Buffett seemed much more succinct with his responses in his most recent interview with Charlie Rose than at the annual meeting. He was often verbose at the annual meeting. I’m certain part of it has to do with aging, but I also wonder if a bit of his theme was an attempt to carefully prepare those listening for possible tumultuous economic times ahead in the world and to remain focused on getting through them wisely.
I lived through the high inflationary times of the seventies and early eighties and I remember P/E ratios of 7 and 8 for industrial companies and P/E ratios of 13 and 15 for technology companies. The world has changed significantly since then with much higher standards of living due to education and advancements in civilization, but I’ll always remember the cover of, I think the US News and Report magazine, asking “Will Anyone Ever Be Able To Afford A House Again?”.
Just rewatched the Charlie Rose interview. I believe Rose knows how to interrupt at the appropriate time. I don’t think the venue allows Becky to do that in an appropriate manner too keep things moving. This meeting was maybe the most informative I’ve seen. Putting the Rose interview with the annual meeting presentation makes me believe Warren is really involved with the current business climate.
1)I think that Warren knew the questions Charlie was going to ask.
I think that Warren, most optimistically, is no longer an early morning person. He was clearly more “present” from 11:00am yesterday, but still just a sad shadow of his former self.
I think Warren knows just about any Questions that are going to be asked not just by Rose. Let’s see Y,OXY,ATVI,CVX,Berk,German Stocks Japan,AAPL,Treasuries. Yeah I’m worried!!