Warren Buffett says US should not exploit 'trade as a weapon'

Warren Buffett offered a fervent defence of trade on Saturday, saying tariffs should not be a “weapon” and the United States would be better off if other countries shared its prosperity.

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Buffett spoke at Saturday's annual meeting of his conglomerate Berkshire Hathaway, after a month when US President Donald Trump's tariff policies prompted big stock price declines and increased fears of recession.

“Balanced trade is good for the world,” and “trade should not be a weapon,” said Buffett, 94, who has run Berkshire for 60 years and is arguably the world's most revered investor.

“I don’t think it’s a good idea to design a world where a few countries say, ha ha ha, we've won,” Buffett added. “I do think that the more prosperous the rest of the world becomes... the more prosperous we'll become.”

Berkshire itself has remained cautious. It revealed that its cash stake grew in the first quarter to a record $347.7 billion, and Buffett said “fiscal policy is what scares me in the United States.”

He urged patience to investors worried about the direction of the US economy and the country itself, saying they should reconsider their approach to investing if sudden market declines left them unsettled.

“People have emotions,” he said. “You've got to check them at the door when you invest.”

He nonetheless retained his long-term optimism for the country, saying criticism of policies and the people who make them is par for the course.