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This guy took Bill Gates crown as the world's richest man. The guy is often referred to as the Oracle of Omaha (he hails from Omaha, NB) or the Sage of Omaha. As of 2008, Forbes said that his net worth is $62 billion. And just like most billionaires on planet earth, the person I'm writing about is known for his big heart for charity — he promised to give away his fortune when he dies. That's Warren Buffet, one of the most influential people of today.
The success of Berkshire Hathaway made Buffet rich and powerful. Berkshire's class A shares sold for $96,600 as of December 31, 2008, making them the highest-priced shares on the New York Stock Exchange. February this year, Mr. Buffet released his company's annual report for 2008. According to the annual report, the company lost $11.5 billion.
“I did some dumb things in investments,” Buffet said in his letter to shareholders. Yet he remains optimistic that America's best days lie ahead.
So who exactly is Warren Buffet? And why is the world, specifically investors, asking themselves “what would Buffet do?” in times of crisis.
Growing up in his hometown, Warren Buffet displayed an amazing aptitude for both money and business at a very early age. He sold newspapers, 6-packs of Coca Cola and even stocks. He finished a degree in economics at the University of Nebraska in 1950. Buffet then continued his M.S. in Economics in Columbia University under the tutelage Phil Fisher and Benjamin Graham. Eventually, Benjamin Graham became an idyllic figure to the, then, twenty-one year old Warren Buffett.
After completing graduate school, Mr. Buffet went to work for his former mentor, and from then on began working his way up in creating his financial empire. Along the way, he also met Charlie Munger. The two hit off as good friends and business partners.
And the rest is history as they say. Warren Buffet acquired Berkshire Hathaway in 1965. He also invested in various industries including jewelry (Borsheim's), utilities (MidAmerican Energy), food (Dairy Queen, See's Candies and has noncontrolling stakes in Anheuser-Busch, Coca-Cola and Wells Fargo. His popularity not only came from his amazing successful business endeavors but for his personal frugality despite his immense wealth.
Indeed, he shocked the world by his decision to donate roughly $37 billion to the Gates Foundation. But his 3 kids, Susan, Howard and Peter were not surprised. "The truth is it would be insane to leave us that much money," said Susan Buffett in an interview with Good Morning America.
Regardless of the mistakes Buffet did last year, the man is still regarded as an icon in stock investments and the like. He set a major example amongst the rich that the more you give, the more you will receive. At 77 years old, the financial guru is as active as ever and come May 2, 2009 he will be presiding over the highly anticipated annual company meeting of Berkshire Hathaway in Omaha. Though Warren Buffet is not into forex trading, but forex traders might consider adapting the positive outlook he has on money and life itself.
Forex Trading Education
I have written an article or two about precious metals with very weak reception. I did not think it would be a huge reception but I thought there would be more interest. Precious metals are not understood by many people. I got into precious metals, more specifically silver, about 3 years ago. I have moved some of my investments in my IRA from more traditional investments to silver. My financial advisor was hesitant when I first discussed it with him. I know he did not agree with my move. I also know he makes no money from the move so it does not benefit him at all. This is probably a large part of the reason why he didn't agree.
I have recently left my job and I will be transferring my money from that 401K program to my IRA. I will be spreading it out over the precious metals with the majority going to silver. Many people do not realize the silver supply is not what it once was. I have read articles in the past discussing the silver supply. Some experts feel there are more “shares” of silver sold and owned by investors that there is actually silver left on the planet.
Hopefully most people reading this article know who Warren Buffet is. I am assuming you do because you are reading articles relating to investing. For those that don't know who he is, he is the second richest man in the world. He is only a couple billion behind Bill Gates with an estimated value of roughly $42 billion. He made his fortune strictly through investing whereas Bill Gates did it with his company. Back in the late 90's Mr. Buffet bought 130 million ounces of silver. If you read the article I have attached:
http://www.gold-eagle.com/editorials_05/dross022806.html
You will see he clearly knew what he was doing. The silver ETF was approved since the above article was written and since its approval the price of silver is going up. It has only been a few days but it is on the rise. If a man that is worth $42 billion, who has made his money in investing, is buying silver I am thinking there is good reason for it. The article indicates he may be supplying the company responsible for the ETF with the amount of silver they need to open for business but even if that is the case he still knew silver would be exploding in price at some point and has worked himself a deal to make a few more billion.
There is no way to know how much silver will be worth in the near future. But, there is no way to know what your GE stock will be worth, or whatever the company may be. But, at a current price of roughly $11 an ounce it is a safe bet that you will be making some money. Certainly the risk of losing money on silver is minimal at that price. When it is at $11 an ounce there is not much room to fall.
One other difference between silver, or any precious metal for that matter, and a regular stock is the precious metals have value. The stock is a piece of paper. If you have 1000 ounces of silver in your possession, whether at home or in a deposit box at your local bank, you know your investment has value. It can always be sold for some money. Precious metals have been around for centuries. They were used as currency in many countries and they are still used in some countries to this day. Our United States currency was once backed by silver and gold.
China has previously not allowed its citizens to buy silver and gold but recently began allowing them to buy. They have been using some of their savings to acquire as much of the precious metals as they can.
People are afraid to do something different. I have been pushing the benefits of precious metals and Forex trading. Many people know very little about either of them and they keep away from them. I say that people need to stop being dependant on their financial advisors who make money on the sales they recommend. They are in it for themselves first. Your goal is to protect you, not them. If the second richest person in the world can spend $1.3 billion of his own money for silver then why shouldn't you spend a few hundred to get yourself started?