Bullish on Berkshire

OMAHA, Neb. - Investor Warren Buffett believes his company, Berkshire Hathaway, will continue to thrive for decades thanks to its vast and varied collection of "remarkable businesses" and investments, which will help it withstand challenges in any one sector.

Buffett's annual letter to shareholders was posted online Saturday. This year he reflected on 50 years of leading Berkshire and its future.

He reiterated that Berkshire's huge size will keep it from achieving gains nearly as strong as in the past. And he defended Berkshire's decentralized structure as the ideal way to combat bureaucracy and maximize gains. "I think Berkshire will outperform the average American company, but our advantage, if any, won't be great," Buffett said.

But Berkshire's strength that comes from owning more than 80 companies and holding large stakes in public companies will help it endure whatever the world throws it. "I believe the chance of any event causing Berkshire to experience financial problems is essentially zero," Buffett said. "We will always be prepared for the thousand-year flood; in fact, if it occurs we will be selling life jackets to the unprepared."

Buffett, 84, didn't name his eventual successor, but he did discuss the qualities that person will need. "My successor will need one other particular strength: the ability to fight off the ABCs of business decay, which are arrogance, bureaucracy and complacency," Buffett said.

Buffett's letter is one of the best-read reports in the business world because of his track record and knack for explaining complicated issues. Berkshire said its full-year profit grew 2 percent, to $19.87 billion, or $12,092 per Class A share. That's up from $19.48 billion, or $11,850 per share.