"The Forbes 400 had $93 billion in 1982, and
they got $2.4 trillion now. And that's 25 times as much," Buffett told
CNN's Poppy Harlow in an exclusive interview in Omaha on Thursday. Later in the
interview, when Harlow asked him who was winning in this economy, Buffett was
blunt. "The rich. Guys like me," he said. But even though Buffett is
doing well, he admitted the economy isn't in fantastic shape. And that probably
helped fuel the rise of Trump, as well as Bernie Sanders, the Democratic
senator from Vermont who challenged Clinton for the nomination. "Bernie
Sanders said to a good bit of American people, 'You're getting the short end of
the stick. And it isn't your fault,'" Buffett said. But he added that he
did not think Sanders would have a better shot of beating Trump than Clinton
did. He even cast doubt on recent numbers showing that the U.S. economy grew at
a nearly 3% annualized pace in the third quarter. "It's softer than I
think people think it is," Buffett said about the economy. "I don't
mean it's weak, but it's softer than people think." The GDP, you know,
comes out of the third quarter 2.9%. I don't think it was a 2.9% quarter,"
he added with a chuckle. "If I had to bet, if they end up revising the
third quarter, you know, it'll get revised downward. Still, Buffett remained
optimistic that things will change for the better. He said the focus needs to
be on improving incomes for average, working class Americans. "Capitalism,
the market system works," he said. "You want to keep a system where the
goose lays more golden eggs every year. We've got that. Now, the question is:
How do those eggs get distributed? And that is where the system needs some
adjusting." But Buffett, as he has said in the past, does not think
raising the minimum wage is the answer. He continued to stress that an earned
income tax credit would do more to boost income than a minimum wage increase. And
Buffett continued to be hopeful that economic conditions will improve for all
Americans -- and not just the wealthy.
http://money.cnn.com/2016/11/11/news/economy/warren-buffett-economy-income-inequality/index.html?iid=Lead
I think it's a better measure of looking at the wealth gap between the rich and the poor. Looking at their standard of living and financial spending habits will give a better evaluation of the economy's health.
ReplyDeleteThis is a great point. We often evaluate the economy based upon indicators that don't recognize the wealth gap between the poor and the rich. If there happened to be more weight placed on these statistics, american investors would be more in touch with the struggling, working-class electorate.
DeleteIt would be interesting to hear Warren Buffets opinion on how the most recent elections will effect America not only economically but also socially.
ReplyDeleteIt would be interesting to hear Warren Buffets opinion on how the most recent elections will effect America not only economically but also socially.
ReplyDeleteI think it will be interesting to see what Buffet thinks about the Affordable care act and the competition between insurance agencies. Does he think the economy thrives off of this completion or are the people benefiting from the act more important
ReplyDeleteWarren buffet was correct when he mentioned that an income tax credit would do more to boost income than a minimum wage increase since a rise in minimum wage increase costs to firms, who lay off workers to cut costs. It is a positive sign for the US to see that economic conditions will improve for all income groups.
ReplyDeleteIt is an interesting topic. I wonder how it will all play out with a new presidency and financial policy. Donald Trump may be a successful businessman, but only time will tell if he can adjust from running a corporation to running a country where every move that he makes will be under supervision and held in check by representatives.
ReplyDelete