‘We aren't in it to make 5% or 6%': Warren Buffett calls Iran war market dip 'nothing.’ What he sees that others don't

‘We aren't in it to make 5% or 6%': Warren Buffett calls Iran war market dip 'nothing.’ What he sees that others don't
While Wall Street has been rattled by one of its worst quarters in years, Warren Buffett is shrugging it off — and shopping for deals.
The U.S. and Israel’s war in Iran battered markets hard in early 2026. The Nasdaq fell 7% in Q1, the S&P 500 dropped close to 5% and the Dow shed 4% (1) — the worst quarterly performance since 2022 (2).
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CNN reported that both the Dow and Nasdaq entered correction territory, with the Nasdaq closing more than 12.5% below its October record high, as oil prices surged (3).
For many investors, that’s the kind of environment that triggers panic. For Buffett, it barely registers.
“This is nothing to make you get excited,” he said in a CNBC interview.
Still in the game at 95
The 95-year-old “Oracle of Omaha” revealed that despite handing the CEO role at Berkshire Hathaway to Greg Abel on Jan. 1, 2026, he still comes into the office every day and remains hands-on with investment decisions.
Buffett described his routine: he calls Mark Millard, Berkshire’s director of financial assets, before the market opens each morning to talk through developments. Based on their chat, Millard then executes trades, although “I won’t make any (investments) that Greg thinks are wrong,” Buffett explained to CNBC. “Greg gets the (updates) sheet every day.”
He also disclosed that he recently made “one tiny purchase” — without revealing what the investment was (4). The mystery buy has sparked immediate speculation among investors, given Berkshire’s record cash and U.S. Treasury holdings of more than $370 billion at year-end 2025 (5).
What’s more, the company recently purchased $17 billion in Treasury bills at the weekly auction, Buffett shared in the interview.
Read More: 5 essential money moves to make once you’ve saved $50,000
Why Buffett isn’t buying the panic
Buffett put today’s volatility in historical context.
“Three times since I took over, for sure it’s gone down more than 50%,” he said, pointing to crashes that dwarfed the current pullback.
In his view, a market that’s a few percentage points cheaper than its recent peak doesn’t fundamentally change the investment calculus for a firm like Berkshire.
“We aren’t in it to make five or six per cent,” he said (4).