During this period of time, Chen Zhiwen did not pay much attention to the domestic situation, because there were no big projects to invest in for the time being. When Hutchison Whampoa began to assist the domestic auto parts industry with funds, this has formed an inevitable good growth trend, and the remaining The next step is left to these professional teams and the development of the domestic economy. When the domestic economy develops well and market demand is large, the automobile industry will naturally develop, and AMC can also obtain development opportunities from it. However, compared to Hutchison Whampoa's huge assets, this amount of money is actually not much.
In Hong Kong, there are no projects that require investment in a short period of time. It can be said that housing prices were fluctuating greatly before, rising and falling. However, after the end of 1981, housing prices have begun to fall. Even Land, Carnegie, and Hang Lung Waiting for large real estate companies to force high prices to support the market, but this can only provide some relief.
In mid-October of this year, the Hong Kong government granted the Hong Kong Bank of China Group a piece of land in Central: the Mirai Road parking lot in the Central District, which is located next to the current Hilton Hotel. In the original history, the Cheung Kong Industrial Group was built after the Hilton Hotel was demolished. The headquarters, Bank of China Building, and HSBC Bank Building are all together. The location can be said to be one of the top in Hong Kong, no less than some of the office buildings owned by Land.
This piece of land covers an area of about 80,000 square feet (approximately 8,000 square meters). A few months ago, it would have been worth at least HK$2.2 billion, but this time the transaction price was only HK$1 billion. There may also be considerations of Z and Z, but The decline in land prices is inevitable.
In this case, Hutchison Whampoa will not invest in Hong Kong, so the only place that can comply is overseas.
Ports are one of Hutchison Whampoa's established businesses. Taking advantage of the current era of high inflation in the global economy, it is naturally more appropriate to build new ports in Asia, which is a potential star in the future.
And Ma Shiming is also right. For this kind of large project with huge investment and the possibility of exponential doubling in the future, there is no need to be alone. It is worthwhile to give up part to others in exchange for stability. For Chen Zhiwen, it may be Average profits, but for many large international funds, are already considered very high.
Among the major foreign companies in Hong Kong, Swire has always adhered to a neutral attitude. Although it competes with some of Chen Zhiwen's projects, it is indeed the best choice for port cooperation. As for cooperation partners in the United States, it is natural to consult its old friends. .
After receiving the invitation from Chen Zhiwen, Henry Morgan rushed to Hong Kong. Currently, more than half of his industries rely on Chen Zhiwen. Naturally, he obeys the advice of this big benefactor.
"Henry, long time no see, how was the journey?" Chen Zhiwen met Henry Morgan from the United States in his office.
"It's great. I have to say that it is so comfortable to have a Boeing private jet. I really can't imagine what kind of experience you will have on your 747." Henry Morgan said with a smile. Chen Zhiwen bought one before. Having a Boeing 747 as his private jet has made Henry Morgan envious for a long time. With his worth, few things can be attractive to him. However, buying a 747 is still a bit difficult for him, not that He couldn't afford it, but it wasn't necessary. It accounted for too much of his worth. But later he discussed it with Chen Zhiwen and finally bought a Boeing 737 as his private jet.
The current time is the most suitable to buy airplanes in the past decade or so. Because the oil prices soared during the early oil crisis, many airlines were unable to purchase the airplanes they had previously ordered. Boeing has a large number of existing airplanes in urgent need of disposal, even if Now that oil prices have fallen, demand will not recover so quickly. Airlines are still suffering serious losses. It will be difficult not to place orders in a short period of time, but to pay off previous orders. In this way, anyone who wants to Not only is it very cheap to buy an airplane, there are also many in stock.
"Making money is for enjoyment. Otherwise, why make money? We can only live a hundred years at most." Chen Zhiwen said with a smile. Rich people can theoretically live longer, but this limit is only a hundred years. Even if they can live longer, I am afraid they will suffer. In a real life, they can only enjoy thirty or forty years. Even Henry Morgan, With his current worth, it's unlikely that he can spend it all on casual play, as long as he doesn't gamble.
"Yes, since I got this private plane, I have become famous in Los Angeles. You don't know how many Hollywood actresses in the United States have taken the initiative to throw themselves into their arms." Henry Morgan said with a smile: "Eric , if you go to Los Angeles next time, I will introduce you to a few of them, you can play whatever you want."
"Forget it, if I like it, I will choose it myself." Chen Zhiwen shook his head and said, playing with celebrities is naturally also the fun of the rich, but his concept is still different from those in Europe and the United States, at least the fun is too fancy. He is not interested. Asian women are generally more in line with Asian men's aesthetics. Of course, there are exceptions among white people.
"That's up to you. A few months ago, I acquired a small film company that specializes in making horror films. The profits are pretty good. What do you think?" Henry Morgan said suddenly.
"Are you planning to make a movie?" Chen Zhiwen asked curiously.
"No, just for fun. As you know, the negotiations between SITC and HSBC are almost complete. The U.S. Department of Commerce has basically agreed to the transaction. After this transaction, I can get a lot of funds. For the time being, There is nothing to invest in, so I just spent 10 million US dollars to buy a small Hollywood movie company for fun, and the money is not much anyway." Henry Morgan said with a shrug.
"It's true that you want to take the opportunity to pick up female celebrities." Chen Zhiwen said with a smile.
At the beginning, together with Henry Morgan, he intercepted HSBC's goal in the United States ahead of schedule, SITC, the sixth largest bank in New York State. This made Shen Bi of HSBC furious. Chen Zhiwen also took this opportunity in Hong Kong to win the Hong Kong Electric, and also helped Pao Yugang win the China Electric Power, and then he also became a shareholder. In this way, the two of them controlled Hong Kong's electricity. market.
But the handle also has an validity period. If it is stuck for a long time, HSBC will only choose other targets for its internationalization. Therefore, at that time, Chen Zhiwen also reached a verbal agreement with Shen Bi. Within two years, as long as the price was negotiated, It's available for sale and it's almost time.
In addition to Hong Kong, Chen Zhiwen can also make a fortune from transactions in the United States. The same goes for Henry Morgan who followed behind. His acquisition did not cost much at first, mainly bank loans. Now HSBC is paying high prices After the acquisition and repayment of the loan, it is equivalent to earning back several times the principal, which is approximately US$60 million.
HSBC has suffered and Morgan has gained, but HSBC is not short of this money. In the past few years, the real estate market exploded, and HSBC's annual profits were more than 1 billion Hong Kong dollars. This year, it is estimated to be a little bit closer, with 700 to 800 million. .
"Eric, didn't you also acquire a TV station in Hong Kong? Hahaha." Henry Morgan laughed and said, "What a pity. If I had enough funds, it would be great if I could acquire a TV station in the United States."
"TV station? Can't you acquire it? Your identity shouldn't be a problem, right?" Chen Zhiwen asked curiously.
“It’s possible, but I can only acquire some small TV stations, such as some local TV stations in California and New York State, but they don’t make much sense and can only be broadcast locally. They are not as good as film companies that can release movies nationwide or even globally. said Henry Morgan with a shrug.
"You are not interested in the three major TV stations in the United States, are you?" Chen Zhiwen said in surprise.
"If I had money, I might want to give it a try, but it requires too much money, and even if I have money, people may not be willing to take action. I don't know how many people are jealous of such a national TV station. , it’s hard to have a chance.” Henry Morgan said.
"Actually, you have American identity, and you have the Morgan family consortium behind you. What do you think?" Chen Zhiwen thought for a moment and said suddenly.
Originally, he never thought about getting involved in European and American TV stations, because it is almost impossible, not to mention TV stations, even newspapers. American law clearly stipulates that if you want to participate in the American media industry, you must be an American. Rupert Murdoch, a relatively famous media tycoon in later generations, was originally from Australia and was considered a die-hard ally of the United States. However, he still had to become an American citizen before he could acquire American newspapers.
After all, Murdoch is a white man. After becoming an American citizen, he is basically the same as a local. But Chen Zhiwen is not the same. Even if he changes his nationality, many sensitive technology industries and media industries still have no opportunities and are naturally excluded.
But Henry Morgan is different. He can definitely succeed, as long as he has capital, and the family behind him. If he knows that he is acquiring a large TV station, he must not use it with all his strength. In this way, everyone can get what they want.
"The investment here is not low?" Henry Morgan said.
"Actually, the investment is not very large. To acquire this kind of enterprise, you don't need a lot of funds. You need confidence. If you can give banks and other financial institutions enough confidence, then they can lend you enough funds. What's more, You have to have the confidence to run it well," Chen Zhiwen said.
"Is this kind of TV station worth at least several billion dollars? With such a big game, people will die if there is an accident." Henry Morgan also rarely had some worries. In the past, he was not afraid of anything. That was because the most troublesome thing was " "billion-dollar" level, but now it has gone up to a higher level, increased tenfold, and it is no longer something he dares to bear casually.
"What are you worried about? The three major TV stations themselves are very high-quality assets and have strong profitability. If you receive them, you will receive a lot of dividends every year. However, considering that the current interest rates are very high, you may still You need to bear part of it yourself. But as long as you can get through it, think about it, if you own an American TV station, it will have a strong influence on the election of the President of the United States or the election of members of the Senate and House of Representatives. This is enough for you to be in the United States. Not only has your status increased tenfold. And with such assets, your status within the Morgan family will also be greatly improved, and they will definitely support you with all their strength." Chen Zhiwen said with a smile.
"Theoretically, this is true, but the three major TV stations are all the highest quality assets and have great influence. The holders behind them are impossible to acquire, even if they have money, they cannot acquire them." Henry Morgan shook his head He said, let alone them, even the Morgan family, it is basically impossible to acquire such a TV station, unless the owner of the TV station actively intends to sell it, but in this case, it will definitely cause countless people to fight for it. There is no powerful person in the entire United States. Families and consortiums will not be optimistic about a TV station that controls American public opinion, and competition will be fierce.
"So, we can directly attack the company that owns the TV station." Chen Zhiwen took out a pen and wrote the three characters RCA on a piece of white paper in front of him.
"You want to acquire RCA?" Henry Morgan said in shock. RCA is a large listed company in the United States. Its core business is NBC, one of the three major television stations in the United States.
"It's not me, it's you. RCA's main business is NBC. I'm afraid it would be difficult for me to acquire a certain percentage of shares in this kind of company, but you can." Chen Zhiwen said.
"RCA is indeed a public company, and there is no controlling family, but its total market value is close to 4 billion US dollars. Even if you want to acquire a small half of its shares, plus the impact of the acquisition turmoil, you need to prepare at least close to 2 billion US dollars. Such a huge amount of funds. There are not many people in the world who can do it." Henry Morgan said with a frown.
"Of course, but if the stock price drops sharply, then we will have a chance." Chen Zhiwen said.
In the original history, General Electric acquired RCA in a stock-for-share exchange. This was a good-faith merger and acquisition. The boards of directors of both parties reached an agreement and merged at a certain price. This is indeed the only way to acquire a company with a huge market value. Globally Historically, mergers and acquisitions between large oil companies, large banks, and large automobile companies were all similar. Hostile takeovers were only possible for small-scale companies.
In other words, if you want to get involved in RCA, you need to have a suitable opportunity. Otherwise, it is impossible under normal circumstances. Even if there are no ZZ reasons, such a huge market value is the most powerful moat.
"Something terrible would have to happen. Even the previous oil crisis would not have affected RCA too much." Henry Morgan said.
"Look at this thing." Chen Zhiwen immediately stood up and took out a file bag from a safe behind him. After opening it, he handed the documents inside to Henry Morgan and said: "This is the underground water of Wanwan Taoyuan City half a year ago. test report.”
"Groundwater test report?" Henry Morgan was a little strange. Why was he showing this to himself? But after reading the English report, he was surprised and said: "There are so many heavy metals and carcinogens in it? Are there a large number of heavy factories and chemical plants in the area?" "
"No, none." Chen Zhiwen shook his head and said, "Only RCA opened a large-scale color picture tube manufacturing factory in Taoyuan City. The picture tubes for our early arcade machines were purchased from there."
"You mean, their factory pollutes the groundwater? But this is unlikely. The picture tube factory does use some chemicals, but they are not as good as some chemical factories. How could the local groundwater be polluted like this? Henry Morgan said with a frown.
"Because ordinary chemical plants have sewage treatment, RCA directly injects sewage into the ground through deep wells hundreds of meters away," Chen Zhiwen said.
(End of chapter)
