It's a new year again (1994).

In the 'chairman's office' on the top floor of the Yangtze River Group Center, Lin Zhichao stood in front of the window, overlooking the prosperous scenery outside, and his heart rippled with a sense of pride.

Hong Kong has made great contributions personally, at least more than 15%.

Last year, Hong Kong's GDP reached HK$1.12 trillion, with an average of HK$186,800 per capita, and the total annual foreign trade was HK$2.56 trillion. The foreign exchange reserves are 485 billion Hong Kong dollars, ranking 7th in the world and 2nd in the world per capita. (Singapore has a foreign exchange of 48.1 billion US dollars and a population of only 3.31 million; Hong Kong has a population of 6.02 million US dollars (US$62.1 billion)

is like his own child, now that he has grown up, Lin Zhichao is very proud in his heart.

Hong Kong in this life is at least 15% higher than the economy of the same period in the previous life; In the future, it may be more than 20%, or even 30%.

In the past 40 years, at most, it has brought changes to Hong Kong in the manufacturing and shipping industries. In the future, the changes brought to Hong Kong by the cultural industry and the technology industry will be huge.

In particular, the 'cultural industry' has basically become 'nine out of ten', and it is already starting to change everything in Hong Kong. In later generations, the 'cultural industry powerhouse' basically accounted for more than 10% of the country's GDP, and the United States accounted for 30% (the statistical method may vary).

Hong Kong's 'technology industry' is also better developed than in previous generations, with Polytechnic University being launched 12 years ahead of schedule, and Cheung Kong Industries Group has been investing and has played a great leading role.

After a while, Lin Ruihuan came to the office and reported to Lin Zhichao.

1992~1993 was two years of large-scale investment by Cheung Kong Group, and the focus of investment was in the mainland and the United States.

Needless to say, Lin Zhichao has been crazy about taking projects in the past two years, and Cheung Kong Group alone has invested more than 10 billion US dollars (total project investment * Cheung Kong shares); Its Hutchison Whampoa and HK Electric have also entered the mainland, as well as brother companies Wharf Group, Shangri-La Hotel Group, etc., preliminary statistics show that the Lin family's affiliated enterprises have invested more than 30 billion US dollars in the mainland.

Talking about the side of the matter, it can be proved that the influence of Lin Zhichao's family in the mainland - he is received by the boss at least four times a year, and he is received by the boss ten times, and is evaluated as 'courageous and insightful', 'true patriotic businessman', 'concerned and supporter of domestic education and public welfare'.

As for the United States, it is divided into two parts of investment: one is the establishment of a REITs (real estate trust), raising $1 billion, mainly investing in Manhattan office buildings; Part of it is the investment of a branch of Cheung Kong Group, which invested a total of $4 billion in Manhattan office buildings, shopping malls in New York, and commercial real estate in Los Angeles and San Francisco.

Cheung Kong Group dares to invest so much, naturally because it has a cash flow of 60~7 billion US dollars, and the best interest is only 7~8% now.

In some 'development real estate projects' in the mainland, the loan rate is as high as 80% or 90%, and 10~20% of the funds need to be used to start; Because the development of real estate projects itself pays off quickly, it does not need to invest too much.

"Last year's profit has been preliminarily counted, about 135 ~ 14 billion, of which the profit from Hong Kong sales is 6.5 billion, accounting for nearly half; Hong Kong's rental profit is $4 billion, and overseas profits and other business profits are in the early $3 billion." Lin Ruihuan reported happily.

Last year was another bumper year!

Cheung Kong Group owns 3 Raffles City Plazas in Japan and 2 integrated shopping malls (hotels, office buildings, shopping malls) in Singapore, all of which have good profits; Other sectors – infrastructure (Fortune Continent, early investment in the mainland), retail (7-Eleven Worldwide), hard food and other businesses – can generate significant profits.

Lin Zhichao said: "The profits of Hong Kong, Japan and Singapore are the backing for us to invest in the mainland, the United States and the United Kingdom. It is believed that investments from the mainland, the United States and the United Kingdom will also generate a steady stream of profits in a few years. ”

Lin Ruihuan said: "Dad, now the group's debt is a bit high, do you want to sell the shopping malls in Laguna City and Huijing Garden to reduce debt." ”

Lin Zhichao said with satisfaction: "I am very relieved that you can think like this, and there is no problem with your decision-making." However, I hope to wait a little longer, this is my personal opinion. ”

Lin Ruihuan nodded and said, "I understand, then follow Dad's idea." In fact, Cheung Kong's debt ratio is not high, but we rarely have that much debt. ”

Cheung Kong's debt has always been frighteningly low, and now the debt is about 15 billion Hong Kong dollars, although it is a record high, but in fact, the asset value of Cheung Kong is as high as more than 200 billion, and the debt ratio is less than 10%.

Lam Suihuan wants to sell the shopping malls of the two large estates, which is similar to Lam's idea, except for commercial properties in non-core business districts, which can be sold. The only difference in thinking is that Lin Zhichao planned to start selling at the end of 1996.

Then, Lin Ruihuan said: "The profits of Hutchison Whampoa and HK Electric last year were also roughly calculated, which were 8.5 billion and 4.6 billion Hong Kong dollars respectively. Last year, Cheung Kong made a total profit of about $3.5 billion. ”

What a harvest year!

In the same period in the previous life, the profit of the whole system did not exceed 2.8 billion US dollars until 1994.

By next year, Lin Zhichao's Changshi Department is expected to make a profit of $4 billion, a 40% increase.

This is due to the Cheung Kong Group's 'global commercial real estate layout' and 'integrated development' led by Lam Chi-chiu, and Hutchison Whampoa's 'rapid development of the retail industry' and 'more investment', and HK Electric's progress has also been made.

To put it simply, if Hutchison Whampoa had an additional investment principal of 1 billion yuan in the 80s, then the investment of this 1 billion US dollars will naturally have a greater effect.

In fact, Lin Zhichao's 'Harbour Property' has not yet been listed, and this private company also owns a lot of rent-collecting properties, so of course it will not be listed.

In late January, the American "Fortune" magazine published the world's richest list, and Lin Zhichao from Hong Kong became the 'world's richest man' for the first time with 12.5 billion US dollars.

The article says:

Last year (1993), the share prices of Lin Zhichao's two listed companies, Cheung Kong Group and Wharf Group, rose by about 40%, and the current market value of Cheung Kong Group was 186 billion Hong Kong dollars, the market value of Wharf Group was 66 billion Hong Kong dollars, and the market value of the two Hutchison was 252 billion Hong Kong dollars; Lin Zhichao accounts for 41~42% of the shares (only counting the father and son trust company, excluding the Lin Zhichao Foundation), that is, he has a wealth of 100 billion Hong Kong dollars.

At the same time, with Japan's real estate plummeting (Tokyo is still the most expensive in the world), Yoshiaki Tsutsumi, who came in second, was left with a fortune of only $9 billion.

Yoshiaki Tsutsumi was the richest man in the world in 1987~1990, and another Japanese real estate tycoon, Mori Taijiro, was the richest man in the world in 1991~1992, worth 12.5 billion US dollars; In 1993, when Yoshiaki returned to the richest man in the world, he was worth only 9.5 billion US dollars, and Lin Zhichao's net worth was the second in the world at that time.

In January this year, the Hang Seng Index has reached more than 12,000 points, and Lin Zhichao's net worth has naturally risen sharply.

In fact, if he hadn't donated one-third of his 'net worth' to the 'Lin Zhichao Foundation' a few years ago, he would have been the richest man in the world as early as 1993.

The 'Lin Zhichao Foundation' is theoretically a public company, so it is not counted in Lin Zhichao's wealth, although it owns 20~21% of the shares of Cheung Kong and Jiucang.

As for Lin Zhichao's companies that are not listed, because they don't need to make their financial reports public, they will naturally not be counted on the wealth list. Hutchison Whampoa, HK Electric, Singapore Land, etc., these companies belong to the descendants of the company, and they will not be counted in the Lin family's wealth; Of course, the value of these enterprises is also reflected in the market value of Cheung Kong Group and Wharf Group.

Lin Zhichao's ranking as the 'richest man in the world' means that the Chinese are proud and boost their morale. Therefore, a group of wealthy people in Hong Kong held a banquet at the Shangri-La Hotel to entertain Lin Zhichao, the protagonist.

"Lin Sheng, congratulations!"

"Lin Sheng, the richest man in the world is so mighty, and it has greatly boosted the morale of our Chinese businessmen!"

In the box, a group of wealthy people congratulated.

The rich people who come today are the people who control the economic context of Hong Kong, and although there are all kinds of competition between our companies, they are all friends in private.

Lin Zhichao said with a smile: "Hong Kong's real estate appreciation, everyone benefits; With the reopening of the mainland, we have also increased investment channels. So, everyone rejoices and congratulates! ”

"Makes sense!"

"Congratulations Together"

For a while, everyone pushed the cup and changed the lamp, a total of two tables of people, and everyone talked and laughed.

Including Cheng Yu-tung, Lee Shau-kee, Kwok Ping-sheung, Lee Kar-shing, Ronnie Chan, Tang You-chin, Run Run Shaw, Kwok Fook-nian, Wing Chi-kin, Wong Teng-fong, Lee Ko-fuk, Blimp Tai, Ho Hung-sheng, Hu Yingxiang, etc., these tycoons represent Hong Kong's top chaebols.

And Lin Zhichao has always been regarded as a 'leader' by the outside world, a 'handsome tiger' in the real estate industry!

The market value of the top ten real estate companies in Hong Kong (Cheung Kong, Wharf, New World Development, Sun Hung Kai, Hongkong Land, Henderson, Hang Lung, Wheelock (after merger), Oriental Group, Hopewell Properties) accounts for 85% of the total market value of Hong Kong real estate enterprises and 30~35% of the total market value of Hong Kong stock market.

Forming a highly monopolistic 'interest group'!

Cheung Kong, Sun Hung Kai and Henderson account for nearly 60% of Hong Kong's annual sales, with 6,000, 5,000 and 4,000 residences respectively, totaling about 15,000 residences, while Hong Kong supplies an average of about 26,000 per year.

The fourth place Wheelock (renamed after the merger with Cheung Wo Real Estate, Lee Ka Shing's company) has a supply of 1,500 units, the fifth place Hang Lung has a supply of about 1,000 units, the sixth place New World Development only supplies 800 units, and the seventh place does not exceed 500 units after that.

There are 4,000 real estate companies in Hong Kong, but there are only a few that are really engaged in the development of 'development real estate', mainly because the land is too expensive.

For example, Hang Lung, New World, and Oriental Group, the 'top ten real estate companies', are all increasing the proportion of 'commercial real estate', while Lee Kar-shing's foundation is not strong enough, and after the acquisition of Wheelock, the financial resources are not good.

The high market value of Cheung Kong Group is due to factors such as development of real estate, commercial real estate, integrated investment, and overseas investment, which are far from being comparable to other companies.

At the reception, Cheng Yu-tung said: "Last year, the Hong Kong government's annual income from land sales and land premium due to change of use reached HK$45 billion, plus property-related income, such as rates, Government rent, stamp duty, profits tax of real estate companies, etc., accounted for almost 70% of the total revenue of the Hong Kong government. ”

Lee Shau Kee nodded and said, "Therefore, if there is too much control, it will cause a depression in the property market." It is not only our real estate company that is affected, but the Hong Kong government does not have enough financial revenue, so what can it rely on to invest in public facilities. ”

Major real estate developers have recognized this kind of view, and in this regard, everyone is united.

In February last year, a spokesperson for the Real Estate Association of Hong Kong met with the Financial Secretary to express his concerns. Subsequently, everyone took a large number of mortgages by themselves, so the house price rose by 3~4% throughout the year. At present, the unit price of small and medium-sized residential units (below 1,000 square feet) in Hong Kong has risen to HK$5,000 per square foot.

In other words, one square meter is about 50,000 Hong Kong dollars, and the salary of Hong Kong college students after graduation is about 12,000 Hong Kong dollars, and it takes 4 months without eating or drinking to afford one square meter.

To be honest, Lin Zhichao was a little frightened and felt that the price was a bit high. However, as a 'handsome tiger' of real estate developers, he must only be on the same front as everyone, otherwise he will have no friends in the future.

Lin Zhichao said: "It is said that HSBC and Hang Seng are formulating the matter of 'tightening the mortgage' of the building! As for the Hong Kong government, I am afraid that more control regulations will be enacted this year. ”

Everyone is serious, but after all, today is a public banquet, so everyone will not talk in detail.

"The way to cure the root cause is to increase the supply of land, and this voice is now being accepted by more and more people," Cheng said. ”

Everyone agrees with this point of view!

The Hong Kong government has always been ambivalent about putting government land into the market. A substantial increase in land supply is conducive to stabilizing land and property prices. However, in this way, the Hong Kong government's land will not be sold at a high price, and the fiscal revenue will inevitably be reduced.

What the Hong Kong government hopes is to wait for the high price to be put on the market!

The supply exceeds demand and the speculation is blazing, and it has become a pair of freaks. On the one hand, the market is in short supply, resulting in fierce speculation; On the other hand, the increase in vacant flats due to the blazing speculation has further exacerbated the situation of short supply in the market, forming a vicious circle and causing the property market to climb repeatedly.

Public opinion has become favorable to real estate developers!

Now, if there are media interviews with real estate developers, everyone will definitely say that they hope that the Hong Kong government will find a 'way to cure the root cause' to curb property prices, that is, to increase land supply.

In the past, scolding real estate developers, maybe public opinion will turn into scolding the Hong Kong government!

Lin Zhichao became the 'richest man in the world' and spread it in the Hong Kong media, causing huge discussions.

Some media pointed out that if Lin Zhichao does not donate one-third of his 'net worth', his wealth will be as high as more than 18 billion US dollars, which will create a new historical record.

Some people also feel that although the 'Lin Zhichao Foundation' is a nominal charity, it is equivalent to an heirloom of the Lin family because it can only use dividends and profits, but not the principal. After all, the Lin Zhichao family controls the 'Lin Zhichao Foundation'.

Meanwhile.

The public opinion war between real estate developers and the Hong Kong government has started again!

This time, it turned out to be beneficial to real estate developers, and the direction of public opinion became 'the Hong Kong government does not increase land supply', which is the fundamental reason for the rise in property prices.

You must know that the middle class in Hong Kong is actually on the side of real estate developers, about 500,000 people; These people have property in their hands, so they naturally don't want it to fall, and they still have families behind them!

So, real estate developers are not alone!

Public opinion has become favorable to real estate developers, and real estate developers have opened their mouths, accusing the government of not selling land and accumulating it.

Anson Chan, the chief executive (the highest chief executive after the Governor-General), hastened to claim that the Hong Kong government would increase the supply of land. The Consumer Council, which is subordinate to the government, spoke for the government, accusing real estate developers of not selling their properties and accumulating houses.

LegCo member Emily Lau scolded her for helping a lot, criticizing the Hong Kong government for fattening up a few real estate developers and doing nothing to stabilize property prices.

Councillor Cheung Man-kwong bluntly condemned more than 10 real estate developers for joining hands to control land and the property market: "If you have land, you can't afford to build a building, you can't sell a building, you can't sell a building, you sell a house for speculation, and if you speculate on a building, you will become an empty building." This extremely desolate phenomenon cannot be tolerated any longer! ”

For a time, it turned into a war of public opinion!

This is probably the highlight moment of real estate developers, who are not lost to the Hong Kong government in public opinion, and things become interesting.

But to be honest, although Lin Zhichao has always been a 'handsome tiger' in real estate, his reputation is better than that of other rich people:

First of all, Lin Zhichao's enterprises span multiple industries, not just real estate developers, manufacturing, technology industries, etc., all of which have a lot of points.

Secondly, the rise of Hong Kong culture has made Lin Zhichao more 'great', after all, it has fed many people.

In the end, Lin Zhichao's success in the world, especially in Japan, the United States, Singapore, Southeast Asia, the mainland and other places, made public opinion think that Lin Zhichao did not rely entirely on Hong Kong. (End of chapter)