Business segment data (Tables)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2020

Segment Reporting [Abstract]

Schedule of revenues and earnings or loss before income taxes by segment

Our operating businesses include a large and diverse group of insurance, manufacturing, service and retailing businesses. We organize our reportable business segments in a manner that reflects how management views those business activities. Certain businesses are grouped together for segment reporting based upon similar products or product lines, marketing, selling and distribution characteristics, even though those business units are operated under separate local management. Revenues and earnings before income taxes by segment for the third quarter and first nine months of 2020 and 2019 were as follows (in millions).

	Third Quarter					First Nine Months
	2020			2019		2020		2019
Revenues of Operating Businesses
Insurance:
Underwriting:
GEICO	$	8,540		$	8,996	$	26,689	$	26,487
Berkshire Hathaway Primary Group		2,490			2,387		7,103		6,825
Berkshire Hathaway Reinsurance Group		4,883			3,940		13,464		11,193
Investment income		1,223			1,789		4,486		4,930
Total insurance		17,136			17,112		51,742		49,435
BNSF		5,176			6,021		15,195		17,676
Berkshire Hathaway Energy		6,226			5,720		15,392		15,362
Manufacturing		15,170			15,897		43,238		47,173
McLane Company		12,040			12,604		35,079		37,214
Service and retailing		7,279			7,378		20,272		21,865
		63,027			64,732		180,918		188,725
Reconciliation of segments to consolidated amount
Corporate, eliminations and other		(3	)		240		211		523
	$	63,024		$	64,972	$	181,129	$	189,248

	Third Quarter						First Nine Months
	2020			2019			2020			2019
Earnings Before Income Taxes of Operating Businesses
Insurance:
Underwriting:
GEICO	$	276		$	376		$	3,320		$	1,539
Berkshire Hathaway Primary Group		(126	)		153			(63	)		290
Berkshire Hathaway Reinsurance Group		(441	)		52			(2,033	)		(305	)
Investment income		1,220			1,782			4,480			4,916
Total insurance		929			2,363			5,704			6,440
BNSF		1,777			1,941			4,855			5,379
Berkshire Hathaway Energy		1,122			1,061			2,074			2,194
Manufacturing		2,255			2,484			5,765			7,205
McLane Company		96			50			205			220
Service and retailing		779			639			1,745			2,005
		6,958			8,538			20,348			23,443
Reconciliation of segments to consolidated amount
Investment and derivative gains/losses		31,582			10,926			1,392			41,296
Interest expense, not allocated to segments		(116	)		(96	)		(363	)		(312	)
Equity method investments		290			644			333			936
Goodwill and intangible asset impairments		(25	)		—			(10,659	)		—
Corporate, eliminations and other		(759	)		477			(761	)		532
	$	37,930		$	20,489		$	10,290		$	65,895