OMAHA, Nebraska – OMAHA, Nebraska— Warren Buffett downplayed recent stock market volatility, which has alarmed investors in recent weeks.
During Berkshire Hathaway’s annual meeting, the CEO stated, “What has happened in the last 30 to 45 days is really nothing.”
Buffett noted that Berkshire Hathaway stock has declined 50% three times in the last six decades. He stated that there was no fundamental problem with the company during these periods.
“I do not get fearful by things that other people … are afraid of in a financial way,” he told me. “Let us say Berkshire went down 50% next week, I would regard that as a fantastic opportunity, and it would not bother me in the least.”
Given this, he stated that the recent action in the US stock market should not be considered a “huge” move.
“This has not been a dramatic bear market or anything of the sort,” Mr. Buffett claimed.
These comments from the “Oracle of Omaha” come as investors wonder what comes next for markets following the wild trading that occurred amid concerns about President Donald Trump’s contentious tariff policy, which was announced in early April.
The S&P 500 achieved its longest winning streak since 2004 on Friday, recovering from the initial sell-off after Trump’s policy announcement. It is a stunning rebound for US stocks after the benchmark index briefly entered a bear market on an intraday basis last month, a term used to describe a drop of more than 20% from its previous high before regaining ground.
Buffett stated that previous periods have been “dramatically different” from the one that investors are currently experiencing. He reminded investors that the market has risen during the 94-year-old’s lifetime, but warned them that they should be prepared for periods of volatility.
He shared the Dow Jones Industrial Average.
sat at 240 on his birthday, August 30, 1930, and dropped as low as 41. Despite the “hair-curler” events he is witnessed, the blue-chip average closed Friday above 41,300.
“If it makes a difference to you whether your stocks are down 15% or not, you need to get a somewhat different investment philosophy,” Mr. Buffett said. “The world will not adapt to you. “You will have to adapt to the world.”
“People have emotions,” he explained. “But you got to check them at the door when you invest.”