Warren Buffett, a Billionaire investor said that the international economy is certainly slowing due to the decline in Asia and continued troubles in Europe too.
Buffett said that there is still improvement in the U.S economy and business will get better no matter who succeeds in the forthcoming presidential election polls.
As the U.S economy doing better than Asian and European counterparts, its business might perform well if leaders address the country’s financial problems properly. During his appearance on CNBC, Buffett said “We’re still inching ahead, but we’re indeed inching!”
Berkshire Hathaway’s head said that he can guess the economy’s path from the information he got from the Omaha-based conglomerate subsidiaries. Its assets include theClaytonHomes, BNSF railroad and a real estate business brokerage.
Although Buffett supports Obama, he believes that the economy will rise whether Republican Party Mitt Romney or President Barack Obama wins the elections. He thinks the main difference between their thinking is their take on social matters, rather than economic issues.
He said the housing industry in the U.S is beginning to rebound, however it is yet to reach its peak. Clayton is marketing 10% to 15 % manufactured homes and real estate brokers of Berkshire are handling 15 % extra transactions. He said that the housing recovery will eventually help hiring.
Jeff Immelt, CEO of General Electric Co. joined Buffett in the interview later. Both were inColumbusfor an event inOhioStateUniversitythat centred on mid-sized business. Immelt said that the trends of overall economy continue to be up, but business is unstable due to the global recession.
The General Electric boss urged investors to believe in long-term positive trends. He says his company has currently $200 billion reserves of business.
He thinks if the leaders address the fiscal problems of spending cuts and automatic tax rising, which is expected to be triggered at the beginning of the year then there will be a chance of more investments in theU.S.
Buffett said that the solution is clear to all the leaders, but it is put on hold inWashington,D.C., due to the upcoming elections. He says the solution may involve an increase in spending cuts and taxes.
Buffett said that he is still looking for a major gaining for Berkshire Hathaway; however he is not keen to contend with bidders by paying higher.