Jim Cramer Urges Investors To Stay Strong—'If You Were OK In 2008, It Came Back'—Says Market Plunge Is A Buying Opportunity

The stock market may be in panic mode, but Jim Cramer is leaning in. The CNBC host is doubling down—literally—on the selloff, calling it a moment to watch, not flee. Cramer reminded viewers of the brutal 2008 financial crisis and how, despite the crash, the market bounced back. Slowly, yes. But it came back.

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During Thursday's "Squawk on the Street“, Cramer said, "If you were OK in 2007 and 2008, it came back." 

He emphasized that while it took until 2013 for portfolios to recover their pre-crisis value, those who stayed invested ultimately came out ahead. The key message? Don't sell. "Just hold," he said.

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That advice might hit differently for retirees or those close to retirement. "They're in limbo," Cramer admitted. But for long-term investors, the recent market drop, spurred by President Donald Trump's sweeping tariff announcements, is being viewed by some as a classic "buy the dip" scenario.

Backing his words with action, Cramer revealed he had purchased more shares of two stocks for the CNBC Investing Club portfolio—though he didn't name them on-air—saying they're unfairly punished in the current climate. 

According to him, this isn't about market collapse; it's about valuation shifts. "This is a price-to-earnings ratio lowering event," he said. "That's what's happening." 

Right now, the forward P/E on the S&P 500 is just above 20, while the trailing P/E, which looks at earnings from the last four quarters, is around 25. That's a notable shift from previous months, suggesting valuations are correcting after a long period of elevated pricing.

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Cramer also revisited the advice he gave around the time of the global financial crisis. "I came on the Today show in 2008 and I said, ‘If you need any money in the next five years, you should sell.' And it was a great call," he said. He recalled another pivotal moment: the so-called "Haines bottom" on March 10, 2009. 

That's when late CNBC anchor Mark Haines famously declared on-air that the market had bottomed. Cramer credited Haines for getting him back in at the right time, saying, "Mark called me… and said, ‘You got to get on board.'"

Since then, Cramer has been vocal about how people often remember the warning to sell but forget the equally important call to reenter the market. His bigger point? Trying to time the market requires being right twice—once on the way out, and again on the way back in. It's a gamble most investors don't win.

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