Shulou(Shulou.com)11/24 Report--

Although Berkshire Hathaway sold more than a fifth of its stake in the company this year, Warren Buffett, its founder and "stock god," is still very optimistic about BYD's future and will never give it up, Li Ke, BYD's executive vice president, said in an interview Tuesday.

For buffett, getting a return (cashing out) is a matter of course,"li says." "This is the first time BYD executives have made public comments about Buffett selling long-held shares in the company. BYD shares jumped 6.9 per cent in Hong Kong on Wednesday morning, hitting their highest level since September last year and one of the biggest gainers in the Hang Seng index.

Berkshire first invested in BYD in September 2008 and reduced its holdings for the first time in August; in November, Berkshire accelerated its sell-off of BYD shares, reducing its stake to 15.99% from an initial 20.04%, and sparking speculation that Buffett was no longer optimistic about BYD's future.

Li Ke commented: "I don't think this is a sign that Buffett has given up BYD. He remains deeply in love with BYD and management and will always be the company's biggest supporter. A spokesman for Berkshire did not immediately return a request for comment.

Berkshire's Hong Kong-listed share price has fallen about 30 per cent since it was shown selling shares in BYD on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange clearing system on July 11, sparking speculation that Mr Buffett might liquidate his stake. The plunge wiped about HK$230 billion (US$30 billion) off BYD's market value.

For Berkshire and Buffett, the investment was a windfall. Berkshire's initial $230 million investment has soared 1570 percent, and even after selling some of its shares, the remaining holdings are still worth about $4.5 billion.

In this interview, Li Ke also mentioned:

BYD is looking to build manufacturing plants in Europe, and probably not just one, but two. Earlier, the company announced plans to sell cars in continental Europe, including Germany, Sweden, Norway, the Netherlands, France and the United Kingdom.

- BYD is evaluating the best location to "support BYD's rapid growth."

BYD is buying cargo ships to transport cars for export. "At BYD's scale, when we seek to partner with any shipping company, their service may not really satisfy us 100 per cent," Li said. "

Li Ke doesn't think Tesla is a competitor to BYD because its success means more people are learning how to build electric cars. "Our competitor, or our enemy, is the internal-combustion engine car," she said. "

BYD will launch two new luxury car brands next year. The first brand will have an SUV and a sports car. The second brand will be developed around fashion and targeted at people who consider cars a hobby.

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