Warren Buffett informed thousands of Berkshire Hathaway shareholders on Saturday that he intends to step down as CEO.
Buffett, who has led Berkshire Hathaway for the past 60 years, announced his retirement at the end of the year. He previously stated that he did not want to retire because he enjoys deciding where to invest Berkshire’s money and that he intended to work until he died or became incapacitated.
Buffett said he will recommend to Berkshire Hathaway’s board that Greg Abel become CEO at the end of the year.
“I think the time has arrived where Greg should become the Chief Executive office of the company at year end,” according to Buffett. “I want to spring that on the directors effectively, and then get that as my recommendation … I think they’ll be unanimously in favor of it.”
The 94-year-old is still in good health, though he does use a cane. Buffett announced the news at the end of a five-hour question-and-answer session and did not take any questions about it.
He claimed that his two children, Howard and Susie Buffett, were the only board members who knew what was coming. Abel, who sat next to Buffett on stage, received no warnings.
Abel appeared about an hour later to preside over the formal Berkshire business meeting in the absence of Buffett, and he made the announcement.
“I just want to say I couldn’t be more humbled and honored to be part of Berkshire as we go forward,” Abel told me.
Abel has been Buffett’s designated successor for many years, and he already oversees all of Berkshire’s noninsurance businesses. However, it was widely assumed that he would not take over until after Buffett died.
Buffett also stated that he will not be selling any shares of Berkshire Hathaway.
“I will not, I have no intention, zero of selling one share, of Berkshire Hathaway, it will get given away, gradually,” he told reporters. “The decision to keep every share is an economic decision, because I think the prospects of Berkshire will be better under management than mine.”
Buffett gave warning on Trump’s tariffs
The announcement came as he warned that the US should not use “trade as a weapon” to anger the rest of the world, as President Trump has done with his tariffs, which have roiled global markets.
“It’s a big mistake in my opinion when you have 7.5 billion people who don’t like you very well and 300 million who are bragging about how well they have done,” Buffett, 94, said as he addressed the topic of the day at the shareholders meeting.
While Buffett believes that trade should be balanced between countries, he believes that President Trump’s widespread tariffs are not the best way to accomplish this. He claimed that more prosperous countries would make the world a safer place.
“We should seek to trade with the rest of the world. He stated, “We should do our best, and they should do their best.”
Buffett stated that America has been undergoing revolutionary changes since its inception, including the promise of equality for all, which was not realized until many years later. However, nothing in today’s events has altered his long-term optimism about the country.
“If I were being born today, I would just keep negotiating in the womb until they said, ‘You could be in the United States,'” Buffett admitted.
Tariffs were the most common question shareholders submitted ahead of time to the CNBC reporter who will grill Buffett and his top two managers throughout the day. Investors will also be looking for him to explain why he has $347.7 billion in cash at Berkshire.
Buffett stated that he does not see many attractively priced investments that he understands these days, but predicted that one day Berkshire will be “bombarded with opportunities that we will be glad we have the cash for.”
The meeting draws approximately 40,000 people, including celebrities and well-known investors. Hillary Rodham Clinton was present this year. Clinton was the last candidate Buffett publicly supported before retreating from politics and other contentious issues for fear of harming Berkshire’s business.
Haibo Liu, an attendee from China, camped out overnight outside the arena to be first in line on Saturday morning.
“He has helped me a lot,” Liu said. “I really want to express my thanks to him.”
Liu expressed concern that this could be Buffett’s last meeting, so he made it a priority to attend.