
U.S. stock investment allocation has reached an adjustment period, adding Japanese and European stocks. Li Shengyang: It's not difficult to accumulate 10 million over 30 years｜Million Warehouse
Having 1 million in funds to buy stocks is better than buying a house. Guan Zhuozhao is optimistic about bank and real estate stocks, with a 15% bet on an AI stock｜Million Warehouse
If you had 1 million today, what would you buy? Wang Dunjing: 40% of the funds for the down payment on a house｜Million Warehouse
&#34;King of Gold&#34; boldly predicts breaking 6,000 USD, at least 30% to buy gold and silver in chaotic times｜Million Warehouse
If you had 1 million today, what would you buy? Zeng Yuancang: At an older age, should go all in on dividend stocks｜Million Warehouse

During an interview, Hongham Suolisi stated that the US-Iran war is unlikely to be resolved in the short term, and oil prices will remain high, potentially leading to stagflation. He advised investors to adopt a conservative strategy for asset allocation, with 10% invested in gold, 5% in oil, a heavy position in stocks with pricing power, and to keep 20% in cash to cope with market fluctuations. His investment portfolio was adjusted after the outbreak of the war, ultimately recording a return of about 2.3% in March

Stheadline

BP p.l.c.

Occidental Petroleum

HSPC

Us Brent Oil

EFUND GOLD MI-R

Invesco Db Precious Metals ETF

VALUEGOLD ETF

Invesco DB Multi Sector Comm TR Oil Fd ETF

Sprott JR Gold Miners ETF

Pro Ultr Bloomberg Crude Oil

EFUND GOLD MI ETF

SPDR Gold Shares

F GX OIL

SPDR O&G Ex & Prd

SPDR Energy Select

Us Gbl GLD & Met

Pro Ultr GLD

FL2CSOPGOLD

F SAMSUNG OIL

SPDR O&G Equip

EFUND GOLD MI-U

HS GOLD ETF

SPDR Gold Minishares

United States Oil Fund LP

Abrdn Gold ETF Trust

VanEck Oil Services ETF

ISHRS S&P Glb Engy

VanEck Oil Refiners ETF

Direxion Daily Gold Miners Bull 2X

Sprott GLD Miners Etf

ChinaAMC Gold ETF

iShares US Oil Equip & Svcs

iShares US Oil & Gas Expl & Prod

iShares MSCI Global Gold Miners

Direxion Daily Jr Gold Miners Bull 2X

VG Energy

Hung Hom Screw Holding responds to the war, focusing on "pricing power" in stock selection while retaining two offensive stocks | Million-dollar position