Warren Buffett's firm increases stakes in 5 Japanese trading houses

Buffett is getting ready to host Berkshire's annual meeting early next month when tens of thousands of investors will travel to Omaha, Nebraska, to listen to the 92-year-old spend the day answering questions alongside Berkshire's three vice chairmen.

Buffett is an interesting case as a billionaire oligarch in that he is very frank about his privilege in late stage capitalist society.

https://www.fool.com/taxes/2020/09/25/why-does-billionaire-warren-buffett-pay-a-lower-ta/

Yet some definitely not billionaires on conservative right have been so propagandized they will scream when wealth taxes to create a fairer society are proposed. Even though an actual billionaire acknowledges it would balance injustices like the above.

Maybe Buffet can talk to Japanese business and political leaders about a real new capitalism and more economic fairness for Japanese workers.

Their conglomerate business models are somewhat similar to Buffett’s own company which owns dozens of companies including BNSF railroad, several major utilities and Geico insurance while also investing more than $300 billion in stocks.

If it was only so easy! If these companies were even close to being anything close to Buffet's company things in Japan would be a hell of a lot different!

Makes sense. Japanese firms are making tons of money overseas these days. The primary surplus in the latest current account was up nearly 20%.

Japanese firms are making money and are relatively cheap to invest in with the weak yen. He sounds quite bullish on corporate Japan which is probably relative true compared to UK/US at the moment where rising wage costs and higher interest rates will push down profits.

That sounds like a pretty good sign if The Oracle of Omaha is the one increasing his stakes. He's rarely wrong.

Buffet's a legend no doubt but in words of Elon Musk he's a TAKER not a MAKER.

Few aware Buffett and his 100-year-old side Munger spent LOTS of time meeting with Mr. Musk and Bezos in the late 1990s and early 2000's.

He's just asset manager with unique media brand. Anyway, never invested, that sound so smart in hindsight?

Legend has it they thought he was TOO GREEDY and too focused on financials, rather than technology to disrupt and improve the world.

Afterall, Berkshire's actual HQ in middle of NOWHERE, only roughly 30 people work there, almost no turnover, so Buffet's truly case study in risk mgmt./PARANOIA.

History will remember Bezos & Musk, Buffett, great CREATORS, after all who remembers great TAKERS?

Their stock will be worth nothing,if US default on it debt ,bank will not be able to sell their treasury ,and the US banking system will collapse

stormcrowToday  09:36 am JST

That sounds like a pretty good sign if The Oracle of Omaha is the one increasing his stakes. He's rarely wrong.

Berkshire Hathaway lost $43.8 billion last. year.

That’s pretty wrong.

This was circulating in the financial news circles months ago.

Back in the 80s, the fear was Japan Inc was taking over the world before the bubble first. Kind of ironic now to see this kind of development.

Buffet's a legend no doubt but in words of Elon Musk he's a TAKER not a MAKER.

Musk? A maker of what? Jobs? Style?

As I said above, Berkshire's giant asset manager, conglomerate, great cost cutter, ONLY 30 people in their HQ, hardly a job machine!

Most consider Space X and Tesla big makers, jobs, technology, investment. Must's not pursuing financial investments like Buffet, rather OPERATIONAL investments that change the world, enhance productivity, etc.

Now Buffett\s HUGE shareholder of Occidental Petroleum, widely regarded as classic legacy and dirty in nature, so not exactly lean and green. He's got major investments in banks, Apple, insurance, Pepsi etc. BIG DEAL, so does my Mom,

Whether you like it or not, Mr. Musk is LARGEST US Govt. vendor for its Space Program, his recruitment of top technologists second to none. Apparently REALLY smart people like working for him, global technology culture. His rapidly growing IP patent portfolio and synergies between his companies - why he's richest man on the planet.

So Mustk's not brainwashing or legacy business corruption in nature model. Musk is also investing in numerous other areas that are seeking to solve REAL problems, so hardly an typical asset manager with a pure financial agenda.

As I said, none remember TAKERS, history remembers great disruptors MAKERS that CHANGE future for the better!

Japan is cheap now, so Buffett is buying things at the cheapest prices. He will lose a little if Japanese companies go under. To him, Japanese companies are penny stocks.

If I was him, I would speculate the damn out of Japan's stock markets because I have little to lose.

Investing in the controlling conglomerates of Japan is not exactly a difficult move to process.

This is what Buffett has done consistently over the decades in the US

Consumers in Japan might now get more opportunity to buy products from US conglomerates in Japan but what else will change?

All great points, he's transactional, hedging, diversification, etc. Just a glorified asset manager, who's a real fiduciary unlike so many wall street criminals.

Important to note, his success tied to being based in middle of nowhere, risk mgmt. his true skill-set!

Real reason he's here in my view? BOJ backstop, ETF share purchasing, these trading companies doing well with their overseas activity.

Man does deserve credit for charitable contributions, especially to world's largest foundation that's helping address serious global problems.

He's doing nothing directly to solve real global problems, unless you think major positions in big oil, big tech, big banking and insurance, and assembling a giant conglomerate with many parts etc. is somehow a real contribution to making world better.

It's all zero sum transactional in reality, hardly true legacy stuff, he'd tell you just the same. Buffet knows his lane and stays in it, that's his secret, longevity's why he's compounded his way to the top!

Japan is cheap now, so Buffett is buying things at the cheapest prices. He will lose a little if Japanese companies go under. To him, Japanese companies are penny stocks.

No question he's bottom fishing, likes present relative risk adjusted returns, there's NOTHING emotional, just a numbers transactional guy, no great visionary. He's great because he's NOT WALL STREET, that's his APPEAL.

He's done masterful job convincing everyone in his markets, largely Mid-American, that they should TRUST him and not NYC slickers.

Seems it's worked out pretty well for him and his shareholders, who love him dearly!

No surprise PM exodus from NYC, other's finding their lanes in their markets, ala Buffet, plus LOWER taxes and LESS RISK.