Warren Buffett Wrote "Buy American. I Am." 18 Years Ago This Week. Should You Still Follow His Advice?
2026-10-15 02:14
•Daniel Sparks •The Motley Fool
•• ••• Axe Cap view
18 Years On: Should SA Investors Buy American Like Buffett Did?
Buffett's 2008 call to 'Buy American' paid off handsomely, but is the lesson clear for South African investors today?
Warren Buffett’s 2008 advice to buy American stocks during the financial crisis proved hugely profitable if you stuck with it through the downturns. The S&P 500 roughly multiplied elevenfold in 18 years, despite steep drops along the way. For South African investors, this underscores the value of conviction in quality assets, even when markets look bleak. However, blindly mimicking a US-centric call today ignores local context. The rand’s gyrations—moving between roughly 7.8 and 19.9 USD/ZAR over this time—mean currency risk can muddy the outcome. Prosus and Naspers, with their strong US tech exposure, somewhat reflect that long-term growth but suffer when the currency weakens or global tech stumbles. More locally, financials like Standard Bank or Sanlam might carry less direct US risk and offer steadier dividends. The lesson is don’t try to time crises, and remain diversified to navigate currency swings. That said, a sudden shift in US Fed policy or South African political shocks could upend these assumptions. this is just our opinion and not financial advice
Hold a diversified basket that balances offshore tech exposure through stocks like Prosus with more resilient local names like Standard Bank and Sanlam. Hedge dollar exposure selectively through USD/ZAR forward contracts. Avoid heavy concentrated bets on pure US plays without currency risk cover.
- USD/ZAR
- Prosus
- Standard Bank
- US Federal Reserve tightening disrupts markets
- Rand weakness erodes offshore returns
6/10
On October 16, 2008, during the financial crisis, Warren Buffett published an op-ed urging investors to buy American stocks. An investor who followed this advice and invested $10,000 in an S&P 500 ETF on October 17, 2008, would have seen it grow to approximately $115,600 by now, despite the investment dropping to $7,400 at its lowest point five months later. The article highlights that Buffett's key insight was not timing the market bottom, but rather maintaining conviction and staying invested through market downturns.
Our take is based on reporting first published by The Motley Fool.