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posted by on Thursday February 16 2017, @06:20AM   Printer-friendly
from the the-wizard-of-omaha-is-never-wrong dept.

When Buffet speaks, people listen:

Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway has sold off $900 million of Walmart stock, choosing to invest billions in airlines instead.

The sale, which leaves Buffett with nearly no shares in Walmart, comes as the US's largest traditional retailer has been rushing to catch up to Amazon and other online competitors.

Amazon's market value is now $356 billion, compared with Walmart's $298 billion. Last year, Buffett acknowledged that traditional brick-and-mortar retailers were struggling in the face of competition from the e-commerce giant.

Yes, but is he still long on Big Cola?


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  • (Score: 2) by butthurt on Thursday February 16 2017, @02:59PM

    by butthurt (6141) on Thursday February 16 2017, @02:59PM (#467804) Journal

    If our President does make buying American popular, then Walmart and Amazon will have a problem with what they sell.

    I'm not sure if this part of your post was meant sarcastically. If not, I don't understand why Walmart and Amazon would have more difficulty in changing suppliers, as compared to other retailers. Are you saying that their contracts with suppliers are especially inflexible? I know that both companies sell outside the U.S. (although the U.S. market is important to them) and some of Amazon's income is from third-party sellers. I just don't see why either would have difficulty in distributing goods made in the U.S.

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  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 16 2017, @03:14PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 16 2017, @03:14PM (#467811)

    Conventional wisdom is that, for Walmart at least, is that a good deal of their store is stocked with cheaper foreign-made items, which is why they can sell at low prices. I think his point is that their prices will have to rise. I have also heard that, again, for Walmart at least, that they really lean on their supply chain to "convince" them to sell at, or below, profit margin. Home Depot is notorious for this (you don't go there to buy good stuff, you go there to buy cheap stuff; the average home owner who is remodeling their kitchen only needs that $100 circular saw to work well for a dozen or so times, but you're making a mistake buying any tools there if your livelihood depends upon your tools).

    • (Score: 2) by butthurt on Thursday February 16 2017, @03:42PM

      by butthurt (6141) on Thursday February 16 2017, @03:42PM (#467827) Journal

      I think his point is that their prices will have to rise.

      That can be expected under a regime of higher tariffs. I would expect that Amazon and Walmart could still offer lower prices than smaller distributors. Their huge distribution networks afford them economies of scale and give them bargaining power with manufacturers, which are part of their pricing advanage. "Toothpaste, toilet paper, and food," as the OP reminds us, will always be in demand. Higher prices may mean that people consume less, but that needn't mean lower profits for retailers.

    • (Score: 1) by khallow on Thursday February 16 2017, @04:03PM

      by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Thursday February 16 2017, @04:03PM (#467838) Journal

      the average home owner who is remodeling their kitchen only needs that $100 circular saw to work well for a dozen or so times, but you're making a mistake buying any tools there if your livelihood depends upon your tools).

      That will remain true even if everything is "made in USA". Cheap tools remain low quality. And the same dynamics that encourage Walmart and Home Depot to sell these items will continue to exist. You'll just pay more for it.