Omaha, Nebraska is preparing for a very big weekend! The city is preparing to host as many as 40,000 visitors in town for the long awaited, extremely popular Berkshire Hathaway annual meeting. This meeting makes for a particularly special opportunity for shareholders. Along the way, they’ll have the opportunity to hear from influential figures, including Warren Buffett, Greg Abel and Ajit Jain. At 94 years old, Buffett continues to engage with investors, though recent political tensions and travel concerns have led some international shareholders to reconsider their attendance.
To be fair, at least in the last decade, Warren Buffett himself has recognized the growing international attendance at this yearly meeting. Together with his partner, Charlie Munger, he would personally convene exclusive special receptions for high-level international visitors. In 2009, with the prospect of thousands of foreign attendees filling hotel rooms, Buffett voluntarily called these events off. Since we know there will be far more international attendees than last year, Charlie and I figured we needed to kill this sacred cow. Don’t worry, there’s plenty of room…and we love every one of the international visitors who come here,” Buffett continued.
The continuing global trade war instigated by Donald Trump has further stoked the already combustible political tensions. This conflict has a huge impact on the United States and countries such as China. In reaction, China just recently raised its own level of warning against Chinese tourists visiting the U.S., causing alarm among interested attendees. Xin Jin, a Chinese investor who liquidated half of his assets to buy Berkshire’s stock in 2012, now needs to go back to Omaha, but he’s nervous about making an international trip given the state of the world right now. “I’m determined to make it to Omaha this year,” said Jin.
One of our regular consumer-focused Chinese investors from Shanghai has chosen to skip this year’s trip. He echoed the challenging political climate as a major third-time attendee, but first-time mover, pointing to that as a key disincentive. Similarly, a Jakarta-based shareholder who participated last year chose to remain home due to apprehensions about “unnecessary and unfounded issues with customs.”
At this moment, the political environment poses serious challenges to engagement. Consequently, third-party agencies are booking less trips on behalf of international shareholders. David Kass, a finance professor who previously held private lunches with Buffett for his students, noted the changing demographics among attendees. “What I noticed the last couple of years, the demographics of the shareholders tilted a lot more towards international — shareholders being there for the first time, largely international and very young,” Kass explained.
As always, the event will include a live Q&A session that will be nationally broadcast on CNBC. It will be conducted in Chinese (Mandarin) in addition to English, allowing foreign investors to participate from a distance. As Buffett prepares to engage with shareholders once again, many are left pondering the implications of current events on their attendance.