Buffett On Banking and Toxic Assets

Oligarch Warren Buffett used to be completely clueless about macroeconomic questions. In fact, I don't think, as he said many times, he paid much attention to them. I think that has changed. My evidence is his warning of an "onslaught" of inflation ahead, and other similar comments.

That said, I think he gets more things wrong then right when he talks about the economy at large. But, when he talks his game,finance,few compare.

Here is his analysis on banking and toxic assets:

The spreads have never been wider. This is a great time to be in banking, you know, if you just get past the past and they are getting past the past. I mean, right now every time a loan is made to somebody to buy a house--and we're making, you know, making millions of loans--four and a half million houses will change hands this year out of a total stock of less than 80 million. So those people are making good mortgages. You want those assets on your books and you get a great spread in putting them on now. So it's a great time to be in banking, but you do have to get past this past. But the toxic assets, in my view, you know, if they've been written down to market, I'd rather buy those assets from the bank than any other assets they've got.