US billionaire investor rumoured to be building stake in Centrica

Berkshire Hathaway, the investment group controlled by US billionaire Warren Buffett, is rumoured to be building a stake in energy firm Centrica.

Following the news, shares in the company rose 2% at 306.5 pence in afternoon trading yesterday.

This ranked Centrica among the top percentage gainer on the FTSE 100 index which was down 0.3%.

In February, Berkshire Hathaway acquired an 8.6% stake in Kraft Foods worth $4.32 billion (£2.19 billion), making it the company’s largest individual shareholder.

Mr Buffett has also spent $76 million on shares in pharmaceutical giant, GlaxoSmithKline.

Mr Buffett is often referred to as the ‘Oracle of Omaha’. In April 2007, he was ranked by Forbes as the third-richest person in the world. Last year, he was listed among Time’s 100 Most Influential People in The World.

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