Warren Buffett: “Never bet against America” – or should you?

The world's most famous investor, Warren Buffett, seems to have developed a new love for cash. Buffett now holds half of his assets in cash and government bonds through his holding company Berkshire Hathaway. Unusual when you consider that the stock markets are chasing records. Just like Berkshire Hathaway's shares, which have reached a market value of one trillion dollars.

Warren Buffett is normally considered a pacifist. "Never bet against America," he wrote to Berkshire Hathaway shareholders a few years ago. But he now seems to have become much more cautious. In his most recent letter, however, things sound different. He warns of "fiscal tyranny" by "rogues and promoters who take advantage of those who falsely trust them." Buffett now holds 345 billion dollars in liquid assets, mainly government bonds. This makes up around 53 percent of the company's net assets. Buffett also invests in Japanese stocks that he considers promising. For example, Mitsubishi, Sumitomo and Mitsui. "Each of these large companies in turn has a stake in a large number of companies, many of which are based in Japan, but others operate all over the world," writes Buffett. His enthusiasm for the companies and their management has grown steadily. Berkshire holds just under ten percent of each company.

From Buffett's point of view, the caution with regard to US stocks is not entirely incomprehensible. Measured by the so-called "Buffett Indicator", which compares the value of the US stock market with the size of the country's annual gross domestic product, stocks have never been as expensive as they are now.