Concerns about trade wars in the global economy are escalating. Following Trump’s statements, there has been an acceleration in the flight from risky assets. The fortunes of the world’s richest individuals have dwindled. The only individual to increase their wealth since the beginning of the year is Warren Buffett. Buffett’s success in the long-standing sale of shares is no coincidence.

Global markets have survived one of the toughest weeks. The aggressive trade policy of US President Donald Trump brought selling pressure to the markets. The US stock market lost $6 trillion in just 2 days. Major companies witnessed double-digit losses in their shares. The fortunes of billionaires dwindled in the past week. The combined wealth of the world’s richest 500 individuals dropped by $208 billion. Following Trump’s statement, the biggest loss of $18 billion was experienced by Meta’s founder Mark Zuckerberg. He was followed by Jeff Bezos with $16 billion and Elon Musk with $11 billion in losses. THIS YEAR, ONLY THE OMAHA ORACLE WON According to Bloomberg Billionaires Index data, the fortunes of billionaire names witnessed a significant drop in 2025. Elon Musk experienced the biggest loss of $130 billion since the beginning of the year. During this period, Bezos lost $45 billion in wealth, Zuckerberg lost $28 billion, and Bernard Arnault lost $18 billion. The only individual recognized as the Omaha Oracle, famous investor Warren Buffett, was the only one to increase their wealth within the top 10 of the list this year. Buffett’s wealth increased by $12 billion during this period, reaching $155 billion. According to the list, Buffett became the sixth richest individual in the world. IS BUFFETT’S SUCCESS A COINCIDENCE? The success of Buffett, who has been selling his shares for a long time to buy cash or bonds, was not considered a coincidence.

Buffett and his company Berkshire Hathaway had already been selling off their stock for some time. The 94-year-old Buffett has sold a net $158 billion worth of shares in the past two calendar years. Berkshire’s cash assets, which were $110 billion in September 2022, had risen to $321 billion by the end of 2024. Analysts expressed that, as a value investor, Buffett could turn the recent declines into an opportunity.

During the recent declines, companies in which Berkshire owns shares, such as Apple, American Express, Bank of America, and Occidental Petroleum, had lost more than 9% of their value.