Return to 1958 and build a century-old giant

Chapter 825 Successful Acquisition of a Stake in Chrysler
The middle-aged man took the document and saw the companies marked on it: "Gucci, Prada, Giorgio Armani, Versace, Bulgari, and so on, more than twenty in total."

Yang Wendong continued, "You will stay in Italy during this time and build a team here. The first task is to try to acquire shares in these companies. In the future, I may also invest in other companies in Italy."

Besides luxury goods, Italy has other industries that are also quite good, such as manufacturing. Although it may not be as good as Germany, it has its own strengths.
As the 80s approached, his assets would snowball, naturally requiring him to invest in multiple countries around the world. This would serve three purposes: to profit from these investments, to diversify and control risks, and to increase his global influence.

While the mainland and the United States hold the most promising future, this does not mean that investments will only be made in these two places.
Especially for the infrastructure industry, which seeks stability, a global presence is necessary;

As he gradually begins to influence many industries around the world, many industries will inevitably change in the future. Companies like Apple and Microsoft from the 80s may not be affected much because their generation is about the same age as him. He started his business in Hong Kong in his early years and could not influence them.
But Yahoo, Google, and similar companies from the 90s may not still exist, and some of their founders may even have disappeared due to the butterfly effect. Anything is possible.
In other words, by the 90s, his prophetic abilities would be much less effective. Of course, the development trends of some countries will not change, and just knowing this is enough.

As the future third pole, Europe will remain a developed country for decades to come. Many of our funds will need to be invested here, and we will also need to utilize European resources to enter the mainland market, and so on.
The middle-aged man said, "Okay, Mr. Yang."

Yang Wendong nodded, picked up a piece of chocolate and ate it, then asked, "This chocolate is good, what brand is it?"

The middle-aged man replied, "This brand is called Ferrero, and it's a very famous Italian chocolate brand."

"Ferrero?" Yang Wendong's heart skipped a beat; he had forgotten about that. "Is this company listed on the stock exchange?"

"Probably not," the middle-aged man replied. "Businesses in Italy tend to be conservative, mostly family businesses, and there aren't many publicly listed companies, unless they're really large."

“Yes, you can tell from the architecture in Italy.” Yang Wendong laughed. “In that case, add Ferrero Rocher to the mix. Go talk to them and see if you can get a stake. Also, prepare a few pounds of chocolate for me to take back to Hong Kong.”

Yang Wendong naturally knew about Ferrero from his previous life, but he wouldn't really remember these everyday things if he didn't encounter them now.
He happened to hear about this brand and immediately realized how many business opportunities there were in the world. Ferrero was going to be one of the world's top chocolate brands, and the Ferrero family had even been the richest family in Italy at one point.
However, this is not a strategic investment. Like the luxury goods industry mentioned earlier, it would be better if the investment succeeded, but it's okay if it didn't. There are too many opportunities to invest for profit.

"Okay." Although the middle-aged man found it a bit strange, he still needed to strictly follow his boss's orders.

After leaving Italy, he also went to France and discussed similar matters with the French managers. There are still some luxury brands in France today.
Of course, France offers more opportunities, with its robust industrial and automotive sectors, but currently his funds and resources are insufficient for him to pursue these ventures. He can only try the relatively small luxury goods industry for now, and consider other options when the opportunity arises later.

For the next two weeks, Yang Wendong took several young female celebrities from Hong Kong on a trip to other European countries, including Switzerland, Norway, and Germany. It was the perfect time of year in Europe with the most comfortable temperatures, ideal for all kinds of sports.
Time flew by and it was July 6th. Yang Wendong took off directly from Europe to the United States, but not to New York or Los Angeles, but to Detroit, the most famous car city in the United States.
This area is also home to the headquarters and factories of the Big Three automakers, General Motors, Ford, and Chrysler, and has a large automotive supply chain industry. During the heyday of the American automotive industry, its economy was second only to New York and Los Angeles, ranking at least among the top five in the United States.
But no one could have imagined that decades later, this place would become the most famous rust belt, and it even went bankrupt once. In my previous life, the description of American real estate costing one dollar on the mainland internet also referred to this place.

Of course, if you buy a dilapidated house for one dollar, the various taxes that follow can be devastating. Otherwise, they wouldn't be selling it for one dollar. Although American real estate is touted as freehold, if you owe even a little tax or property management fees, it can be forcibly auctioned off. In terms of cost-effectiveness, it is far inferior to houses in mainland China in my previous life.

In the US, it's really difficult to just lie down and relax, unless you become homeless.
At Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport, Chrysler CEO Lee Iacocca personally visited the airport.
"Hello, Mr. Iacocca." Yang Wendong naturally had to give the CEO face when he saw him arrive.
"Hello Mr. Yang, let me introduce myself." Lee Iacocca said with a smile, shaking hands, and then introduced the people next to him, namely some senior executives of Chrysler, to Yang Wendong.

Yang Wendong shook hands with each of them, but didn't pay much attention to it. It was just a basic courtesy, and he probably wouldn't have any major contact with these people in the future.

After exchanging pleasantries, the group had a simple lunch near the airport. Then, the convoy prepared by Lee Iacocca took Yang Wendong and his party to the Chrysler company.

This was Yang Wendong's first time in Detroit. Before this, although he had been to Aichi Prefecture, where Toyota is located, he had not explored it in depth. Today, he experienced what a "steel forest" truly meant.
The car had traveled an unknown distance, but on both sides of the road were various factories. After entering the main engine plant, a large number of cars were being assembled on the production line. This line stretched as far as the eye could see, seemingly forming N Z-shaped patterns.

Although automation didn't exist in this era, assembly lines had been around for a long time. The automotive industry and even many home appliance industries used large-scale assembly lines.

“Mr. Yang, what do you think?” Lea Iacocca asked.

Yang Wendong nodded and said, "It's magnificent. This is the first time I've ever seen such a large automobile production line."

I also have an industrial park in Hong Kong with tens of thousands of employees, but compared to this, it's really far inferior. The ones in Hong Kong can only be described as very large workshops.
Of course, Hong Kong's regional characteristics determine that it is unlikely to have any large heavy industries.

“Yes, the American auto industry is the greatest industry in the world. Mr. Yang, you will soon become one of the owners of these industries,” Lee Iacocca said with a smile.

Yang Wendong turned around and said, "Well, it seems we should find a quiet place to discuss this."

For more than a month prior, Yang Wendong was in Hong Kong and Europe, while at the headquarters office, accompanied by two third-party companies, he conducted a legally permissible audit of Chrysler's finances.
As a publicly traded company, Chrysler is generally required to publish financial reports. However, these reports are merely simple summaries. While falsification is legally prohibited, it can be improved.

For example, Chen Songqing from Hong Kong, whose Caring Group had previously used these methods to successfully defraud countless banks and investors, but in the end the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) couldn't find any evidence. It can only be said that he played the gray area too perfectly.
Now, Chen Songqing has also appeared, but Yang Wendong hasn't interfered with him. At least he hasn't broken the law yet, so it's none of Yang Wendong's business, and he has no interest in it. As for Chrysler, the audit also uncovered some problems, but they weren't very serious, at least not serious fraud or the like. Yang Wendong didn't care about that either. If nothing major changes internationally, Chrysler will be fully recovered in a few years, and then he can just cash out and leave.

“Okay, let’s go to the meeting room. Coffee is ready over there,” Lee Iacocca waved.

The group soon arrived at the conference room on the top floor of a building next to the factory. From there, Yang Wendong could see endless factory buildings all the way to the horizon, where a large lake could be seen.

Those who were not involved also left, leaving only Yang Wendong, Iacocca, and a few high-ranking officials from both sides;
Yang Wendong began by saying, "Mr. Iacocca, my review has been approved. I wonder how much funding you are willing to provide?"

If the acquisition is made from the stock market, all the funds will go to some shareholders, and the process will be very slow. If the process is fast, the stock price will soar, and the costs incurred will be very high.

Chrysler is not a small company like Hong Kong and China Gas; it is much larger than CLP Power and Wharf Holdings. If the stock price really surges, Yang Wendong's investment will earn significantly less, even if it can still make money in the future.

“We can accept your $2.5 million financing, which is about giving up 20% of our stock,” Lee Iacocca said.

"20%, can't it be a little more?" Yang Wendong retorted.
In recent years, Chrysler has suffered losses of nearly $10 billion, similar to Leyland in the UK. However, Leyland is a state-owned enterprise with the British government's backing, while Chrysler does not.
In the early 1970s, before the first oil crisis, Chrysler's market value was as high as $50 billion. At that time, the US dollar was also highly valued, and it was one of the largest companies in the United States. However, after the impact of the oil crisis, its market value had fallen to about $10 billion.

The reason it didn't continue to fall is twofold: firstly, Chrysler still holds a large amount of high-quality assets; secondly, some people in the market believe that the US government will not allow a large group like Chrysler to go bankrupt, so they are taking a gamble.

Yang Wendong's behavior is seen this way by others in the market as well.

Lee Iacocca shook his head and said, "No, to be precise, we can only give you 19.9% ​​of the stock. Any more than that is not possible because I have already asked the U.S. Department of Commerce, and their limit for allowing a single foreign investor to acquire Chrysler stock is 20%."

If there are any more, then it would require the approval of the president or Congress, which would be a very lengthy process, and it would be impossible for it to be passed in the short term, and we would also have to pay a heavy political cost.

"I see. Never mind then." Yang Wendong nodded and smiled. "Right now, your top priority in dealing with the US government is still to get that $15 billion loan, isn't it?"

Compared to his own investment, it can only give Chrysler a temporary reprieve. Yang Wendong doesn't have the funds to truly revive Chrysler right now, unless he cashes out on gold futures next year.
But in reality, it's no longer necessary. Historically, by the beginning of next year, Chrysler would receive a $15 billion loan from Congress, plus various asset sales, and then weather the oil crisis, returning to profitability starting in 83.

Lee Iacocca said, "Yes, that's the most important thing. Mr. Yang seems to think that Congress will definitely give me this money?"

The logic is simple: Yang Wendong's investment is far from enough to meet Chrysler's needs. If Congress stops funding and Chrysler goes bankrupt, Yang Wendong's investment will be completely lost.

Yang Wendong laughed and said, "Yes, I think Congress will definitely save Chrysler. Mr. Iacocca, next time you go to Congress to participate in the debate, you need to focus on the impact of Japanese industry on the United States, and even raise it to the level of national security."

The more developed the automotive industry, the more it can influence the military industry. If the US domestic automotive industry falters, what will happen to the military industry? This is what members of Congress are most concerned about.

In the past, there were occasional boycotts of Japanese goods in mainland China, which were criticized as a lack of market freedom, etc. But in reality, the boycotts of Japanese goods by Americans in the 1970s and 80s were much more violent.
Of course, no one can stop the major market trend. The decline of American automakers is inevitable, as is the decline of the manufacturing industry.

But in this era, the United States, from top to bottom, still dislikes Japanese products very much because they feel that their jobs have been taken away.

“Mr. Yang is absolutely right. I didn’t expect you to be so knowledgeable about politics. Why don’t you come and become a director at Chrysler?” Lee Iacocca asked.

Yang Wendong shook his head and said, "Then forget it. I know nothing about the automotive industry, so I'd better not get involved. I'll just be a quiet investor."

Once you get this kind of position, you'll be restricted from cashing out your shares in the future, so it's better not to take it, since it's just an investment after all.

“Okay,” Lee Iacocca said without pressuring him.

“Then let’s proceed with the contract according to our agreement. After review and approval, we’ll sign it, and the funds will be deposited into Chrysler’s account soon.” Yang Wendong paused, then said, “Besides direct investment, I also hope to cooperate with Chrysler in other areas.”

PS: Please give me a monthly ticket
(End of this chapter)