An investor takes a longer term view. He looks at those sectors and nations where growth looks most promising and then positions his portfolio to benefit from that growth.
A trader takes a short term view, sometimes in minutes. If war breaks out between the two Koreas, you can expect both the U.S. dollar and gold to rise together, which happens very seldom. You will see the Kospi stock exchange tank. All world markets will swoon for some period. A trader would be buying gold and dollars this morning and shorting the market indexes for Asia.
Of course, if there is no war, his gold and dollar investments will quickly lose value. More importantly, he could get wiped out by his short positions, where loss can be unlimited, if those Asian stock markets rally. His investment is based on some events happening and the fear that surrounds them. He is not interested in economics. This is not investing. This is called gambling.
