I just returned to California from Seattle via Interstate 5, the main North-South artery connecting the three west coast states. The truck traffic was as heavy as I’ve ever seen it. I counted the passing tractor-trailer rigs over three different ten minute intervals and the tally was almost exactly the same each time – averaging 10 trucks a minute, or 600 trucks an hour. That’s a lot of trucks. I would argue that truck traffic is as good an indicator of the health of the economy as any and, based on my informal survey, we’re in very good health along the west coast. Driving among all those trucks was nerve-wracking but, viewed as an economic indicator, they were very comforting. Here’s what I think it means for us. While there is plenty of turmoil around the world, some of which will roil our markets, there are also plenty of strong, well-run companies doing lots of profitable business. Owning 30 of the best of those companies, all with the built-in stock split advantage, will continue to be the 2 for 1 strategy.
