After the Chinese New Year.

Lin Zhichao came to the Cheung Kong Industrial Group and flipped through the financial statements in his office. In 1957, Cheung Kong Industries Group's profit was 86 million Hong Kong dollars, the investment amount was 28 million Hong Kong dollars, and the net inflow into the account was 58 million Hong Kong dollars; Together with the previous working capital, Cheung Kong Industries Group already has a deposit of HK$120 million.

There is nowhere to spend the money!

This is Lin Zhichao's current troubles, including global shipping, which can only be stored in the account to eat interest.

Global Shipping, Changjiang Industrial Group, the money earned by these two groups is foreign exchange, which is something that Lin Zhichao is more proud of.

In the previous life, only Lee Kar-shing of the four major families in Hong Kong made his fortune by industry, so his final achievements and vision were also high, and he was not limited to the real estate business.

And in this life, Lin Zhichao's Yangtze River Industrial Group is enough to increase his foundation.

"Boss, Manager Tao has gained a lot in the United States, and some dealers have chosen our Yangtze River Plastic Factory as a partner after hearing the report of Qi Ai Company. We expect to be able to add several million dollars in orders. Deputy General Manager Wang Liang reported the latest good news.

Of course, Lin Zhichao still said very calmly: "It is best to have a harvest in this matter, and it can also promote the welfare of Hong Kong workers without a harvest, don't care too much!" Moreover, this matter will not really affect the company, so we should not pay attention to it anymore, and still focus on our own quality and technology. ”

Wang Liang nodded and said, "Makes sense!" At present, there are 500 plastic flower factories in Hong Kong, and the number is still increasing, and the competition in this industry is fierce. In his words, there was already some concern.

Lin Zhichao also understands this, at the peak of the previous life, Hong Kong plastic flowers, it is said that there were 3,000 plastic flower factories; As a result, a large number of factories have just been born, and the plastic flower industry has faded, and a large number of factories can only close.

"The machinery and equipment of plastic flowers can also produce some parts of toys, and this part of the investment is not a loss."

Wang Liang thought for a while and asked a question: "Boss, according to the scale growth of the Yangtze River Plastic Flower, theoretically there are still many workers, but our labor cost is high; If you take a large number of foundries, you will also lose part of the profits; With the establishment of a large number of small plastic factories, profit margins have gradually decreased. Therefore, I think it is better to gradually increase the number of permanent workers to 6,000, maybe 8,000~10,000 people will be needed. Although the cost of workers is higher, at least they can earn more than OEM. ”

Lin Zhichao thought for a while, and then said: "It is feasible, there is nothing wrong with adjusting the strategy according to the specific situation!" ”

At this time, he still underestimated the scale of the plastic flower industry, and at first thought that 3,000 regular workers were enough, and the insufficient part could seek OEM.

Now it seems that in two or three years, even 6,000 people will not be able to stop, and I am afraid that dozens of factories will need to be larger, and a total of 5,000 or 6,000 workers will be used.

In this way, the Yangtze River Plastic Factory can support tens of thousands of workers, and it is easy to support 6,000 people.

At present, the Changjiang Plastic Factory implements the 'two shifts' working mode, otherwise the machine cost is high.

"Okay, I'll have a meeting with Manager Tao and the others to discuss it later."

"Hmm"

After Wang Liang left, Lin Zhichao thought for a while.

The heat of the plastic flower industry will subside in 1967, because at that time the Suez Canal was closed and the cost of freight increased dramatically (the cost of oil freight increased, the cost of raw materials increased; When plastic flowers are exported, the freight will also increase); In the 1973 oil crisis, plastic flower products were almost devastated, because the raw materials of plastic flowers are petroleum derivatives.

Combined with this information, in 1963, the Yangtze River Plastic Factory was able to consider the 'main OEM model' and gradually reduce the investment in labor and equipment.

So there are still seven or eight years of 'making money', and it is expected to earn about 200 million. With the addition of the 'wig industry', a profit of 250 million Hong Kong dollars has been booked in the future.

As for the zipper industry and the toy industry, these are long-term businesses, and they can be transferred to the mainland to invest in factories in the future.

The suitcase and instant noodle industries will be handed over to Cheung Kong Industrial.

At the end of February, Hong Kong ushered in a new Governor of Hong Kong, Robert Laprey, the former Governor of Sing Tao, who also served as Hong Kong's Chief Secretary in the early 50s and served as acting governor three times.

Quat Leung-hung stepped down in December last year, and the Governor usually has a vacuum, and the Chief Secretary is the acting Governor of Hong Kong. Therefore, among the three divisions in Hong Kong, the Chief Secretary is really under one person, and whenever the Governor of Hong Kong is on leave, the Chief Secretary acts as the Governor of Hong Kong.

Lin Zhichao also participated in Bai Liji's service activities, and he didn't have any opinion in his heart, and whoever was the governor was the same. Moreover, Robert Richard, the governor of Hong Kong, also made a lot of contributions in his previous life, such as taking back Hong Kong's independent financial power, and no longer need to report to London; After recovering fiscal power, a 'Sir Kwok Pak-wai' was appointed as the Financial Secretary in the early sixties, and during his tenure he adopted an economic policy dominated by the "free market", which gradually developed into an "active non-intervention policy", which was pursued by successive Financial Secretaries.

For businessmen, this kind of policy is simply 'heaven', the Hong Kong government does not interfere in business practices, this is the 'survival of the fittest' business society.

For example, in his previous life, Lee Kar-shing publicly opposed the restriction of 'free access to funds in Hong Kong', which was a rare time for him to stand up.

Similarly, for Lin Zhichao in this life, the most important thing is the 'freedom of capital access'. The reason is obvious, if nothing else, if there is an overseas investment project, he can get the funds in place within a day, and will not be affected by 'foreign exchange restrictions' and so on.

At the dinner that night, Bai Liji deliberately chatted with Lin Zhichao more. This behavior also made the guests aware of Lin Zhichao's influence.

Bai Liji said humorously: "Mr. Lin, I have only been away from Hong Kong for three years, and you have changed the fastest!" ”

He was a down-to-earth man with a sense of humor, and his more than 20 years of service in the colonies had given him a lot of experience in managing a colony, and that was to build a relationship with the local 'chaebols'.

Because almost all of the upper echelons of Hong Kong are British, they know the local situation in Hong Kong, and they are all members of the Chinese Legislative Council and the Executive Council, the senior class of British-funded foreign companies, and now there is one more - Chinese business tycoons.

Lin Zhichao also responded humorously: "It's not that I change quickly, but that His Excellency the Governor of Hong Kong once served as the Chief Secretary of Hong Kong and laid a solid foundation for Hong Kong's industry, so it has accumulated steadily, so Hong Kong's industry has developed rapidly in recent years." ”

The people around couldn't help but sigh that Lin Zhichao's ability to 'cling to the relationship' is really very strong.

During the period of 1952.2~1955.3, Robert served as the Chief Secretary (Auxiliary Secretary for Administration) of Hong Kong, and his main job was to assist the then Governor Sir Alexander Grantham in handling economic affairs. At that time, the situation was complicated, with the burden on Hong Kong's finances caused by the influx of 'refugees' from Hong Kong, and the impact of the embargo imposed by the United States on Hong Kong's entrepot trade after the outbreak of the Korean War.

When Lin Zhichao said this, he undoubtedly praised Bai Liji's contribution to Hong Kong's industry during that period, which led to the development of Hong Kong's industry today.

He couldn't stop smiling, and then said: "The achievements of Hong Kong's industry today really make me feel amazed and very pleased in Sing Tao. Governor Ge Lianghong, for this, I am just"

In modesty, I determined my own contribution, this is all human spirit!

Hong Kong's industry is indeed developing very fast, and it is much better than at the same time in the previous life, because:

The 'wig industry' and 'plastic flower industry' are now the fourth and third largest industries in Hong Kong, whereas in the previous life, plastic flowers started in 1957 and wigs started in 1958.

There is also the toy industry and the zipper industry, which did not have the scale and zipper industry of today in the previous life. In the previous life, the total export value of Hong Kong's toy industry in 1957 was only 52.4 million Hong Kong dollars, and last year (1957) the total export volume of the Cheung Kong Toy Factory was as high as more than 70 million Hong Kong dollars (profit of 16.5 million Hong Kong dollars, including doll clothing), and the total export value of Hong Kong's toys was 140 million, nearly three times that of the previous life. Needless to say, the zipper industry in Hong Kong did not have this industry in the previous life, and the total export volume of zippers produced in Hong Kong last year was as high as more than 200 million.

It is estimated that the industrial output value in the same period will be about 30% higher than that of the previous life.

Although only Lin Zhichao understands these data, he is still very proud in his heart.

Moreover, when people around the world talk about Hong Kong, they will immediately think of plastic flowers, suitcases, instant noodles, Rubik's cubes, etc., all of which were invented by Hong Kong people, and all of them will open up Hong Kong's influence at once.

After chatting a few words, Bai Liji greeted the others, but the time he stayed by Lin Zhichao's side was even higher than that of some foreign companies. It can be seen from this point that Lin Zhichao's identity is no less than that of the foreign bank in the eyes of the high-level officials of the Hong Kong government.

A few days later, Lin Zhichao took several senior executives of the Cheung Kong Industrial Group to inspect the shipbreaking site in Hong Kong.

After a circle, Lin Zhichao asked: "Do you think Tseung Kwan O, Drunken Bay, Ngau Tau Kok, which place is the most suitable for ship dismantling?" ”

Wang Liang then said: "How much does the boss plan to invest?" If the investment is large, you must use a few more shipbreaking yards, and you can choose to invest in two places. Drunken Bay and Ngau Tau Kok are the most in line with economic interests, and the traffic in Tseung Kwan O is poor. ”

Everyone expressed their opinions, and it is indeed the two best places in Drunken Bay and Ngau Tau Kok. Among them, Drunken Bay is located in the middle of Tsuen Wan and Kwai Chung, and there is a pier there; Ngau Tau Kok is located in Kwun Tong, itself in an industrial area, and also has a pier.

On the contrary, Tseung Kwan O is not very convenient for transportation. The land purchased by Lin Zhichao at the beginning has been smelting copper, and as for the aluminum alloy, it is now imported from Japan, and it will not be affected anyway, so the idea was extinguished.

It is possible to set up a steel mill, after all, after the shipbreaking, there is steel that can be recycled and then used in construction.

Lin Zhichao said: "The investment should be very large, so choose three places!" On the Tseung Kwan O side, a steelmaking plant will be set up later. Deputy General Manager Wang, you recently set up a subsidiary, the Yangtze River Shipbreaking Yard, and selected a good location, and then I arranged for people from the world to join in the selection of ships to be scrapped from major ports around the world. ”

Wang Liang immediately said: "No problem, I promise to form a professional team as soon as possible!" ”

Lin Zhichao nodded and said, "You really have to be professional!" ”

In fact, the threshold of the shipbreaking industry is not high, and in the late 50s and early 60s, a large number of shipbreaking yards flocked to Hong Kong. Because as long as there is a shipbreaking yard that makes a lot of money, soon everyone will rush to it. In the previous life, it was because Hengchang Trade took the lead in entering the shipbreaking industry, and everyone followed up, which finally led to the price of old ships rising, and the profits of shipbreaking were also unprofitable after two or three years.

Since Lin Zhichao has taken a fancy to this industry, he is afraid that he will have to buy many ships in one go, although it will not monopolize the shipbreaking industry in Hong Kong, but at least he can eat a large share.

There are two good times:

First, starting this year (1958), the world will gradually enter the shipping 'small cold winter period (1959~1961)', and it coincides with the high incidence of second-hand ships eliminated in Europe and the United States, so there are many ships for sale in the world's major ports, some ships can still run, and most of the ships can only be dismantled.

Second, the demand for steel in various countries around the world has increased, and after the war, countries have ushered in a wave of construction, and the demand for steel has been high in recent years, and the price of steel has also risen; Even in Hong Kong, the construction industry is expected to be booming by the end of this year or early next year.

In recent years, Hong Kong's shipbreaking enterprises have not had a problem feeding thousands of people!

As for polluting the environment, Hong Kong is not qualified to talk about it. Where you can't even eat enough, you don't need to think about environmental pollution at all, not to mention that the sea water is flowing, even if it is a little polluted, it has no effect.

Originally, in recent years, Britain and the United States have taken some aircraft carriers and warships to Hong Kong for dismantling, and Hong Kong's shipbreaking industry has been developing for many years.

It's just that people who are engaged in this industry don't know that the world's major ports are about to be full of second-hand ships, and they are more waiting for British and American warships and aircraft carriers to be sent to their homes for disassembly.

Lin Zhichao was the first to learn this kind of information, so he could naturally make more profits.

No matter how small the mosquito is, it is still meat, and it is easy to make a profit of more than 10 million in a few years.

After returning to the Yangtze River Industry Group, Lin Zhichao still convened all the group management to systematically lay out the combination between the shipbreaking yard and the steelmaking plant.

He doesn't necessarily have to invest a lot in a steel mill, and he doesn't have to compete for the 'steel king', everything depends on the situation.

Over the years, CK has had a lot of skilled workers, so investing in these industries is not a big problem.

At the same time, the University of Hong Kong has actually had a mechanical major for a long time, and Swire Dockyard has been building ships for a long time, and it has used many graduates.

(End of chapter)