New York –
U.S. investment company Berkshire Hathaway plans to keep its shares in five major Japanese trading houses over the long term, even after the exit of CEO Warren Buffett on Wednesday.
The five are Mitsubishi Corp., Mitsui & Co., Sumitomo, Marubeni and Itochu.
Buffett has hailed the traders’ strategies of running a wide range of operations, including food and energy, describing them as highly diversified.
Greg Abel, involved in the investment in the five companies as Berkshire’s vice chairman, will maintain Buffett’s long-term investment policy for the traders after taking over the post of chief executive.
In 2020, Berkshire announced its acquisitions of shares in the five traders. It has since bought additional shares gradually, boosting its stakes to over 10% for Mitsubishi and Mitsui, over 9% for Sumitomo and Marubeni, and over 8% for Itochu.
In a letter to Berkshire shareholders in 2025, Buffett stated that the five companies had agreed to moderately relax the initially set ownership ceiling of 9.9%.
“Over time, you will likely see Berkshire’s ownership of all five increase somewhat,” he also said.
At the company’s annual general meeting of shareholders in March 2025, Abel said, “we really envision holding the investment (in the five traders) for 50 years or forever.”
The five companies’ share prices surged in recent years following Berkshire’s acquisitions.
AloJapan.com