Hong Kong Island: From a small stall to a global supplier

Although China Resources currently accounts for 80% of foreign trade, Luo Wenhua has never actually been to Myanmar. Firstly, the trade volume there is very low, and most of the investment is in the form of aid. Secondly, he uses the Yunnan border crossing rather than Hong Kong or Macau.

The reception today was of a very high standard, which made Luo Wenhua a little uneasy. He had always traveled abroad in a formal manner, strictly following the regulations. He never expected that Myanmar would treat Wang Yaotang in such a grand way!
These small countries are really ruthless in their underhanded tactics!
What Luo Wenhua didn't know was that Wang Yaotang had called ahead of time, so what could Naiwen say?
Let's do it. These people are idle all day anyway. It's just a formality, and it won't cost much.

However, the visit on the second day was completely unnecessary. The purpose of this trip was to sort out the transportation issues, including customs clearance. Of course, these were handled by the staff below. Luo Wenhua came along entirely because of Wang Yaotang.

Two reasons:

First, tin ore.

In recent years, the global consumer electronics industry has developed rapidly, and the consumption of tin ore has increased exponentially. Although China has the world's two largest tin mines, everyone knows the principle of using others' ore instead of our own.

Second, foreign trade.

Before coming, he didn't know that Wang Yaotang had such a low opinion of Myanmar, and he was even thinking that he could increase some foreign trade orders between the two countries through this relationship.

Before resting in the evening, we chatted over tea and talked about this matter. "Many factories in China are having a hard time right now. Forget about handing over profits, they can't even pay wages. They have to develop foreign trade orders."

Wang Yaotang thought for a moment, frowned and asked, "As far as I know, the domestic market demand is huge. There are so many people who can't find the goods. I've never heard of anyone having goods but not being able to sell them."

“I know what you’re saying, but these are all grassroots activities.” Luo Wenhua thought for a moment and explained, “The state is like the giant’s hand. The planned economy did a good job of regulating large categories and large markets. The grassroots market is like embroidering on silk. Such a detailed market is impossible to do. It does need to be supplemented by grassroots market activities, so we opened up the market.”

"But this opening up cannot be done all at once, that would only cause chaos. It must be done little by little, exploring step by step, to unleash the power of the private market. In this process, we need to find ways to transition through exports. Moreover, it is our official responsibility to explore foreign markets. We have paved the way and smoothed out some obstacles, so that private forces can enter."

"This is what a country is like."

"Of course, earning foreign exchange is also crucial."

Wang Yaotang clicked his tongue twice.

"What's wrong?" Luo Wenhua asked with a smile.

“What do you mean by ‘mother nation’?” Wang Yaotang said with some envy. “In capitalism, the state only cares about collecting taxes. Pioneering things is something that can only be done by the people themselves. Who the hell cares about you?”

Luo Wenhua laughed heartily, "Myanmar has tens of millions of people, so its potential is still quite large."

“You said it yourself, it’s potential.” Wang Yaotang shook his head. “They’re too poor, just like the people in our remote mountain village. They have no money for anything to consume. Most places don’t even have electricity. Who would we sell the appliances to?”

“If we’re going to spend money, it’ll be on daily necessities. As for other things…” Wang Yaotang thought for a moment, “Only people in Yangon and Bago have some spending power.”

“Oh right.” Wang Yaotang suddenly remembered, “I promised to invest in building a motorcycle assembly plant in Yangon. I had completely forgotten about it. I’ll have to bring back the technology and production lines from my hometown. I remember the Happiness 250, right? It’s 100% domestically produced now.”

"You mean an assembly plant?" Luo Wenhua's eyes lit up.

"Of course. Even if Myanmar wants to build a production plant, it needs to have the resources. Let alone engines or spare parts, they can't even guarantee the stable quality of their steel. How can they produce anything?"

“The assembly plant is great. The equipment and spare parts can be supplied domestically.” Luo Wenhua became excited. “I’ll teach you a trick. Some simple parts should still be purchased from Myanmar. We can also make some slight changes to the appearance so that we can call it a Myanmar-made product. This way, we can fill a gap in their domestic market.”

Wang Yaotang's expression froze. "Wow, how come you're so skilled at this?"

Seeing this, Luo Wenhua raised his eyebrows, as if he understood everything without saying a word.

Wang Yaotang smiled; he was quite mischievous...

"Can the production capacity of the engines be kept up?" Wang Yaotang asked after thinking for a moment. "I remember hearing someone say that the Happiness 250 is in short supply in my hometown, and it can only be ordered. There is no stock available at all."

"Those that can keep up, those that can keep up completely, are just not releasing production capacity further." Luo Wenhua explained with a smile: "The domestic market looks lively now, but it's actually because of the pent-up demand that has accumulated over the years. If production is really increased according to this, once the pent-up demand is released and the market enters a stable period, there will be an immediate overcapacity."

“We are a planned economy, this is our old business. If we really let them do whatever they want, I bet a dozen motorcycle factories will spring up in the country in six months at most, and their output will increase several times over. Every two years, there will be fierce market competition, and most of them will eventually die out. This is a waste of the country’s resources.”

As he spoke, Luo Wenhua shook his head, "I support an open market economy, but while it has its advantages, it also has its significant disadvantages."

Wang Yaotang nodded. In his memory, the home appliance industry seemed to have followed a similar pattern. At its peak, there were more than twenty television factories, but most of them eventually went bankrupt.

"Then I'm relieved. I've arranged for people to come and select a factory site these days. We'll still need a lot of help from our hometown for the construction and other things. I've never dealt with industrial products before," Wang Yaotang said with a smile.

"No problem, I'll help you make the arrangements. From factory construction to equipment assembly, from worker training to technical personnel, you don't need to worry about anything, I'll provide everything for you!" Luo Wenhua waved his hand, exuding great confidence.

Wang Yaotang gave a thumbs up, "Awesome!"

My hometown has nothing much to offer these days, but it has a lot of talented people!

In order to find jobs for their children who are returning to the city, a large number of veteran skilled workers are retiring early to make room for them. There are many openings for every vacancy, and the talent pool is overflowing. People are overjoyed to have a place to be placed.

Moreover, he knew that Wang Yaotang was always generous, and these overseas dispatched workers were all paid in US dollars. At that time, these dispatched work positions would be fiercely contested.

"By the way, what's your plan to build a factory with an annual output of?" Luo Wenhua asked the crucial question.

Wang Yaotang shrugged. "How would I know? I've never sold these things before. Aren't people from my hometown professionals in this area? Could you help me calculate it?"

Luo Wenhua rubbed his temples speechlessly. "No, you really don't care about anything? You're just waiting for your hometown to do everything for you?"

“That’s not how it works,” Wang Yaotang shook his head. “Without me, there would be no motorcycle factory. Do you think the government would agree to invest? I can bribe them. How would the government handle that?”

"Besides, I already invested money!"

Luo Wenhua took a deep breath. "You're really something, talking about bribery so loudly right in front of me!"

In my hometown, people always think that the government should do things first, and then let the public participate after a template is established. This is certainly safe, but there are some things that are indeed more difficult for the government to do.

“Doing market research for you isn’t just a matter of whether I agree or not; it also requires Myanmar’s approval.” Luo Wenhua coughed lightly and said, “This isn’t something we can just do with a quick calculation. We need data from various aspects within Myanmar, such as per capita income, motorcycle ownership, motor vehicle ownership, road conditions, livestock ownership, fuel prices, and dozens of other data points. Only by comprehensively calculating these can we arrive at a relatively reasonable range.”

"To put it bluntly, this kind of market research is not something ordinary people can do. The cost is extremely high, and ordinary companies simply don't need to do it. Their revenue wouldn't even cover the research fees!"

“These data…” Wang Yaotang smacked his lips, “It’s unlikely that we can get them directly from their official sources. After all, it’s a country, and even a makeshift organization is still an organization.”

"You can pay a little money for this kind of thing!"

"Spend a little! Even if it's a bribe!"

"It won't cost much, even if we do it secretly?"

Luo Wenhua smiled and nodded at Wang Yaotang.

“I don’t think the data is a big problem. What I’m worried about is where their data comes from,” Wang Yaotang said with some difficulty.

"What do you mean?" Luo Wenhua was taken aback.

"I strongly suspect that they filled in these data randomly..."

"No way!" Luo Wenhua's eyes widened like saucers.

Wang Yaotang scoffed, “Their bottom line is that they have no bottom line. They can refresh your worldview and shatter any illusions you have, no matter how wicked your thoughts may be.”

Luo Wenhua's eye twitched!

The matter was settled, but in practice it was not that simple. Wang Yaotang first had to clarify with General Mohayu what currency would be used to purchase the motorcycles after they were produced and put on the market.

The next day.

“Of course it’s the Myanmar Kyat.” General Mohayu blinked his small eyes, looking like he couldn’t believe he’d asked that question.

"No, you're kidding me." Wang Yaotang chuckled and spread his hands. "General Mohayu, what do I need this Burmese kyat for? Tell me, what's the use?"

"Money, of course, is meant to be spent."

Wang Yaotang was amused and annoyed. "What can I buy with your Burmese kyat?"

"Buy whatever you want." Wang Yaotang pointed at Mohayu, as if to say, "Are you trying to play games with me?"

The problems Myanmar is facing now are exactly the same ones that my hometown is facing. We opened a joint venture company back home, and the more products we sell, the more we lose, because a large amount of currency cannot be converted into US dollars.

The relevant regulations were Article 79 of the "Law on Sino-Foreign Joint Ventures" in July 7, which required enterprises to achieve foreign exchange balance for their exported products. However, in reality, almost all of their products were exported. After the "Instructions on Strengthening and Utilizing Foreign Investment" in 83, it was clarified that the proportion of domestic sales could be relaxed for joint ventures that "provide advanced technology and equipment".

The 94 "Automotive Industry Policy" required enterprises to sell domestically in proportion to meet certain localization rates.

"Motorcycles are a very mature technology between China and Myanmar. Relocating the entire factory here will not only accelerate your industrial development but also provide a large number of jobs. In addition, I can promise that if there are factories in Myanmar that can produce qualified spare parts, we can purchase them. Now, let me state my requirements." Wang Yaotang waved his hand, too lazy to continue arguing with him. "Sales in Myanmar Kyat is no problem, but the investment I'm using is in US dollars. This money is considered a personal loan from Myanmar to me, to be repaid with future profits. Once the profits cover the debt, the account will be closed. In addition, the purchases will also be made in US dollars. The motorcycle factory will import engines and other spare parts from designated companies, and the settlement will be in US dollars."

"After deducting company expenses and taxes, I will convert the remaining profits into US dollars."

General Mohayu initially hesitated and struggled, but finally nodded in agreement. However, after seeing Wang Yaotang's impatient eyes, he shrugged and said, "Alright, this is a reasonable request."

There's no way we could import it with Myanmar Kyat. It's worthless outside of Myanmar, and actually, it's worthless even inside Myanmar...

"What about the exchange rate?" General Mohayu asked with a smile.

Wang Yaotang snorted coldly. The official exchange rate of Myanmar Kyat was dozens of times different from that in the private market. The fact that a country's financial system was in such a chaotic state showed just how incompetent the country's administrators were.

"Market price!"

"Impossible, that's the black market, not the open market. It's based on the official exchange rate."

"Can't do it? Then don't do it!" Wang Yaotang suddenly stood up.

"No, no, no, why are you so agitated?" General Mohayu grabbed Wang Yaotang. "We've already made a lot of profit using US dollars, how much is too much?"

"Even if I had a hundred million, I wouldn't think that a hundred dollars was insignificant!"

“The black market is definitely out of the question. So, we can negotiate a suitable price every year.”

"Suitable? Ha, then how about I use Myanmar Kyat to purchase teak?"

“That’s definitely not going to work.” General Mohayu shook his head vigorously. “What use is kyat, that kind of garbage?”

Wang Yaotang's eyes widened. "You know it's garbage too?"

General Mohayu said nonchalantly, “There’s no one else here. You can buy rice, rubber, seafood, fruit, etc., but not teak, and no gold either.”

Wang Yaotang waved his hand, not wanting to talk to General Mohayu. "I need the best workers. You take care of that for me. If anyone causes trouble, I won't hold back. Don't come to me with any talk of the law."

"But you can't exploit them too much, can you?" General Mohayu frowned.

“If you don’t want to do it, you don’t have to. I didn’t arrest them or point a gun at their heads.”

"Uh...okay, but we can't just kill people randomly."

Wang Yaotang was genuinely amused by these insects.

In fact, he didn't really expect the motorcycle factory to generate much profit, at least not in the short term.

However, if production is carried out in Myanmar, costs can indeed be controlled very low, or even almost zero, with proper management...

This is no joke. The Myanmar Kyat earned in Myanmar is practically worthless, but motorcycles can be exported to places like Malaysia, Siam, Indonesia, the Philippines, Bangladesh, and India.

Myanmar imports a significant amount of goods from several countries each year, but exports very little, resulting in a persistent trade deficit. Otherwise, it wouldn't be so short of foreign exchange. Exports can help offset the trade deficit, which is beneficial for both sides.

The same logic applies to not exporting from Laos and China, as Southeast Asian countries also have a trade deficit with Laos and China.

With these major issues settled, the remaining details can be left to the staff to work out. After all, the factory site hasn't even been chosen yet, and it's unknown how long it will take before the motorcycles roll off the production line, so there's no need to worry too much.

Whether it will develop in the future is still uncertain, but motorcycles have indeed been a long-lasting and prosperous industry in South and Southeast Asia, enjoying 40 years of good business until the electric vehicle wave from China hit the market.

……

"Has the motorcycle factory deal been finalized?" Luo Wenhua asked with concern as soon as he returned.

Those conditions were actually proposed by him. Wang Yaotang had never been exposed to these things, so how could he possibly understand them? Even the details of the subsequent negotiations were discussed using the Sino-Lao joint venture as a template.

"The direction has been set," Wang Yaotang said with a smile.

"Did you mention wanting to see Naiwen?"

Speaking of this, Wang Yaotang curled his lip, "He's quite the show-off, saying he can't see me for three days, as if that old man is really busy."

"He's the head of a country with tens of millions of people, after all. He must be very busy with so many things to do," Luo Wenhua said, shaking his head with a wry smile.

"Really? I don't believe it. I have over 4000 employees across all my companies, and I'm not busy at all." Wang Yaotang shrugged. "Nothing in this world is difficult if you're willing to give it up. Why would I need to pay those general managers?"

Luo Wenhua took a deep breath. What the hell, as long as you're willing to give up!
"Mr. Luo, you should rest first. I'm going to wash up. I have something to tell you during dinner." Wang Yaotang said with a smile as he stood up.

"Ah? What's the matter?"

"I think the methods for expanding export trade with Southeast Asian countries are very feasible. If done well, doubling the export volume shouldn't be a problem," Wang Yaotang said as he walked.

"Huh? Ah!" Luo Wenhua reacted, his face filled with shock. He took a step to chase after him but saw Wang Yaotang close the door and leave.

Luo Wenhua stood frozen in place, wanting to chase after the person to pull them away but feeling it would be too impolite. Yet he left after saying such a thing. What was he thinking?
What makes you think it can double in value?

Do you even know what the concept of one times is?
That's definitely a lie!
Well, I didn't know that before it came out, but Wang Yaotang does have a lot of influence in Southeast Asian countries... So, what if it's true?

Don't even mention doubling, a 10% increase would be great!
So what exactly is the method?
oops!!
It's like a hundred claws scratching at my heart!

Feeling guilty and uneasy!

I'm so restless!

He paced back and forth in the room, hands on his hips, glancing at his watch every now and then...

Damn it, why is time moving so slowly?!

When are we going to eat?!

Wait, could this kid be deliberately leaving me hanging?

Hiss—it definitely is!

That's terrible! They ambushed me, a man in his fifties!
He got up, sat down, and tossed and turned until dinner time finally arrived. Luo Wenhua jumped up and shouted to his secretary, "Let's go to the restaurant!"

The secretary quickly got up and followed. Those who didn't know better would think the leader had been starving for days.

Sitting in the restaurant, waiting for Wang Yaotang to arrive, Luo Wenhua grew increasingly anxious, his face turning ashen. If it were anyone else, he would have already lost his temper and dragged the man out.

But Wang Yaotang's status was different, so there was really nothing he could do.

Just then, Wang Yaotang pushed open the door and came in, smiling jokingly, "Oh, President Luo is here so early."

Luo Wenhua immediately calmed down, raised his hand and smiled, "You little rascal, good, good, you wait and see. If your solution doesn't satisfy me in a little while..."

"Bang!" Luo Wenhua slapped the bottles of liquor next to him. "You're not leaving here today!"

Wang Yaotang burst into laughter. (End of Chapter)