Berkshire Hathaway’s New CEO Signals Confidence With $15M Stock Purchase

Berkshire Hathaway’s new CEO, Greg Abel, recently purchased $15 million worth of company stock, roughly equal to his entire after-tax salary. The purchase was revealed in regulatory filings and comes at the same time the company has restarted its own share buyback program. The purchase is notable because it comes early in Abel’s career as CEO, after Warren Buffett stepped down from the role at the beginning of 2026 while remaining chairman. Abel explained that the decision to disclose the buyback activity was meant to provide transparency during the leadership transition. He also confirmed that Buffett was consulted on the timing and valuation of the repurchase decision.

Berkshire has a policy allowing it to buy back shares when management believes the stock is trading below its intrinsic value. This is the first repurchase since May 2024. The company had previously bought back large amounts of stock from 2018–2024 before pausing when the share price hit record highs in 2025.

Shares of Berkshire Hathaway’s Class B stock rose about 1% in premarket trading following the news. However, the stock has had a mixed performance recently. It is down about 3% so far in 2026, fell almost 5% after its latest earnings report, currently trading below key moving averages, and gained 11% in 2025, underperforming the S&P 500, which rose 16%. 

Abel’s $15 million stock purchase and Berkshire’s renewed buybacks suggest that management believes the stock is currently undervalued. If investors agree with that assessment, this could help support or gradually increase the stock price over time.

New CEO Buys $15 million in stock, Berkshire Restarts Buybacks

UAE freezing Iranian assets

The United Arab Emirates is reportedly considering freezing Iranian assets held within its financial system as tensions in the Middle East escalate. Freezing assets prevents a country from accessing money stored abroad, which limits the ability to internationally trade, stabilize its currency, or finance government activities. For Iran, which already faces heavy international sanctions, losing access to funds in a major financial support like the UAE could further damage its economy. This would likely increase pressure on Iran’s currency, reduce foreign currency reserves, and make it harder for the country to import goods or manage inflation.

The potential decision could also have broader economic impacts beyond Iran. Economic instability in the region can influence global energy markets, especially because the Middle East plays an important role in oil production and transportation. If tensions escalate further, disruptions near important shipping routes like the Strait of Hormuz could push oil prices higher. This would affect inflation and economic stability worldwide. Overall, the UAE’s consideration of freezing Iranian assets highlights how financial measures have become an important tool in modern conflicts, where economic pressure could be used to influence political outcomes.

https://www.cnbc.com/2026/03/06/uae-mulls-freezing-iranian-assets-as-middle-east-conflict-escalates-wsj-.html

The U.S. economy lost 92,000 jobs in February, stoking labor market worries

The latest report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed that U.S economy lost 92,000 jobs in February. This comes as a shock as January had a gain of 126,000 jobs and forecasts were shown have an additional increase of 50,000 jobs and unemployment to stay at 4.3%. The unemployment rate has gone up to 4.4%. Numbers from December and January were updated and came with some contractions. January stellar payrolls figure went from 130,000 to 126,000 and December's figure of 50,000 jobs added was updated to a contraction of 17,000 jobs. With those adjustments, 2025 is the first year to have five months of contractions in the labor market since 2010. Furthermore, the labor force participation rate has fallen from 62.5% to 62%.

These numbers are quite surprising as experts have been stating that our labor market is slowing growing again and hiring is coming back. Of course, one bad month won't dictate what the rest of the year will look like but it's still very surprising and the markets are reacting to this shock. There have been a few issues in fixing the economy like Trump's tariffs and government shutdowns that haven't helped speed up the process. The labor market hasn't been doing well for a while with there being various layoffs and less labor force participation. With the current conflict with Iran, the report for the labor force and overall economy in March is going to look interesting.

https://www.nbcnews.com/business/economy/2026-labor-market-set-begin-taking-shape-february-jobs-report-rcna261994

Gas Prices, Energy Supply, and Why a Few Dollars per Barrel Can Move the Whole Economy

Most of the recent coverage has centered around the geopolitical risks that could boost prices, even if the increase is “only” several dollars per barrel. That’s important from a macro standpoint because one of the first areas that gets reflected in the economy is the price of gasoline. If the price of oil increases, that’s effectively a tax increase for the end consumer, which means that their discretionary spending power is reduced.

The inflation aspect is what makes this particularly important for the markets. If the price of oil increases, that means that inflation could accelerate, which means that interest rates could remain high for longer than people expect. Even if core inflation is calm, the price of oil can have an impact on the service sector through distribution. The takeaway here is that an increase in the price of oil can have the effect of slowing down the economy, which is particularly concerning because that’s the type of environment that makes monetary policy particularly tricky. 

https://www.foxbusiness.com/economy/oil-experts-predict-slight-rise-gas-prices-global-tensions-mount

Banking, payments services disrupted after Amazon UAE data centers hit in drone strikes

 Drone strikes on the Amazon Web Services data centers in the United Arab Emirates have caused a widespread outage across the apps, banking services, and financial platforms. AWS reported that two facilities in UAE and one in Bahrain were damaged from the events, leading to power disruptions that forced systems offline. Several companies that rely on AWS infrastructure have experienced service interruptions, including payment platforms Alaan and Hubby, and banks such as the Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank. 

The strike comes amid escalating tensions following the United States and Israeli attacks on Iran over the weekend. These events triggered retaliatory actions across the Middle East. While AWS continues to push for recovery efforts, the incident highlights how geopolitical conflict can disrupt digital infrastructure and services worldwide. 

Inflation Fears Rise as Manufacturing Costs Spike in February

In early March, data showed a surprising jump in manufacturing prices in the United States, raising concerns about inflation staying higher than expected. According to the February report from the Institute for Supply Management (ISM), the Prices Paid Index—a key measure of how much manufacturers are paying for raw materials—surged to a reading of 70.5, far above January’s level and economist forecasts. This indicates that factories are seeing significantly higher input costs, which can eventually trickle down to consumer prices and push inflation up. At the same time, the overall manufacturing sector still showed modest growth, but the rapidly rising costs have sparked uncertainty in markets and among policymakers. If inflation remains strong, the Federal Reserve might feel pressure to keep interest rates higher for longer, which could slow other parts of the economy like housing or investment.

https://markets.chroniclejournal.com/chroniclejournal/article/marketminute-2026-3-2-inflation-alarm-ism-manufacturing-prices-index-surges-to-705-as-tariffs-bite-into-second-month-of-growth

Is AI Really Boosting Overall Productivity in The Economy?

    Artificial intelligence is often talked about as the next big thing that will boost the U.S. economy. Productivity simply means how much workers produce per hour, and it is one of the main reasons wages and living standards rise over time. Recent data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows productivity has improved in the past year, but the increases have not been steady. While some companies are clearly using AI to work faster and cut costs, there is not yet clear proof that AI has permanently raised productivity across the whole economy.

If AI truly improves productivity in a lasting way, the economy could grow faster without causing inflation, which would be a major benefit. Groups like the International Monetary Fund and the McKinsey Global Institute say AI has the potential to increase output over time, but they also explain that big technological changes usually take years to fully show up in national data. For now, AI looks promising, but the large, long term productivity boom many investors expect has not clearly appeared in the numbers yet.

Sources:

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics – Labor Productivity and Costs
https://www.bls.gov/lpc/

McKinsey Global Institute – The Economic Potential of Generative AI
https://www.mckinsey.com/mgi/our-research/the-economic-potential-of-generative-ai-the-next-productivity-frontier

Iran Closes the Strait of Hormuz

Iran has closed the Strait of Hormuz, sending shockwaves across global energy markets. Many countries will be affected, but the most pain will be felt in Asian countries. The strait is vital for oil trade, with roughly 13 million barrels per day passing through it in 2025. Oil prices have already significantly increased, and this development could make matters worse. Some specific countries that will be affected are China, Japan, South Korea, and other countries in Southeast Asia. It's the expectation that they'll see inflation first, and shortages second. However, China has a good amount of reserves to weather the storm for a while, but the uncertainty around this circumstance could cause economic hardship for any country caught in the crossfire of this war.

https://www.cnbc.com/2026/03/03/strait-of-hormuz-closure-which-countries-will-be-hit-the-most.html 

Core whole sales prices increases by 0.8%, much more than expected.

       In January, there was hopes that the inflation would ease, however that was not the case. The PPI adjusted to a 0.8% after a gain of 0.6% in December. The headline PPI rose 0.5%, going above the forecast of 0.3% than in the prior month. During 2025, wholesale prices increases to 3.6%, which is beyond the Federal reserves 2% inflation goals. This tells us that inflation is still a factor in our economy. With regards to service prices, this is the main factor that drove the increase of wholesale prices, an 0.8% monthly rise was the highest since July of 2025. Goods fell by 0.3%, but core goods rose to 0.7%. 

        President Donald Trump believes inflation has been controlled. The pressures indicated by the PPI will cause the Fed to become cautious while weighing the pending moves on interest rates. Until the summer, the Fed will stay on the sidelines as expected by the market, though Trump has pushed for lower rates. However, economists are worried that Trump's tariffs will push for higher inflation, but is expected to be temporary by the Fed officials. 

https://www.cnbc.com/2026/02/27/ppi-january-2026-.html

Difficult Month for Amazon: Geopolitical Risk Meets Market Uncertainty

In two recent articles, we can see how the effects of uncertainty in the global economy has impacted Amazon. According to CNBC, Amazon has confirmed that drone strikes have damaged three Amazon Web Services (AWS) facilities in the UAE and Bahrain. Around a similar time, TipRanks reported that Amazon stock experienced its worst month since 2022. While these stories may seem separate, they both highlight the risk and uncertainties that large global companies are facing.

The CNBC article explains that these drone strikes impacted data centers in the Middle East that support cloud services in the region. AWS is one of Amazon’s most profitable streams of revenue and plays a huge role in powering businesses that rely on the cloud. Though the majority of updates from war in the Middle East regard oil concerns, the digital infrastructure is also being affected. With the world's economy becoming increasingly dependent on technology and data centers, disruptions to cloud services can have rippling effects across a multitude of industries.

Putting aside the damages of facilities in the Middle East, Amazon’s stock has struggled. According to TipRanks, investors are reacting with caution as Amazon increases their spending on AI and data center expansions. While they are investing into growth, it isn’t certain that these expansions will be sustainable. Having a period of aggressive expansion combined with geopolitical instability could explain why markets are acting nervous. That being said, Amazon is a fundamentally strong company so these issues should only affect them in the short-run.

https://www.cnbc.com/2026/03/02/amazon-says-drone-strikes-damaged-3-facilities-in-uae-and-bahrain.html
https://www.tipranks.com/news/amazon-stock-amzn-sees-its-worst-month-since-2022#google_vignette