OMAHA, Neb. — Warren Buffett said that Berkshire Hathaway is considering investing in Canada.
“We don’t feel uncomfortable putting our money into Canada in any way,” he said Saturday in front of a stadium full of investors. “We’re actually looking at one thing right now.”
The billionaire investor has bet on the country before. He previously took a roughly $300 million position in Home Capital Group, which investors saw as a vote of confidence in the troubled Canadian mortgage underwriter.
The Oracle of Omaha said during its annual shareholders meeting that it has no plans to make significant bets outside the United States, saying its recent investments in Japanese trading houses were a strong exception. But Buffett noted the similarities between Canadian and U.S. operations.
“There are a lot of countries that we don’t understand at all,” Buffett said. “So Canada, it’s amazing when you have a large economy, not the size of the U.S., but a large economy that you feel confident working there.”
Warren Buffett takes the stage and meets with Berkshire Hathaway shareholders before their annual meeting in Omaha, Nebraska on May 3, 2024.
David A. Grogen | CNBC
Buffett did not disclose the specific company he was considering north of the border or whether it was public or private.
“Obviously there aren’t as many big companies there as there are in the United States,” Buffett said. “There are things we can actually do quite well that Canada could benefit from Berkshire’s participation.”
Canada S&P/TSX Composite Index this year has grown by about 5%. The economy has large financial and commodity sectors.
The Berkshire Hathaway shareholder meeting is broadcast exclusively on CNBC and livestreamed on CNBC.com.