NEW YORK: Billionaire Warren Buffett, chairman of Berkshire Hathaway Inc, told employees of Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp that he's buying the railroad because of its position in the US West.

"I think the West is going to do well," Buffett told workers of Burlington Northern during an in-house interview with the railroad's chief executive officer, Matthew Rose. "I'd rather be in the West than the East."

The $26 billion purchase of Fort Worth, Texas-based Burlington Northern is the biggest of Buffett's career, and what he called an "all-in wager" on the US economy. Burlington stands to benefit from an increase in shipments of goods from the US's Asian trading partners, including China.