Investor Jim Rogers Has A Grim Prediction For The Stock Market

In an August 2024 interview with ET NOW, investor extraordinaire Jim Rogers made clear his concerns over what he foresaw as a financial cliff ahead in the new year. That new year, 2025, has arrived, and with it, a worthwhile look back at his dire market prediction. In a quote from his interview with ET NOW via The Economic Times, Rogers said, "Things have been so good everywhere for so long. Always in history, when everybody is making a lot of money, it is a time to worry." He also prophesized the next market sell-off would be "the worst of his lifetime," leading to a stock market crash beyond imagination. 

At the time of Roger's prediction, the global markets were in the throes of recessionary fears, driven by poor employment numbers and the impact of the inflated value of the Japanese yen. The Bank of Japan, usually known to keep its interest rate near zero to motivate economic movement, would also entice hedge funds to borrow yen cheaply for investment into potentially higher growth assets. Referred to as the "carry over trade," the whole system was thrown into jeopardy after the Bank of Japan suddenly raised interest rates, which turned off investors involved in the carry over trade. The tech industry also took a hit after a less than stellar quarter for Alphabet, Intel, and Amazon, which only helped to stoke fears of a recession and concerns over how to both survive a recession and prosper when it's over. 

According to The Economic Times, Jim Rogers' strategy for escaping the worst of what he called the "collapse to come" is to hold onto his cash. Looking at how much stronger the U.S. dollar is to the rest of the world, Rogers explained that he was holding onto cash because he's expecting the worst stock sell-off of his lifetime ahead, and global debt has risen everywhere. Considering that Rogers has a $300 million net worth, it's worth paying heed to his advice. 

Aside from cash, Rogers also pointed to silver as a favored investment vehicle of his, even in the face of the crash he is predicting. When asked why, Rogers alluded to the potential to earn money on a rebounding market, since silver was trading down versus gold. Although Rogers admitted to owning gold shares, if you believe in Rogers' doomsday theory, take his advice into consideration and learn from the ultimate guide to investing in silver as soon as possible.

Finally, as per the Wall Street Journal, Rogers would also buy into agricultural stocks. This advice is due how quickly he believed agricultural commodities, much like silver, might rebound from a stock market crash. For Rogers, the opportunity to buy into depressed commodities like agriculture is the perfect buy-low-sell-high scenario for a savvy investor, since a growing global population will need more farmland to feed itself.