Interview · 2026-09-04
Secondary Battery Industry Outlook — ESS and EV Batteries Set to See Earnings Jump Next Year
Asked to compare the profitability of automotive batteries and ESS (energy storage systems), the analyst said there is no major difference in principle, but noted that ESS faces less pressure on price cuts. In the United States, EV batteries receive no subsidies, whereas ESS operators do receive subsidy benefits, which creates a relatively more favorable negotiating structure for suppliers.
While it will take more time to return to full boom-cycle margin levels, the outlook presented was that earnings at nearly all battery makers would jump meaningfully starting next year. In particular, since ESS batteries are mostly prismatic and centered on LFP, domestic materials and components makers specializing in LFP and prismatic cells were seen as entering a favorable phase.
On the European market, the assessment was that with Chinese automakers' offensive devastating the European auto industry, Europe would ultimately have no choice but to close its doors. Tariffs are set to be introduced this year even on plug-in hybrids (PHEVs), which are currently tariff-free, and an 'industrial acceleration act' aimed at blocking Chinese firms from setting up shell factories in Europe is under discussion, with agreement targeted by year-end and announcement early next year — a development expected to narrow the gap between Korean battery makers and China.
On the humanoid robot market, per-unit battery capacity is small at around 2 to 4 kWh, so the immediate industry impact is limited, but as production volumes rise going forward, high-density batteries (solid-state and solid-state-adjacent) are expected to be predominantly used, which was framed as an opportunity for Korean makers that are not lagging China. It was also noted that battery applications are expanding into larger mobility segments, with urban air mobility (UAM) and 20-to-30-seat small passenger aircraft successfully completing 30-minute battery-powered flights.
[Noon Salon] Critic Yoon Sung-won — Retirement Planning for Freelancers, Compound Investing, and a KOSPI Index Recommendation
The second segment of the episode 100 special featured critic Yoon Sung-won, an active individual investor, for a conversation on personal wealth management. Asked about good investment strategies for retirement planning given unstable freelance income, Park Se-ik (Sidong) noted that Korea has one of the highest rates of elderly poverty, with income typically declining from one's 50s even as life expectancy continues to rise, underscoring the urgency of retirement preparation.
He advised building the three pillars of the national pension, retirement pension, and personal pension as a foundation, while using current income to build these up in advance through investing. He stressed that irregular income itself should not dictate stock selection, and that reducing spending is actually the solution to the problem of irregular income.
Lee Kwang-soo offered a positive reframing, noting that the uncertainty of not knowing one's time of death actually means one can pursue compounding over a long investment horizon. He said he confidently recommends investing in Korea's KOSPI200 index, suggesting that since dividends at domestic companies have been steadily rising, reinvesting received dividends into the same stocks maximizes the compounding effect. He added that with Korea being one of the most undervalued markets in the world, now is a favorable time for index investing.
[Noon Salon] Trading Principles — 'Predict Only When Buying; Buy at the Knee, Sell at the Shoulder'
When critic Yoon Sung-won shared his concern about a trading pattern in which he holds through gains only to end up cutting losses near the lows, Park Se-ik diagnosed the cause as a 'lack of a plan' and 'repeatedly changing predictions.' He emphasized that predictions should only be made at the point of purchase, and that once a position is held, one should respond according to a plan rather than continuing to predict.
He then explained the true meaning of the saying 'buy at the knee, sell at the shoulder.' During a downturn, since no one can know where the bottom is, buying at a predicted low in advance is not the real 'knee' — rather, the true knee is buying after the bottom has formed and a rebound has been confirmed. Likewise, rather than selling in advance at a predicted top, the true 'shoulder' is selling after the peak (the head) has been confirmed and the price has fallen by a certain percentage. He illustrated the importance of trading timing with the example of Samsung Electronics, which plunged from 100,000 won to 49,000 won before rebounding to 370,000 won.
On stop-losses, he emphasized that they should be viewed not as a fear of locking in losses but as a proactive strategy. If an investor only profits in up markets and holds through down markets without cutting losses, they capture gains for only half of the full cycle. Repeating a cycle of cutting losses and rebuying at lower prices during downturns allows an investor to accumulate more shares of the same stock over time. He redefined the essence of long-term investing not as holding a single stock for a long time, but as surviving in the market long enough to keep investing continuously.
[Noon Salon] Audience Q&A — Advice on Dividend Stocks, Theme Stocks, and Gold Investing
To a listener holding 25,000 shares of Samsung Electronics and 5,000 shares of SK Hynix who asked what to do with dividend income, the advice was not to spend the dividends elsewhere but to reinvest them into the same stocks to maximize compounding. Asked to specifically recommend unfamiliar mineral theme stocks such as tungsten, Lee Kwang-soo stressed the principle of 'if you don't understand it, don't do it,' warning that complex, difficult products are usually designed to be profitable only under very specific conditions. He compared investing to a 'popularity contest,' advising that rather than discovering and holding a stock alone that no one else understands, investors should put money into stocks that many people understand and can rise together on.
On gold investing, he cautioned against the very term 'safe asset.' Park Se-ik emphasized that there is no such thing as a completely safe asset in the world, and that 'safety' is only a relative concept. He said gold is not a preferred investment target for him, since it neither generates returns on its own nor pays dividends. Lee Kwang-soo explained that gold prices have recently grown as volatile as a financial product driven by supply-and-demand factors such as expanded central bank purchases, and introduced alternative approaches such as gold-related products with lower tax burdens or gold mining stocks, rather than buying physical gold directly.
The broadcast closed with the three hosts and the guest sharing their reflections on reaching episode 100. Park Se-ik spoke of the hard work behind preparing the broadcast and some regret over having no days off, while Lee Kwang-soo expressed the fulfillment of connecting with listeners and conveyed his hope that listeners would build an investing culture of pursuing steady, long-term compounding, bringing the special public broadcast to a close.