America: My Time

Chapter 824 John's Plan
Chapter 814 John's Plan
If the gains of Standard Chartered Bank and Hurricane Investments are unclear, not only will the guys on Wall Street be uneasy, but even the Europeans won't be at ease. The Japanese also have some concerns, but those are only the banks. After all, with the close of oil futures trading, Standard Chartered Bank and Hurricane Investments now control enormous sums of money. Furthermore, John's investment companies in Japan have also yielded considerable profits, which naturally makes the Japanese banks worry that John might initiate another round of early repayments.

However, this time they were overthinking it. John had no intention of repaying them early. With the end of the oil futures market, John not only had a large amount of cash in hand, but was also accelerating his investment in the petrochemical industry and conducting economic research on Japan. After all, Japan would soon face a complete collapse, and John naturally wanted to profit from it.

John in the US wasn't unaware of the movements of the oil giants, nor did he know what they were doing. But that didn't matter. Under the current circumstances, no matter how much those guys jumped around, it wouldn't make a difference. It would only anger everyone and infuriate the arms and oil companies, since it was seriously affecting their plans and would also annoy the White House.

Gulfstream Aerospace alone reaped enormous profits from the oil crisis, securing massive orders from Middle Eastern tycoons. One can only imagine the extent of the gains for the US arms industry. Cutting off someone's livelihood is tantamount to murdering their parents. At this juncture, if oil-based capital tries to stop everything, it's making an enemy of everyone. This isn't just cutting off John's livelihood, but cutting off everyone's.

Arms stocks are soaring, and oil stocks are rising too. Those oil tycoons who want to stop everything at this time are not only making enemies of everyone, but the smart guys are keeping quiet. Only the fools are causing trouble, and everyone has remembered them. When the opportunity comes, they will definitely be settled.

"Yes, no one knows how much John has gained from this oil crisis. You know, this oil crisis directly reversed his investments in Europe, making his investments pay off. The rising oil prices allowed him to recoup a lot of his investment. Now there are people secretly causing trouble in Britain, and it's those oil-rich capitals that are making the moves. However, there's something I don't know if I should say: some people say that John has hidden forces in Europe, and hidden banks."

"It's understandable that John has some hidden strength in Europe. You wouldn't think that an old family would have no foundation at all, would you? It's normal for them to have a presence in Europe. In contrast, those oil-rich capitalists are constantly causing trouble, which is unacceptable. We absolutely cannot let them ruin our plans in Russia!"

The strategic deployment on the Russian side is of paramount importance, and no one wants to see a failure. If failure is caused by human error, someone will have to take responsibility. At that time, all the oil and gas capital will face suppression from all sides. You must know that this is what the Americans have been hoping for all along. Now the Russians are getting weaker and weaker, and are even on the verge of collapse. If the Russians are brought back to life by human error, not to mention the oil and gas capital, even the largest capital will have to face the wrath of the United States and the Europeans.

"Is John's business with the Russians still ongoing? Is his trade in Europe still bartering? What do the Europeans think of him? Have any conflicts broken out between them?"

"The transactions are continuing, and becoming increasingly frenzied. They have even established a foothold in East Germany and have considerable assets there. Their expansion there is quite aggressive, and many people think they are taking a risk. However, what is even more shocking is that their transactions with the Russians are even more outrageous. They have acquired a lot of weapons from the Russians at bargain prices. They have also obtained a considerable amount from the Middle East, but not from wealthy individuals; rather, they have acquired the poorer relatives of wealthy individuals. Most of these weapons have been transported to Africa, and Jaguar Security Company's strength in Africa is growing rapidly."

"Let's put Africa and the Middle East aside for now. Have someone keep an eye on Japan. I have a feeling that John, that little fox, is not as simple as he seems on the surface in Japan. I just can't figure out what he's up to right now. This guy's scheming is too good, and his insight is too sharp. Look at the benefits he's getting from the rich people in Africa and the Middle East. It's something that makes a lot of people very envious."

Many people wanted to know what John's plans were in Japan, but they were all clueless. No one thought that John was targeting Japan's talent pool, or that he wanted to plunder Japan's talent after the bubble burst, accelerate his own development, and use Japan's talent to complete his own transformation.

Why is this? Is it because those guys don't know about John's actions in Japan? No, the guys on Wall Street know exactly how much John has in Japan, and the old guys in the US know exactly what's going on. But they don't think John can plunder enough technical personnel from Japanese companies. They don't think about how crazy the economy will fall after the bubble bursts, and they don't know what kind of change will happen to the hearts and minds of the Japanese people.

Look at John's oil refinery in Japan. Although it's just a basic structure, as long as the structure exists, there will be opportunities to attract talent when the bubble bursts. Petrochemicals are just one example; the same applies to other areas. John is also making moves and increasing R&D investment in cosmetics and pharmaceuticals. John has been making moves in Japan all along, but it's not very noticeable or valued now. After all, John's pharmaceutical strategy in Japan is completely different from that in Europe and America, and as for other areas, they are even less important.

John didn't see anything wrong with Samsung's eldest daughter's inspection of convenience stores and supermarkets in Japan. At present, the development of 7-Eleven in Japan is not too fast, and because most of its assets were sold off in the past, the development of 7-Eleven convenience stores has not yet ushered in a period of explosive growth. After all, Japan has not yet entered a complete collapse, and it is not the time for it to flourish.

John paid no heed to the investment invitation from South Korea. He had no intention of expanding his investment there; he knew all too well how reckless those guys were. Investing in South Korea now would be foolish, especially in companies he had no control over—the investment could easily go down the drain. As for expanding his factories in South Korea, John had no such plans, at least not now. The market was limited, and expansion at this time would only lead to trouble. South Korea didn't have the same talent pool as Japan, which was why John had his sights set on Japan.

Even after the bubble burst and Japan's economy stagnated, Japan still has a huge consumer base that South Korea can't match. Moreover, Japan's educational resources are also far superior to South Korea's. Therefore, increasing investment in South Korea would be a foolish decision, and John wouldn't make such a basic mistake.

"Don't you find the development here in Japan a bit strange? Are you surprised that 7-Eleven stores are all leased properties, while in Korea we are required to do the exact opposite?" John smiled and said when he saw that Lee Boo-jin was a little surprised by the current situation of 7-Eleven stores in Japan.

"I am indeed somewhat surprised. I don't understand why you would choose to sell 7-Eleven, which is doing so well. If you hadn't sold it, 7-Eleven would have had greater development, since you wouldn't have to pay so much rent. Moreover, with 7-Eleven's huge assets, it would have seen a good increase in value if it had gone public."

"Going public? No, 7-Eleven stores in Asia will not go public, and they will gradually separate from those in the US. You could say that 7-Eleven stores in the US will exist independently, but those in Asia will not; they will be integrated. If you can help 7-Eleven stores grow rapidly in South Korea and control the Korean market, you can take over the retail business."

Was John just making empty promises? No, this was John's real plan. He would gradually divest his assets in the US, then list them on the stock exchange to raise funds and give those old guys investment opportunities. This would also reduce his own risk; after all, John knew how crazy things could get in the US. Zero-dollar purchases were too outrageous. If he controlled them completely, who knew how much trouble it would cause? But listing was completely different. He could gradually relinquish them, and when the US economic climate deteriorated, he could withdraw without incurring any losses.

"Not going public?" John's answer surprised Lee Boo-jin, the eldest daughter of Samsung. After all, 7-Eleven has a significant market share in Asia. Not going public is a huge asset that would attract many people.

"That's right. Without going public, you don't need to worry about anyone making a move. I believe no one would make such a foolish decision. Perhaps this might happen in Europe or America, but it won't happen in Asia. Do you think any of the Koreans would dare to cause trouble? Or do you think any of those Japanese would? If no one causes trouble, why would I need to share profits with them? Besides, you surely know how much controlling this retail sector helps the manufacturing industry. We have many factories in Asia, and we can spin them off at any time if necessary." John has put a lot of thought into the retail and food sectors. The huge investments in China and Southeast Asia are all part of the plan. Currently, most of these products are traded with Russia, but things will be different in the future!

(End of this chapter)