Buffet says that Berkshire will continue to increase investment in the commercial houses of Japan

Berkshire Hathaway is committed to its long -term Japanese investments and has reached an agreement with companies to own beyond the initial roof of 10%, said Warren Buffett in his annual letter to the shareholders published on Saturday.

“From the beginning, we also agreed to keep Berkshire’s holdings below 10% of the shares of each company. But, as we approach this limit, the five companies agreed to relax the roof moderately,” Buffett said. “Over time, Berkshire’s property of the five increases a little.”

Japanese names in Berkshire’s portfolio are Ittochu, Marubení, Mitsubishi, Mitsui and Summit. The five are the largest “Suro Shosha” or commercial houses in Japan that invest in various sectors nationwide and abroad, “in a way somewhat similar to that of Berkshire himself,” said Buffet. Berkshire first bought companies in July 2019.

At the end of 2024, the market value of Berkshire Japanese holdings reached $ 23.5 billion, with the added cost at $ 13.8 billion. The investor highlighted the administrations of the companies, the relations with their investors, as well as their capital implementation strategies.

Buffett has sold Japanese debt to finance Berkshire’s actions in Japanese companies. The emission of bonds called yen also allows Buffett to reduce the risks related to the currencies. Berkshire reported $ 2.3 billion in earnings after taxes in their Japanese bonds, of which $ 850 million were only 2024 due to the force of the dollar, which appreciated around 11% against Y in 2024.

“We like the current mathematics of our balanced strategy,” Buffett said. He added that the designated successor “Greg (Abel) and I have no opinion about future exchange rates and, therefore, we seek a position that approaches monetary neutrality.”

The Olaha Oracle forecasts the annual dividend income of its participation in the five Japanese commercial houses will come around $ 812 million.

“I hope Greg and his eventual successors maintain this Japanese position for many decades and that Berkshire finds other ways of working productively with the five companies in the future,” Buffet said.

Without a doubt, the five Japanese commercial houses have fought in the last year. Ittochu and Marubeni have dropped more than 8% each at that time, while Mitsubishi has fallen by 26%. Mitsui and Sumitomo have lost 16% and 10%, respectively, during that period.