Warren Buffett still bullish on the United States

Berkshire Hathaway's (NYSE: BRK.A) recent high-profile investments in places like Europe and Israel have led many Oracle of Omaha-watchers to speculate that Warren Buffett is bearish on America.

Not so, says Mr. Buffett. Speaking at a business school in Switzerland, he told members of the media that "We buy ... when other people have a reason to sell. We love buying companies in the U.S."

The Wall Street Journal reports (subscription required) that Buffett also said he would consider future investments in Eastern Europe, but that it is difficult to find acquisition targets that are large enough to be meaningful for Berkshire. He also doesn't feel that the weakened U.S. dollar would make investing in Europe difficult.

There's nothing too surprising here. Buffett has generally pursued a bottoms-up investment philosophy throughout his career (with some style-drift in recent years as Berkshire's cash pile has grown). He looks for strong companies with good management and predictable future cash flow, and I don't think he would write off any region where he can find that because of supposed macroeconomic concerns.