The Industrial Giant Reborn - Chapter 655

c646 The future of Hong Kong’s aviation industry

Although for Chen Zhiwen, the greatest wealth in Tin Shui Wai lies in the large amount of land he purchased early on. Through the employment generated by his own industry, he revitalized the regional economy and formed a cycle. Coupled with the crazy prices of the entire Hong Kong real estate market, Tin Shui Wai also Housing prices have been rising, so the wealth gained from land here may be no less than in Central. But psychologically, he still hopes that the economy of Tin Shui Wai can develop normally. He does not want this place to become the historical Hong Kong. Slums can at least bring some economic vitality here.

Of course, everything has advantages and disadvantages. When Tin Shui Wai had economic vitality, housing prices were much higher than those in the historical slums. So it became much more difficult for ordinary people to buy a house here.

But even the gods can’t do anything about this kind of thing. This is the most basic logic of the economy. Where there is a large flow of people, a large number of people living in a place, and a lot of employment, there will inevitably be competition. The price is the price of the house. Otherwise, who will Don’t want to live in Central?

Only at the government level can we control all this with administrative orders, but this is only in theory. In fact, the government also has its own considerations, such as the income from land sales, and they will not take the initiative to cut themselves off. At the same time, even if there is If you want to properly control housing prices, you will also be opposed by big capital.

For example, the most famous “85,000 Plan” in history was actually not proposed by the Chinese chief executive after 1997, but was launched more than 20 years ago during the MacLehose era. At that time, this plan was closely related to clean government. Together with the Office, it is MacLehose’s governing goal.

The establishment of the Independent Commission Against Corruption almost offended most of the British politicians and even the police in Hong Kong. However, MacLehose still succeeded in completing the matter under strong pressure. He used the Independent Commission Against Corruption to suppress the evil forces and their protective umbrella in Hong Kong, and also used the Independent Commission Against Corruption to suppress the evil forces and their protective umbrella in Hong Kong. It has given Hong Kong citizens a normal and peaceful life, but the “85,000 Plan” has made no progress at all, because the resistance to this matter is stronger than that of the Independent Commission Against Corruption, and the resistance is so great that MacLehose can only propose it. Can’t do it.

Facts have proved that MacLehose was right. The original “85,000 Plan” after 1998 completely failed because it harmed too many vested interests and was almost impossible to promote.

Real estate and finance are an endless cycle. When their bubbles get bigger and bigger, they will tie up more and more people, just like cancer cells.

Even with Chen Zhiwen’s power, he cannot stop this trend. What he can do is to allow Hong Kong to retain some industry and ensure that some people’s lives will not be so difficult, at least in a “cage living” living environment that is worse than a prison. , he hopes to completely eliminate these, and to appropriately help some weak or disabled groups in Hong Kong, just like charity in the mainland.

Fortunately, Hong Kong will become one of the most developed economic regions in the future. Due to its geographical location, winter will not be very cold. It is still difficult for normal people to starve and freeze to death in Hong Kong.

It is also Chen Zhiwen’s principle to help the urgent rather than the poor. He helps those in extreme need and cannot take care of the others. However, there will also be some mutually beneficial ways to ensure that both parties benefit, etc.

…

After leaving Tin Shui Wai, Chen Zhiwen came to Hongle Building.

“Old Director, have you finished the construction plan of the Land Building?” Chen Zhiwen took a sip of tea and looked at the Victoria Harbor outside the floor-to-ceiling windows. There was a beach near the harbor near Central. There was a protruding place there. It is a new area formed by reclamation.

“The design has not yet been completed, because this will be the tallest building in Southeast Asia. It has extremely high requirements for the foundation, shape, wind resistance, and overall weight. The design team also needs to ensure safety and future energy-saving effects. Everything needs to be very strict. Just be cautious.” Dong Youwei reported.

“Okay, after the design drawings come out, for safety reasons, you have to entrust two third-party agencies to verify the rationality and safety of the design. The reclaimed land must be sure to have no problems.” Chen Zhiwen nodded and said.

In 1992, the Hong Kong government selected a site in Central for reclamation, and the area acquired for reclamation was also put up for public bidding.

In the original history, this building should have been the financial center of Hong Kong. However, in this life, it was taken over by Landmark. Chen Zhiwen planned to build the Landmark Center. Today’s Landmark is five or six times the size of the original building in history. It is much bigger in Hong Kong, not to mention there are so many assets in the mainland.

Because its operating income is all based on rent collection, Land has not entered the list of the world’s top 500 companies. However, in fact, Land’s actual scale or influence can rank among the top 100, both in terms of assets and annual net profit.

A group of this size also needs a large headquarters building. The former Connaught Building was the tallest building in Hong Kong in the 1970s, but today, 20 years later, it is not enough. Therefore, Chen Zhiwen used this land to It should be the headquarters building of Real Estate. Only in this way can it be worthy of the world’s largest real estate company.

However, although the scale of Land Land is large, its business is simple. A super building may have excess area, so it can be rented out. Anyway, this is Land Land’s main business.

This is not only true for Land, but also for several other companies. Midea Tower has already had a super-building headquarters for a long time. Red Bull will also set up a new headquarters, but it will not be in Central, but in Tin Shui Wai. And because the land price in Tin Shui Wai is low, it will not be built. Instead of skyscrapers, several buildings will be built to form a circle. As for Hutchison Whampoa, the former Hutchison Whampoa Building in Central has been demolished and a new building with more than 72 floors has been built.

“Okay, this is my biggest masterpiece after retirement. I will definitely ensure its quality and safety.” Dong Youwei laughed.

“Okay, I will leave you an office and a large apartment on the top floor of the Land Building. If you want to come to work or live here in the future, it won’t be a problem.” Chen Zhiwen laughed.

For those who follow him to conquer the world, he has to retire because of his age, but he is also very generous to them. He will not be short of houses, cars and money. For example, Pierce retired a few years ago, and Chen Zhiwen gave them to him in Los Angeles. He bought a villa on the hillside facing the sea worth more than 10 million US dollars.

Of course, in fact, for these people, this is nothing. They are all working emperors who have followed Chen Zhiwen for more than ten years. In fact, each of them is worth no less than some of the super rich in Hong Kong.

Their own salaries are not low, and more importantly, Chen Zhiwen also tacitly allows them to invest along with the company’s investment direction.

For example, in the past when we were speculating on the Japanese real estate market and the Hong Kong real estate market, and now when we are investing in China, we have had so many opportunities. If we follow up on the last one, our value can easily double.

“Thank you very much, Mr. Chen.” Dong Youwei said with a smile.

“Haha, you’re welcome, we are all friends now.” Chen Zhiwen said with a smile. Over the years, although the relationship is between the boss and his subordinates, it is not an exaggeration to call them ordinary friends. The relationship is still good on weekdays. Otherwise, If everyone behaves condescendingly, then how boring would they be?

Of course, this is Chen Zhiwen’s point of view. I don’t know what his subordinates think. Perhaps like the emperor in ancient times, no minister really dared to treat the emperor as a friend.

“Dee, dee, dee, dee, dee…” At this moment, the sound of the mobile phone rang. Dong Youwei took out the mobile phone from his pocket, put it to his ear and answered the call.

“Hey, Cao Sheng.” Dong Youwei said.

After a while, he said: “Okay, we will wait for you upstairs.”

After hanging up the phone, Dong Youwei said: “Cao Sheng will be here soon.”

“Okay.” Chen Zhiwen nodded. Naturally, he had something to do when he came to Landmark today.

After a while, a familiar person walked in, led by a female assistant.

“Cao Sheng, long time no see.” Chen Zhiwen stood up and laughed.

“Haha, Chen Sheng, long time no see. You are a very busy man,” the visitor said.

“I’m not busy. I’m far behind Cao Sheng. I heard that Cathay Pacific Airways was almost forced to discount by you. This is the first time in the history of Hong Kong.” Chen Zhiwen said with a smile.

The person who came here was Cao Guangbiao, who founded Dragonair. Eight years ago, with the sponsorship of more than 20 Chinese tycoons including Chen Zhiwen, Pao Yugang, and Li Jiacheng, he established Hong Kong’s second airline.

In its original history, it can be said that Dragonair had a bad fate and was always suppressed by Cathay Pacific. But in this life, with Chen Zhiwen here, one is that it has more funds, and the other is that British capital has long been beaten by Chen Zhiwen. Pressed to the ground and grinding, the Swire Group is being targeted by Chinese capital in many areas, and it does not have the ability to deal with Dragonair anymore.

Of course, no matter how you say it, in terms of scale, Cathay Pacific is still bigger, and Dragonair is only a threat, but the gap is still huge.

“The discount is only for cargo. The passenger transport is still an independent route. There is almost no competition and it will not affect the fundamentals of Cathay Pacific.” Cao Guangbiao shook his head and said: “Thanks to Chen Sheng for suggesting that Dragonair give priority. Develop freight, and you asked me to apply for routes to second-tier cities in the mainland. Now these places are beginning to have enough customers.”

“Oh, you have enough customers, so you are planning to raise funds to buy another plane?” Chen Zhiwen asked with a smile.

At his suggestion, Dragonair applied for routes between Hong Kong and more than 20 second-tier cities or provincial capitals in the Mainland very early. And because the central government at that time was more supportive of Hong Kong Chinese airlines, the route fees were only levied. , which gave Dragonair a great help.

In the 1980s, people coming to Hong Kong from the mainland were mostly from big cities, and not many second-tier cities. Therefore, in more than 20 cities, Dragonair basically used two to three aircraft to fly in rotation, and one route may have to wait. 3-7 days, this can also maximize the benefits.

As the 1990s entered and Hong Kong Disneyland opened, more and more people from the mainland came to Hong Kong. Dragonair also asked shareholders several times to raise funds to purchase aircraft. As the major shareholder, Chen Zhiwen was naturally very happy. You can give as much as you need, as long as it passes the audit.

“We are planning to buy the aircraft, and currently Dragonair’s funds are indeed insufficient.” Cao Guangbiao said, “It’s just that this time I am not planning to seek financing from various shareholders, but am planning to go public.”

“Listing? That’s okay.” Chen Zhiwen nodded and said.

Dong Youwei on the side asked: “Is it because there is news in the market that Cathay Pacific is preparing to go public?”

“I’ve heard about this too,” Chen Zhiwen said.

The biggest pressure Cathay Pacific faces from Dragonair is not the strong capital behind Dragonair, because many routes are exclusive monopolies. No matter how big Dragonair is on other routes, it will have an impact on Cathay Pacific, but it will not hurt the foundation, or It is said that at least it is unlikely to have a serious impact on Cathay Pacific Airways.

For Cathay Pacific, the biggest threat to Dragonair is that after Hong Kong 1997, if the British Hong Kong government behind it is lost, there will be no monopoly on routes.

Therefore, in order to protect itself, Cathay Pacific introduced domestic capital, but the same was true for Dragonair. Neither party had any advantages, so Cathay Pacific prepared to go public. Once listed, a large number of Hong Kong shareholders will be tied to Cathay Pacific. In the future, no matter who , when you want to use unfair means to deal with Cathay Pacific, you have to consider the attitude of so many investors in Hong Kong.

“Yes, Cathay Pacific is going to go public, and I have no reason to stop them, so I can only go public together. In this way, everyone is at least on the same level.” Cao Guangbiao said.

“That’s good. A lot of funds have been raised, enough to buy some regional aircraft.” Chen Zhiwen nodded and said.

“Sheng Chen, I don’t know about the development of Dragonair in the future. Do you have any other suggestions?” Cao Guangbiao asked. When he came here this time, the first thing was to inform the major shareholder that Dragonair was preparing to go public. The second thing was to wait until the next time. After the meeting makes the news, it can also increase the reputation of Dragonair. The third and most important thing is to ask the most successful person in Hong Kong about his experience.

“There is nothing to suggest. In the short term, Dragonair is unlikely to be able to beat Cathay Pacific, especially after it is listed. Even after 1997, the government will only be able to settle the matter.” Chen Zhiwen paused and said:

“However, Dragonair will not fail. You already have the exclusive rights to operate dozens of routes in the mainland. This is the hen that will hatch the golden eggs in the future. In fact, it is unrealistic for you to completely defeat Cathay Pacific. It is better to stagger the competition. If we focus on air freight, the Asian economy will get better and better in the future, and people will take longer and longer to receive goods. This is very beneficial to air freight. Especially the freight transportation between the mainland and Hong Kong has great potential for development. It’s still very big, and you should focus on this area.”

“Freight? Okay, I’ll go back and study it carefully.” Cao Guangbiao nodded and said.

…

A few days later, there was news in the market that Dragonair was about to go public. At the same time, Cao Guangbiao visited Chen Zhiwen. As for the details, no one knew.

Subsequently, Dragonair also confirmed the news of its upcoming listing and submitted an application to the stock exchange.

Half a year later, Dragonair went public. On that day, its IPO market value exceeded HK$6 billion, making it one of the top 50 giant companies in Hong Kong. (End of chapter)