Buffett: Never bet against America

WARREN BUFFETT is sitting on a $ 138 billion cash pile for a potential mega-deal and said investors should ‘ never bet against America’.

The investor known as the Sage of Omaha made the comment in his annual letter to shareholders in his Berkshire Hathaway investment vehicle.

He said: ‘In its brief 232 years of existence ... there has been no incubator for unleashing human potential like America.’

Berkshire Hathaway owns some of America’s largest companies, such as rail group BNSF Railway and has stakes in companies such as Apple.

I t has been buying shares recently in oil major Chevron. However, in recent years Buffett has struggled to find a large takeover deal.

In 2017, for example, Buffett teamed with 3G, an investment house led by Brazilian billionaires, to mount an $143 billion takeover bid for FTSE 100- listed consumer goods giant Unilever.

The deal collapsed after news of the transaction leaked. Buffett has ended up spending some of Berkshire Hathaway’s cash on the company’s own stock, buying back $ 9 billion in the fourth quarter of 2020.

Buffett also warned bond investors may suffer significant losses in the coming years.

‘Bonds are not the place to be these days,’ he said. ‘Fixed-income investors worldwide – whether pension funds, i nsurance companies or retirees – face a bleak future.’