Warren Buffett’s company’s profits improved 17% thanks to a relatively mild hurricane season and more paper investment gains this year as Berkshire Hathaway continues to prepare for the legendary 95-year-old investor to relinquish the CEO title in January. But last month’s $9.7 billion investment in OxyChem won’t do much to diminish the $381.7 billion cash pile that Berkshire was sitting on at the end of September even though it is the biggest deal the company has made in years. The biggest thing on most investors’ minds right now is that Buffett Vice Chair Greg Abel is set to succeed Buffett as CEO in January although Buffett will remain chairman
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Sales of previously occupied U.S. homes accelerated in September as declining mortgage rates and a pickup in available properties on the market encouraged home shoppers. The National Association of Realtors said Thursday that existing home sales rose 1.5% last month from August to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.06 million units. That’s the fastest sales pace since February. Sales jumped 4.1% compared with September last year. The national median sales price climbed 2.1% in September from a year earlier to $415,200. The housing market has been in a slump since 2022, when mortgage rates climbed from historic lows. Affordability remains a daunting challenge for most aspiring homeowners following years of skyrocketing home prices.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average hit a record. It rose 218 points, or 0.5%, on Tuesday and topped its prior all-time high, which was set early this month. The S&P 500 index, which is much more important on Wall Street and dictates the performance of many more 401(k) accounts, was essentially flat and finished 0.3% below its own record. Strong earnings reports from 3M, Coca-Cola and others helped drive the gains. But some Big Tech stocks faltered and pulled the Nasdaq composite down 0.2%. The price of gold took a break from its torrid run this year and fell.
Most U.S. stocks rose following another topsy-turvy day on Wall Street. The S&P 500 added 0.4% Wednesday, but only after jumping toward one of its biggest gains since the summer, erasing it all and then climbing back. The Nasdaq composite climbed 0.7%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average lagged the market after edging down by less than 0.1%. Trading has been erratic since the end of last week, when President Donald Trump shattered Wall Street’s calm by threatening higher tariffs on China. Technology and bank stocks helped lead the way Wednesday. Treasury yields rose.