The Great Sage Returns from Ten Years of Imprisonment

Around 10 a.m., international oil prices had plummeted to around $105.5.

It then began to consolidate at this price level, seemingly unable to fall any further.

All of the liquidation lines that Lingyun had previously set have been triggered.

Whether it's the joint investment team, the Yuanda Investment team, or the investment departments of various airlines, all have successfully completed the liquidation.

According to Lingyun's plan, after clearing all short positions and locking in short profits, the joint investment team and the investment departments of various airlines chose to leave the market and observe.

The Yuanda Investment team, however, planned to pretend to observe for about an hour before entering the market with substantial funds and going long on international crude oil futures.

The joint investment team's office area includes a small meeting room.

Today's debriefing and summary meeting started more than ten hours early.

Unlike previous meetings, today's meeting was attended by several heavyweight figures, including Deputy Director Li and his team.

After the meeting began, Ling Yun briefly summarized the process and huge gains of this short-selling of international crude oil futures.

As he spoke, everyone became extremely excited, and applause continued.

After he finished his summary report, Mr. Li from China Eastern Airlines immediately asked questions.

"Lingyun, thanks to this super market trend, the joint investment team and the investment departments of various airlines have made a fortune. The result couldn't be more perfect."

"I remember you saying that international oil prices are bound to see a corrective rebound. In that case, why don't we immediately switch from short to long positions and take advantage of this rebound to make a fortune?"

"brush!"

Everyone turned to look at Ling Yun, eager to try.

Clearly, their thoughts are in line with those of General Manager Li.

Everyone wants to seize the opportunity of the strong recovery in international oil prices and make a fortune!

Who would complain about having too much money? They are no exception.

Moreover, they were even less willing to let go of the huge profits that were within their grasp!

Ling Yun looked at President Li, then glanced at the others present, and shook his head with a light laugh.

"This opportunity to go from short to long is indeed very good, but the joint investment team and the investment departments of various airlines cannot enter the market to go long and can only stand aside and watch. There are several reasons for this."

"First of all, the joint investment team has a special mission and has been successfully operating under the radar. Moreover, the amount of funds involved is quite large, so they cannot frequently switch between long and short positions, as that would greatly increase the risk of exposure."

"If the joint investment team is exposed as a result and becomes a target of international capital, including Goldman Sachs, it will inevitably become a prime target for attack, and may even expose the purpose of the joint team's formation. That would undoubtedly be a case of losing more than you gain."

"hiss!"

Mr. Kong secretly gasped and clicked his tongue.

You're putting the cart before the horse! You're showing no respect whatsoever! Couldn't you have been a little more tactful?

Looking at General Manager Li and the other investment directors who were eager to make their move, they all looked embarrassed, wanting to refute but unable to find a way to say it.

Deputy Director Li, sitting at the head of the conference table, smiled slightly and nodded thoughtfully.

Ling Yun acted as if nothing had happened and continued to talk eloquently.

"The second reason is the special nature of the investment departments of various airlines. Under normal circumstances, the reason why airlines participate in international crude oil futures investment is to hedge fuel costs, not to make a lot of money through investment."

"Everyone must understand this point and remember what each airline's main business is. This is fundamental. If airlines are obsessed with making a lot of money through the capital market, they are not far from going bankrupt."

"The reason is simple: there are no eternal winners in the capital market, especially in a market where we don't have a say. If the tide turns, airlines can be plundered in no time..."

Suddenly, Mr. Li and his colleagues' faces turned even redder, and their expressions became increasingly embarrassed!

But they are not fools; they are all true elites.

They instantly realized that Ling Yun was absolutely right.

We have just made the same mistake as when we signed the hedging strategy with Goldman Sachs, being blinded by short-term gains and ignoring what each airline's main business is.

Even if airlines make a lot of money in the international crude oil futures market at this stage, it is only a short-term benefit and can never replace the airlines' main business.

Otherwise, there would be no need for airlines to exist; they could all just go and make financial investments!

But what about the huge aviation market? We can't possibly not have a single decent airline in China, can we?

Or should we hand over the entire domestic aviation market to foreign companies? That's simply impossible!

Realizing their mistake, Mr. Li and his team all fell silent!

Next, Lingyun listed two more reasons why the joint investment team and the investment departments of various airlines could not immediately switch from short to long positions.

Each point is logically sound and convincing.

But there was one thing he didn't mention, and the occasion wasn't appropriate.

That is, the Yuanda Investment team reversed their short position and went long, preparing to reap another harvest.

This matter made several people in the know very excited, including Mr. Li from Shanghai Airlines and Director Xie from China Aviation Oil.

The other investment directors in the meeting room were unaware of the existence of the Yuanda Investment team, nor their role in this joint operation.

For this reason, neither Ling Yun nor General Manager Li mentioned the Yuanda Investment team when discussing the matter of switching from short to long positions and taking advantage of the opportunity to go long on the international crude oil futures market.

Half an hour later, the debriefing and summary meeting came to an end.

Everyone got up, left the meeting room, and prepared to go back to their accommodations to rest and recharge.

Deputy Director Li asked Ling Yun to stay, saying he had something to discuss with him.

Also remaining were several bigwigs, including General Manager Kong and General Manager Sun.

As for the others, none of them were qualified to participate in the subsequent small-group discussion.

With the office door closed, Deputy Director Li immediately got to the point.

"Xiao Ling, the reason I asked you to stay is because I have a few questions I want to ask you, and these questions are very important."

"The first question is, when will the joint investment team and the investment departments of various airlines once again short international crude oil futures?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Mr. Kong and the others looked at Ling Yun expectantly.

This is also a question they are very concerned about and want a clear answer to.

Ling Yun thought for a moment before responding with a smile.

"In three or four days at most, once international oil prices rebound to above $112 and stabilize, the joint investment team and the investment departments of various airlines can once again enter the short-selling market."

"In my assessment, we have ample time to prepare for this, at least five or six trading days. We can proceed with our plans calmly and subtly, and we can also increase our investment."

Upon receiving this definite answer, the CEOs exchanged quick glances, their eyes filled with delight.

"You seem very confident, that's good."

Deputy Director Li nodded in satisfaction, then changed the subject.

"The second issue is that the New York Mercantile Exchange will complete the settlement tomorrow morning. If everything goes smoothly, the airlines will be able to escape the trap that Goldman Sachs deliberately created."

"The profits earned by the joint investment team and the investment departments of various airlines during this period, after deducting the dividends payable to you, are more than enough to handle this trouble."

"By then, each airline will still have billions in dividends left, and you'll have made a huge contribution. The question now is, should we terminate our contract with Goldman Sachs immediately, or wait a while before negotiating with them again?"

Upon hearing this, Mr. Kong and his colleagues' eyes immediately lit up, but then their facial muscles twitched with pain.

Goldman Sachs’ fuel hedging strategy, which it has devised specifically for airlines, is like a leech, clinging to them and causing them sleepless nights!

Ever since Ling Yun completely exposed the conspiracy behind this fuel hedging strategy and revealed the many deadly traps hidden within it to Boss Kong and his team, they have been dreaming of getting rid of this insidious hedging strategy as soon as possible.

But now that the joint investment team has made excess investment profits and can solve this fatal problem in one go, Mr. Kong and his team are somewhat reluctant to give it up!

The thought of having to pay Goldman Sachs billions in breach of contract fees made their hearts bleed; they were heartbroken to the point of despair.

However, they were well aware that the airlines had signed this extremely malicious hedging strategy with Goldman Sachs without any prior knowledge of the situation, and they would have to bear the consequences of their wrong decision.

Now is not the time to be stingy with money; no matter how much it hurts, this huge penalty for breach of contract is unavoidable.

To everyone's surprise, Ling Yun shook his head.

"Airlines shouldn't rush to terminate their fuel hedging agreements with Goldman Sachs; now is not the time!"

"It's not too late for airlines to act when the best time comes; by then, they'll likely save about half of the penalty fees."

"Wow! I can save half the penalty for breach of contract, did I hear that right?"

Deputy Director Li and the others were all shocked and exclaimed in unison.