Warren Buffet: Economy In Shambles

If anyone has his fingers on the pulse of the economy and business it is the Oracle of Omaha, Warren Buffet. His somber assesment about the current state of the economy and business in general is both honest and accurate. I always like to hear what Mr. Buffet has to say, he is truly the best investor in history.-Lou


In a live interview on CNBC today, Warren Buffett said there has been little progress over the past few months in the "economic war" being fought by the country. "We haven't got the economy moving yet," he told Becky Quick.

While the economy is a "shambles" and likely to stay that way for some time, he remains optimistic there will eventually be a recovery over a period of years.

BECKY: The last time we sat down to talk to you was on May 4, and at that point you told us that you think we're in an economic war right now. How much progress do you think we've made in that war?

BUFFETT: Well, it's been pretty flat. I get figures on 70-odd businesses, a lot of them daily. Everything that I see about the economy is that we've had no bounce. The financial system was really where the crisis was last September and October, and that's been surmounted and that's enormously important. But in terms of the economy coming back, it takes a while. There were a lot of excesses to be wrung out and that process is still underway and it looks to me like it will be underway for quite a while. In the (Berkshire Hathaway) annual report I said the economy would be in a shambles this year and probably well beyond. I'm afraid that's true.

Buffett also noted that he had a cataract operation on his left eye about a month ago. He joked that he thought it might help him see "green shoots" for the economy, but so far he hasn't seen any hopeful signs.

Taking a firm position in an ongoing debate in the financial markets, Buffett says he's not concerned about deflation, but thinks inflation will be a problem in coming years.

Read the whole transcript of his interview at the link below

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