Return to Hong Kong Island for a Century

Chapter 383 Full Support
When Ma Shengli heard Li Song say that BMW's annual sales exceeded one million, his eyelids twitched.

Li Song then spoke up, saying, "One million BMWs are conservatively estimated at ten billion US dollars!"

"The industrial chain will expand by at least five times!"

"The industry chain covers the upstream, midstream, and downstream sectors. The upstream sector includes metal materials (aluminum alloys and steel). The midstream sector focuses on vehicle manufacturing, including processes such as stamping, welding, and final assembly, while also integrating the production of components such as chassis systems and body systems. The downstream sector includes car purchase services, 4S stores, maintenance and repair, and after-sales services."

"Because these vehicles are exported, international shipping is also involved."

"In addition, a large portion of these vehicles will be replaced with various raw materials for transportation and processing!"

"This is a very large market!"

"Moreover, at this stage, the global financial crisis and the rise in fuel prices caused by the Middle East are also factors!"

"Now is the best time to expand the automotive business, so I need the full support of my superiors!"

"My next step is to expand my resource channels overseas."

"It's mainly for upstream material security, and we've already reached preliminary agreements with some potential clients."

"Mainly non-ferrous metal ores, as well as iron ore, rubber, timber, and so on!" Li Song went on and on in the car.

Although Li Song knew that BMW would receive full support from higher authorities.

But now is the most crucial time, and it is at this moment that the small-scale automobiles have gained a foothold in the Western market and shone brightly!

Upon hearing Li Song's words, Ma Shengli nodded and asked, "I wonder what specific aspect of support Mr. Li is referring to?"

"The main support is in the area of ​​diplomacy!"

"Fat Bear is making a big move, according to our estimates."

"The West will soon change its attitude toward the mainland."

"They need a strong partner to keep the fat bear occupied."

"We at BMW are not afraid of competing with other car companies; what we fear are discriminatory policies!"

Li Song knew why Xiaobenzi's cars were so popular with Amei.

The main issue is that the notebook is actually controlled by Amei.

Li Song didn't ask for too much; the development time of the past few years was enough.

By the time Fat Bear is about to die, he will have already gathered a large group of people!

At that time, it will probably be difficult for Amei to target him.

Of course, these cars are mainly targeted at developing countries, because developing countries have almost no complete industry, let alone the ability to manufacture cars.

If we lose the market in America, so be it.

However, it would be even better if the market in Aramco could be developed in the next few years!
"I will report Mr. Li's request!" That was the only answer Ma Shengli could give, because it was beyond his authority.

Li Song nodded. He was speaking now mainly to give his superiors some time to prepare.

Because there will definitely be a series of negotiations at that time.

I raised some issues myself first, so that the higher-level departments could prepare accordingly.

Moreover, the better China's domestic industrial development is, the more concessions the West will make.

Because their main goal is to get the mainland involved with the bear.

After all, everyone knows the true nature of the relationship between the mainland and the bear.

The third leader and those guys from the south who cause trouble always have Fat Bear backing them up.

Therefore, the stronger the mainland becomes, the more the West will try to win it over.

"Of course, it's not just about our BMW factory; it's about the entire trade system!"

"We must guard against Western countries setting up barriers to our trade!" Li Song said to himself.

"BMW's flagship product right now is the minivan!"

There are still many people in this world who are poor!

"In the mid-to-high-end market, we can't compete with brands from developed countries; they have a longer history!"

"But we can't do nothing, so our BMW factory also has mid-to-high-end products!"

"On the one hand, we need to enrich our product line, and on the other hand, we need to build our brand!" Li Song added.

The reason Li Song said so much was so that Ma Shengli would tell these things to the higher authorities!

The point is to make the higher-level departments understand your next strategic move.

Ma Shengli nodded!

"In addition, the more than $50 million in deposits received by BMW will enter the mainland in the next few days," Li Song added.

Li Song's statement gives the mainland sufficient motivation when making plans.

Upon hearing Li Song's words, Ma Shengli rubbed his forehead as well.

China's development has been incredibly rapid from last year to this year!
A rather contradictory situation has now arisen in China!
One is that these factories, equipped with new technologies, are producing day and night.

The products produced by these factories are in high demand and short supply, and a large portion of them are exported overseas!
Home appliances and textiles have begun to be exported overseas.

As for construction machinery, the priority should be to meet domestic demand!
Because there is a strong domestic demand for steel and other materials!
Steel requires ore, coal, and transportation, which in turn requires engineering machinery!
In addition, large chemical companies also need a lot of steel!

On the other hand, some enterprises are idle and only know how to ask the government for funding!
In addition, there is a huge shortage of raw materials in China.

Apart from the factories under Li Song's name that are openly supplying various materials, all other factories have plans!
Because all the factories under Li Song's name are exported.

Whether it's a motorcycle, an outboard motor, or a car!

BMW has now received orders for 27,000 vehicles in one go.

The higher-level departments are going to have a headache again about the steel, rubber, and other raw materials needed to manufacture these 27,000 vehicles!

Moreover, Li Song was very good at interpersonal relationships, and directly transferred tens of millions of US dollars to China.

All of this money is with the State Administration of Foreign Exchange.

Li Song knew that the domestic demand for foreign exchange was not as high as it used to be.

At least we don't need to use foreign exchange to buy all sorts of so-called advanced technologies, which are actually outdated technologies and equipment.

However, the US dollar has a high rate of preserving its value!

For a long period afterward, China held a large amount of US Treasury bonds and US dollars.

It's actually a way to indirectly preserve value!
No other currency holds its value as well as the US dollar. The British pound reached its highest point this year, with an exchange rate of 2.5, meaning one pound could be exchanged for 2.5 US dollars.

Then it started to decline all the way down this year.

And the same goes for that lousy Euro!
It depreciated by 30% in the second year.

Of course, the birth of the Euro has prevented the US from targeting China.

In retrospect, China's development over the next few decades was largely due to a stroke of luck.

This year, Fat Bear showed off his muscles, which brought China and the Western world much closer together.

Once the bear market collapses, the euro will reappear!

Then Aramco started stirring up trouble everywhere in the Eurozone.

As for the ruble, which is backed by the fat bear in the north, it's an absolute quagmire. Of course, the exchange rate in the interior is also fluctuating.

The dollar's position is unlikely to be replaced for a long time.

After all, America was able to profit from both sides during World War II.

Your country's currency has virtually no credit value internationally, and others will not accept your currency as payment.

Because your currency could depreciate at any time, and others are already making little money, if your currency depreciates, they will suffer a pure loss, so they might as well not do business with you.

To put it bluntly, after fighting over the notebook for so long, it turned out that Amei made all the money.

Decades later, before Aramco had completely suppressed the euro, some Eastern countries had already grown up.

It's hard to imagine that decades later, the third-in-command would dare to challenge Ami.

Li Song's mind flashed through the international situation of the next few decades.

We soon arrived at the BMW motorcycle factory, which now produces 30,000 motorcycles per month!
And all of it was exported!

Furthermore, they also commissioned other companies to produce 20,000 motorcycles, which would then be exported together!
BMW Motorrad has also authorized a local Zhujiang Motorcycle company.

Zhujiang Motorcycles are sold mainly in Guangdong, Guangxi, and Hainan provinces.
However, Zhujiang Motorcycle Factory has only just started production!
Li Song first held a short meeting at the BMW motorcycle factory.

Then we arrived at the BMW factory!
They convened a half-hour mobilization meeting with the management of the BMW factory.

Another aspect is expanding production!

BMW can no longer rely on other car manufacturers.

Because other car manufacturers had only recently received authorization from BMW!
After Li Song arrived at the BMW Motorcycle Factory, Ma Shengli wrote a report and submitted it!

Unbeknownst to Li Song, the higher-level departments were also holding a meeting.

And it was a meeting involving multiple departments!
The central theme of the meeting was to ensure the material and personnel needs of BMW's car manufacturing plant!
All the key leaders attended the meeting.

"Congratulations! An order for 27,000 cars!" The top leader said, looking at the newspaper report.

"Li Song has given us a huge surprise."

"But the surprise also brought pressure, as BMW's car plant didn't have a high demand for materials in the past!"

"The sudden increase in orders means we need to provide BMW with sufficient support in a short period of time to complete the orders as soon as possible."

"Yes, this is just a single order. Even if it's just once a month, that's still an order for 300,000 cars a year!"

"Even the cheapest car model generates $30 billion a year," one leader remarked.

A few years later in history, some tycoon will spend billions of dollars to buy a lot of giant fireworks!
This allows us to compare the impact of three billion US dollars.

"However, BMW's car factory doesn't have that high a production capacity!"

"Another crucial point is that these 27,000 cars require at least 400,000 tons of materials, the vast majority of which are steel." The leader in charge of metallurgy had bloodshot eyes. He had learned about the BMW order yesterday, so the entire department had been working overtime overnight.

"We already have a huge steel shortage, and we need steel everywhere!"

“We were even planning to reduce steel production!” someone said.

Historically, the domestic economy was not doing well during this period, so steel production was reduced!
Historically, during this period, the main exports from the mainland were minerals, agricultural and sideline products, and textiles.
There are no high value-added products.

This period was different; a lot of industrial products and textiles were exported!
Although motorcycles are the cheapest in foreign countries, they are still considered to have high profit margins compared to agricultural products and textiles.

There is another fundamental reason!

There is a long industrial chain between the direct export of minerals and the export of industrial products.

Even if exported industrial products don't make money, they support the manufacturers in the industrial chain!
It's definitely worth it!
This is why some products were cheaper to export for a period of time afterward.

Let's take a very simple example: oil!

The prices of gasoline and diesel exported from China are very cheap.

Why is it so cheap?
Because the oil industry chain is also very long!

Oil is transported from abroad, then processed into finished products, along with various byproducts from the processing!
Therefore, we must sell diesel and gasoline even if it results in a loss.

On the one hand, it can capture the diesel and gasoline market!

On the other hand, it can ensure the operation of the domestic industrial chain.

Moreover, once a super-large oil refinery starts production, it is very difficult to shut it down.

In addition, the domestic demand for petroleum by-products is very high!

Decades later, China controls a significant market share of many bulk materials.

When the two brothers from the Fat Bear family were fighting, a certain country on the peninsula said it wanted to sell a certain number of tons of artillery shells.

The country only restricted the export of a certain material, and then this country on the peninsula could no longer sell artillery shells.

Because he lacked raw materials, he couldn't produce that many shells.

And to put it bluntly, back then, China knew exactly how many artillery shells other countries had!
Because your inventory can be calculated from the materials.

In the era of big data, we will be able to calculate even more!
"The main purpose of today's meeting is to resolve these issues."

"Prioritize ensuring the material needs of BMW's car plant!"

"27,000 vehicles is just the beginning." That's why the top leaders called a meeting with multiple departments!
It's because it involves upstream material production and intermediate material transportation!

It also involves the machinery, equipment, electricity, and personnel needed for the expansion of BMW's car plant.

27,000 vehicles, even if each vehicle weighs 1.5 tons.

That would require 400,000 tons of materials!
The goal is to gather 400,000 tons of materials from all over the country to the BMW factory.

This requires a transportation plan from higher authorities!

Even a simple transportation process involves railways and ports, as well as loading and unloading.

Furthermore, how much electricity, equipment, and workers would be needed to produce 27,000 vehicles?

And this is only the material needed for 27,000 cars.

If BMW cars sell well in the future, they might need this many materials every month!
"Our railway department is doing everything we can to ensure the transportation of materials to the BMW factory!"

"Add more dedicated freight trains!"

"However, our railway department requires that at least twenty more tunnel boring machines be added this year!" The railway department stated first.
The railway sector has a huge demand for construction, and tunnel boring machines are perfect for digging tunnels.

The tunnel boring machine needs to be customized!
Different tunnel boring machines are customized to meet different specific requirements.

There is a huge shortage of tunnel boring machines now.

It's not just the railway sector that's involved in construction; there's also the power sector, urban subway construction departments, and so on!
"Four units!" The leader in charge of tunnel boring machine production said four units directly, because tunnel boring machines are produced separately and the related technology is top secret.

Four units are really not enough!

"Every tunnel boring machine needs to be customized!"

"Our railway's total tunnel mileage this year..." the railway department leader quickly said!
Then other departments started to speak up!
On the one hand, they support the production at the BMW factory, and on the other hand, they ask their superiors for benefits!

"If your railway department provides adequate support, Li Song and his team can acquire the most advanced diesel locomotive technology!" The main leader spoke up when he saw the railway department leaders still talking.
"Great!" Upon hearing this, the railway department leader's eyes lit up and he readily agreed.

“We, the shipping company, will fully support you.” The leader in charge of shipping didn’t say this, because Li Song had provided a lot of marine internal combustion engine technology last year.

(End of this chapter)