Warren Buffett on Great Recession & BNSF Acquisition

[RJWooller]

I have to say he is one of the great billionaires.

[HYPHYDUM408]

He bought the railroad because he knows oil will be very very costly in the future. There is an inverse relationship between the cheapness of oil and prosperity of Warren Buffet's BSNF.

I just can't believe what I learned today by watching a youtube video on Buffett.

[gengarjetty]

there's always one person who dislikes wb vids, I think it's george soros.

[maple1255]

Buffett is a master investor. What he says here makes sense, he tends to choose 'boring' businesses (his words from the past). He senses real stability here, his argument makes a lot of sense to me.  I was surprised though that he bought it out I think around $65 per share, it had been trading in the 20s in the few years previous. In hindsight, would have been better to have invested then but may not have been possible to buy the whole company at those prices.

[StillHaveADream]

Intercontinental High speed train system. One line for industry one line for transportation. Connect the world around

[2nasacova]

where does money come from? Every year everyone makes a living, some more than others, but everyone makes a living. The rich get richer, and the super rich (theres over a thousand of these in the US) make super amounts of money. Thats a lot of new money. And this will happen again next year and the year after that - indefinitely. So, where does money come from?

Along the same lines, why would a country wide department store chain prefer to sell stock at a loss than not sell any stock at all.

[StillHaveADream]

@2nasacova

It does not matter where money comes from (cloth+ink=money). you must consider what money is. Money represents the best of your ability being recognized by another, they honor your ability by giving you earned profits. Your profits reflect your self-esteem. What is your time and effort worth to you? to society? to your client? Are you the best at what you do? do you want to be? Do you expect unearned and undeserved profits? Disregard everyone but yourself and your efforts

[iezzzwan]

I think he may be betting on "peak oil" and the commodity market by investing on railways.

[superusa1212]

Dollar crash. Very small Middle Class. Political upheaval.

Renewal in thirty years after the US government makes a creditors restructuring agreement (for the entitlement spending) and creates a "New Dollar".

[wtaypw]

what about electric train ? bullet train ?

Would railway need to change with times and morph into higher speed transport ?

Railway would need huge investment to revamp ?

China investing over 300bn to expand its bullet train...

Nuclear energy power electric bullet train is more efficient as compared to diesel railway ?

[MasterFrooby]

"Railway would need huge investment to revamp ?

China investing over 300bn to expand its bullet train..."

That's not the point. BNSF is the only large railroad company in the USA, so if a new railroad company wanted to compete with it, it would have to grow as large as BNSF, and put over 100 billion dollars into it, which is a very large amount from the standpoint of a COMPANY.

The Chinese GOVERNMENT is planning to invest 300 billion, not a Chinese COMPANY.

[da5families]

w00t w00t! good.

[danpt2000]

@MasterFrooby: Whereas the U.S. gov't is throwing away Billions "investing" in failing companies (Banks, GM).

[heelblocks]

@MasterFrooby BNSF is the only large railroad company in the USA? There is Union Pacific (UP), Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF), CSX Transportation, Northfolk Southern (NS), Canadian National (CN), Canadian Pacific (CP). 

[MasterFrooby]

"Nuclear energy power electric bullet train is more efficient as compared to diesel railway ?"

It costs $1 million to get 1 gram of uranium...It might be more efficient but its CERTAINLY NOT cost effective.

[valueinvestorsportal]

John Gapper of the Financial Times writes, "Only now, when US railway operators have consolidated over more than a century, grown more efficient, are run by less colourful characters and no longer face the possibility of someone laying a rival track, do they attract Buffett."

[thegrandayatollah]

bullet train aren't for shipping