Originally published at: This week in charts 09/08/24 – InvestEngine Insights
Buffet continues to sell stock, loads up on Treasury Bills
Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway has been offloading winning investments in Apple, Bank of America and BYD, leading the cash pile in the firm to reach new highs.
However, this cash is not sitting stale in his books, he is in fact holding more $200 billion of short-term US Treasury bonds. With further buying reported recently, Buffett has become the largest buyer this year of Treasury bills surpassing the Federal Reserve.
Market corrections are normal
Whilst the last couple of weeks have been challenging for markets, it is important to note that market drawdowns are natural and do not necessarily translate into a recession.
Spike in market in volatility
Markets spooked by events in Japan and macroeconomic data out of the US have lead to a spike in volatility. The VIX, which measures the volatility of the US stock market touched levels not seen since the Great Financial Crisis and the Covid-19 pandemic.
Kamala Harris overtakes Donald Trump according to the latest polls
The US election has been centre stage for 2024, with Joe Biden no longer in the running for the presidential seat Kamala Harris continues to cut into former President Donald Trump’s lead since becoming the official Democratic presidential nominee.
Magnificent 7 take a hit
The main tech firms out of the US have all suffered in the last couple of weeks losing over $2.5 trillion in market capitalisation during the period.
US Technology was one of the main sectors to take a tumble with Nvidia being one of the biggest losers, losing almost 25% of its market value in the period.
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