Berkshire Hathaway third quarter earnings triple

Berkshire Hathway, Warren Buffett's investment vehicle, said that third quarter earnings trebled over the course of the three month period.

Net earnings for the three months to end-September rose to $3.2bn from $1bn this time last year.

This was helped in a surge of derivative gains, which added over $1bn to the earnings - up from an $819m loss this time last year.

Berkshire's insurance business saw operating earnings rise to $363m from $81m, while investment income of its insurance subsidiaries rose to $976m from $809m.

This more than helped overcome a slide in Berkshire's non-insurance businesses, which saw operating earnings fall significantly.