Visitors gather at the CHI Health Center auditorium during the Berkshire Hathaway annual meeting in Omaha, Nebraska, on Saturday, May 6, 2023.
David Williams | Bloomberg | Getty Images
For many years, Berkshire Hathaway‘s annual gathering—dubbed Warren Buffett’s “Woodstock for Capitalists”—has drawn investors from around the globe to Omaha, Nebraska, sometimes traveling from very distant locations. This year, international travelers face new challenges.
Xin Jin, an investor from Guangzhou, China, wanted to attend the Omaha meeting for the second time this May but was apprehensive about international travel given the current political tensions. Back in 2012, he invested half of his wealth in Berkshire’s stock, which has turned out to be one of his top investments.
“I really want to go to Omaha this year,” Jin expressed. “I admire Buffett and I find him very inspiring.”
A Chinese investor in Shanghai, who wished to remain unnamed but has participated in the annual meeting three times, shared that the negative political climate deterred him from making the trip this year. Another shareholder from China observed that fewer agencies are organizing trips to Omaha than in previous years. A shareholder from Jakarta, Indonesia, who attended last year, opted to stay home, citing concerns over “unwarranted issues with customs.”
This year’s meeting follows the start of a global trade war initiated by President Donald Trump during his second term, which heightened political frictions between the U.S. and various countries. Specifically, China has issued a warning for its citizens traveling to the U.S., referring to a decline in China-U.S. economic and trade relations and the domestic security situation in the U.S.
“Over the past couple of years, I’ve noticed a significant shift in the demographics of attendees, with many first-time international shareholders, particularly younger individuals,” remarked David Kass, a finance professor at the University of Maryland, who has previously hosted private lunches with Buffett for his students.
Berkshire’s annual event can draw as many as 40,000 attendees to Nebraska, offering a rare chance to hear from Buffett, his successor Greg Abel, and Berkshire’s insurance chief, Ajit Jain. The Q&A session will be broadcast on CNBC and streamed in both English and Mandarin.
Buffett, now 94, has long recognized the increasing number of international participants at his meeting. He and his late partner Charlie Munger once organized special receptions for attendees from outside North America, but they eventually discontinued this event as foreign attendance surged.
“Last year, our foreign count reached about 800, and it took me around 2 1⁄2 hours to sign for each person,” Buffett noted in his 2009 annual letter. “Given that we expect even more international guests this year, Charlie and I decided to eliminate this function. Nevertheless, we welcome every international visitor who joins us.”
— With contributions from CNBC’s Evelyn Cheng.
