Warren Buffett’s Holdings Might Lose a Whopping $80 Billion Because of This Global Pandemic

Warren Buffett is among the world’s wisest and most successful investors ever but that doesn’t mean that he is totally immune to the sways of the market. Case in point: the largest equity investments of his holdings company Berkshire Hathaway is feared to lose more than $80 billion as the market faces a downturn.

Billions in Losses

The Statesman | The S&P 500 recently fell by 12%, which is its worst daily decline since the late ‘80s

This is thanks to the panic and concerns that the coronavirus outbreak brought with it. As a result, the value of Berkshire Hathaway shares in industry giants like Coca-Cola, Apple, and Delta Airlines were eviscerated.

The company’s top 10 stocks reportedly saw a 43& share-price decline from late February to today. It was in February that the sell-off, supposedly motivated by the coronavirus, began.

It’s also worth noting that the situation remains grim despite the Federal Reserve’s attempts to give the economy a boost. This move reportedly implies that the central bank saw the possibility of an economic crisis happening as businesses and borders close in response to the spread of the coronavirus.

Tumbling Stakes

Deposit Photos | Berkshire Hathaway notably cut its shares in Wells Fargo in late 2019

Going into specifics, Berkshire Hathaway’s 5.6% stake in the tech giant Apple lost about $27 billion of its value as the stock’s price plummeted by 32%. Another one of Berkshire’s largest investments, Bank of America, saw a huge decline (48%) leading to a loss of $15 billion for Buffett’s company.

The Buffett-led company has also been affected by Delta Airlines stock’s whopping 63% decline. The major American airline’s troubles are a direct result of the travel restrictions on the advent of the coronavirus spread across the globe. Among Berkshire Hathaway’s holdings, it seems that Kraft Heinz emerged as the relative ‘best performer’ as its share price only went down by 22%.

Global Effects

Investing | Japan’s Nikkei Index has also notably faltered amidst the coronavirus outbreak

Not surprisingly, the American stock market isn’t the only one dealing with huge falls in recent times. Investors around the world are reportedly already fearing how the economy might be destroyed with governments proving to be unable to put a stop to this possibility.

Thus, central banks in numerous countries have elected to cut interest rates in an attempt to boost the economy. Among those to do so is the Bank of England, which cut rates to an all-time low and set on a £200 billion ($234 billion) money creation scheme.

Coronavirus infections have breached the 400,000 mark and have claimed the lives of over 18,500 people. Multiple teams of experts are now racing against time to develop a vaccine for the new illness.