Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway has agreed to invest $250m in bonds issued by Tiffany, the luxury jeweller, in the latest in a series of bond deals with stressed companies.

For Mr Buffett, the deal marks the billionaire’s latest investment in a corporate icon. He has sought to capitalise on the downturn to buy stock or debt in companies ranging from General Electric and Harley-Davidson to Swiss Reinsurance and Goldman Sachs, in arrangements that often pay Berkshire a double-digit coupon.