Buffett Accounting ‘Nightmare’ Fuels First Loss in Nine Years

Unrealized investment losses outweigh jump in operating profit
Cash falls as Berkshire Hathaway increases Apple stake

Bloomberg’s Katherine Chiglinsky reports on the Berkshire Hathaway annual meeting.(Source: Bloomberg)

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By Katherine Chiglinsky

May 5, 2018 at 12:14 PM UTC

Updated on

May 5, 2018 at 1:12 PM UTC

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Warren Buffett has warned about the “nightmare” tied to new accounting-rule changes. Now it’s beginning.

The rules, which require Berkshire to report unrealized gains or losses in equity investments in net income, helped fuel a $1.14 billion loss at Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. in the first quarter, the Omaha, Nebraska-based company said Saturday in a statement. That marked the company’s first net loss since 2009.