Wednesday, September 16, 2009

Warren Buffett to CNBC: No Regrets From Crisis Weekend One Year Ago

(cnbc.com) Warren Buffett tells CNBC he has no regrets about any of the decisions he made over the weekend one year ago in September, 2008, when the financial crisis was at its worst.

In a taped interview with Squawk Box's Becky Quick airing tonight, Buffett says he "looked hard" at a telephoned offer that Friday night to buy AIG's property casualty operation in the range of $20 billion to $25 billion, but decided against it.

He recalls telling AIG CEO Bob Willumstad that night, "Unfortunately, I can't do this deal. And don't waste your time with me, so go someplace else."

Read the entire story

Monday, September 14, 2009

Transcript: Jean-Marie Eveillard

(forbes.com) Jean-Marie Eveillard is senior adviser of First Eagle Funds.

Steve Forbes: Jean-Marie, thank you very much for joining us.

Jean-Marie Eveillard: My pleasure, Steve.

Forbes: You have been called a value investor. Can you define what you mean by value investing?

Eveillard: Well, value investing, it, as you know, it's Ben Graham, who in the '30s, found the value school--founded the value school. And it's the idea that you look at businesses, you try to figure out what they're worth. Not in terms of the next quarterly earnings, but what, if you have the cash, what kind of price you'd be willing to pay for it today, for the entire business.

Read the entire transcript

Live Blog: Jim Rogers on the Crisis, Banks, Investment

(cnbc.com) Abolish the Federal Reserve and let AIG go bankrupt for the world economy to emerge cleaner from the financial meltdown, legendary investor Jim Rogers told CNBC a year ago.

But governments around the world have rushed to bail out banks and pumped trillions of dollars in their economies to avert an economic disaster. A year after Lehman Brothers collapsed, here is what Jim Rogers tells CNBC (most recent quotes at the bottom):

Read the entire article

Tuesday, September 8, 2009

Closely Watched Buffett Recalculating His Bets

(nytimes.com) Warren E. Buffett has two cardinal rules of investing. Rule No. 1: Never lose money. Rule No. 2: Never forget Rule No. 1.

Well, a lot of old rules got trashed when the financial crisis struck — even for the Oracle of Omaha.

At 79, Mr. Buffett is coming off the worst year of his long, storied career. On paper, he personally lost an estimated $25 billion in the financial panic of 2008, enough to cost him his title as the world’s richest man. (His friend and sometime bridge partner, Bill Gates, now holds that honor, according to Forbes.)

Read the entire article

Tuesday, September 1, 2009

On the “Course” to a New Normal

(www.pimco.com) Analyzing why people play golf is like exploring the intricacies of string theory – there are so many permutations lacking scientific observation that physicists or golfers can pretty darn well say anything they like and the explanation might stick. When it comes to whacking that little white ball, the possibilities are nearly endless: People play to relax, to be with friends, to get close to Mother Nature, to enhance business connections, to compete and excel. Gosh, I don’t know, the Zen explanation for why we play golf could even resemble the old saw about climbing a mountain: People golf because it’s there. Whatever the reason, it is the most frustrating, damnable game ever conceived – alternately elevating and depressing you within the span of mere minutes. I love golf. No, I hate it.

Personally, the reason that golf draws me to its intricate web of psychological entrapment is epitomized by a simple six-inch trophy: a chartreuse ball resting on top of its ebony base, preening on a bookshelf in the family room at our desert home. Its inscription reads, “Hole in one, March 15th, 1990, 14th hole Desert Course, 155 yards.” Well and good, I suppose – the ace of my life – except it wasn’t. It was the ace of my wife. Above the inscription rests the name Sue – not Bill – Gross. It was a great shot but it wasn’t my shot, and I guess therein lies the explanation for why I continue to tee it up.

Read Bill Gross' letter here