Slowing US economy worry you? Don't ask Buffett for comfort

Billionaire investor Warren Buffett is offering little in the way of reassurance about the "very slow growth" U.S. economy.

Speaking in advance of Saturday's annual Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-A) shareholders meeting in from Omaha, Nebraska, Buffett told CNBC: "It's certainly not accelerating ... [but] it's not declining."

The interview aired on CNBC's " Squawk Box " on Friday, a day after the government's initial look at first-quarter gross domestic product showed a weaker-than-expected annual increase of just 0.5 percent.

Reacting to the dismal numbers, the Berkshire chairman and CEO said: "The economy is not booming, [but] on the other hand, it's not falling apart in any way shape or form, either."

Buffett said the American consumer is "doing pretty well," despite the consumer spending component of the GDP report showing an increase at an annual rate of only 1.9 percent. That was the slowest advance since the first quarter of 2015, and a deceleration from the 2.4 percent growth rate logged in the fourth quarter. "The consumer is in better shape than it was, so the world is not falling apart. But we're not seeing a lot of buoyancy either," Buffett said.

The recent upswing in depressed oil prices, which in turn has sent gasoline prices higher, has been raising some concern about whether the consumer might run into a road block. But not at these levels, Buffett said. "If [crude] goes back to $100 a barrel, that's a difference."

West Texas Intermediate crude (New York Mercantile Exchange: @CL.1), the American oil benchmark, was trading around $46 per barrel in early trading on Friday.

Buffett was also rather reserved on the job market, saying "employment is not bad."

— Programming note: Warren Buffett appears on CNBC's "Squawk Box" for three hours on Monday, starting at 6 a.m. ET. From 8 a.m. ET to 9 a.m. ET, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, a Berkshire Hathaway director, and Charlie Munger, vice chairman of Berkshire, join the conversation.

More From CNBC

• Top News and Analysis
  

• Latest News Video
  

• Personal Finance