What Two Market Crashes Reveal About Owning a Single Country

Brazil's Ibovespa index plunged 14% in a single session on Monday after Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva won the presidential runoff, triggering a 30-minute trading halt, while South Korea's KOSPI remains 42% below its June peak. Brazil's sell-off stemmed from political and fiscal uncertainty, with public debt above 80% of GDP and markets having priced in a Bolsonaro win, while Korea's decline is driven by concentration risk as Samsung and SK hynix make up about 40% of the index, amplified by leverage. The article advises investors against buying single-country markets solely because they crashed, recommending diversified global portfolios instead, noting India's own vulnerabilities include oil prices and rupee weakness, with practical steps like phased investing and regulatory compliance under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme.