Warren Buffett tours the floor ahead of the Berkshire Hathaway Annual Shareholder’s Meeting in Omaha, NE.
David A. Grogan | CNBC
Warren Buffett shrugged off Fitch’s U.S. downgrade, noting it doesn’t change what his conglomerate, Berkshire Hathaway, is doing at the moment.
“Berkshire bought $10 billion in U.S. Treasurys last Monday. We bought $10 billion in Treasurys this Monday. And the only question for next Monday is whether we will buy $10 billion in 3-month or 6-month” T-bills, Buffett told CNBC’s Becky Quick.
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“There are some things people shouldn’t worry about,” he said. “This is one.”
On Tuesday, Fitch lowered its long-term foreign currency issuer default rating for the U.S. to AA+ from AAA. The ratings firm cited “expected fiscal deterioration over the next three years,” growing debt and an erosion of governance.
The downgrade sparked a sell-off in U.S. stocks. The S&P 500 fell 1.4% on Wednesday.
Buffett noted that these concerns are valid, and the Oracle of Omaha said he doesn’t agree with everything the federal government is doing. That said, it’s not enough to change his views on U.S. Treasurys and the dollar.
“The dollar is the reserve currency of the world, and everybody knows it,” Buffett said.