Record bid to lunch with Warren Buffett

OMAHA, Nebraska (AP):

The cost to dine with investor Warren Buffett has apparently spiked in value, with one deep-pocketed bidder forking over nearly US$3.5 million during a charity auction.

The annual auction for a private lunch with the Nebraska billionaire closed following a flurry of activity in the final hours Friday night. In the end, the highest bid was record-breaking.

The auction benefits the Glide Foundation, which helps the homeless in San Francisco. Buffett has raised more than US$11.5 million for the group in 13 past auctions.

The event provides a significant portion of Glide's roughly US$17 million annual budget that pays for social services to the poor and homeless.

"We just had a most amazing, shocking experience occur in our great city," Glide's founder, the Reverend Cecil Williams, said in a statement Friday night. "We are shouting, dancing, rejoicing and celebrating."