20 years of restarting life

Chapter 3881 A Good Person

Zhao Chang'an shook his head and said, "Even if this kind of hype can make money, we should try to avoid it. We can enjoy the benefits of others' hype, but it's not appropriate for us to personally become speculators with a bad reputation. We must protect our reputation and cherish our image. Coca-Cola factories all over the world can be rebuilt as long as they have the brand. This shows that the more we live in the information age, the more important and valuable our reputation becomes. What was the global molybdenum metal production last year?"

“折合金属钼（钼精矿MoS2，铁钼华Fe23+(MoO4)3.8H2O等钼矿石的金属钼质量总统计）13万吨不到，按照8000美元/吨的最高点价格，总共10.4亿美元。”

Wen Ye praised, "You are becoming more and more like a perfect person, judging from your words and actions! Once the contract is signed, since you dare to acquire this company, I trust you to make a judgment. I will not agree to sell these inventory until the price exceeds 1000 yuan per ton."

This was a clear rejection of Zhao Chang'an's purchase proposal: "So either you can hoard and speculate, or don't make this money. There's no need to leave hidden dangers for yourself and your company for such a small amount of money."

"I rely on!"

Zhao Chang'an cursed. According to Wen Ye, the storage in the Luanchuan molybdenum mine was equivalent to more than 9,000 tons of metallic molybdenum, accounting for 1/12 of the global annual production last year.

要是按照目前的市场价，45%-55%钼精矿（MoS2）一个品味价格是500元/吨度，也就是7200万美元，6亿rmb。

If the money were used to purchase the equivalent of this amount of molybdenum concentrate abroad, given the current basic balance between supply and demand, with a slight oversupply, acquiring 1/12 of the global annual production in a short period would definitely trigger upward price fluctuations.

Zhao Chang'an had no desire to be someone else's sedan chair carrier. Although he could also lift up the sedan chair carrier of the molybdenum company, he couldn't guarantee that he wouldn't be able to lift it properly and might end up injuring himself.

"If we do it this way, we're no longer running a business, but rather personally entering the fray to speculate on this mineral product category. To really drive it up, we'd need at least two or three billion yuan, and we'd also need to assemble a professional team, which is something we're complete novices in. Besides, two or three billion yuan is no match for those international speculators working together. If necessary, they could easily pool billions of dollars and dump a huge amount of molybdenum concentrate they've already accumulated, and we might end up losing everything."

Zhao Chang'an said to Wen Ye, "My idea is for this foreign trade company to first buy up all the inventory at the market price of 500 yuan/ton-degree. However, we will also sign an agreement with Luanchuan Molybdenum Industry. From the moment the agreement is signed, at any time within the following year, as long as the price of a grade of molybdenum concentrate exceeds 1000 yuan/ton-degree, the foreign trade company will make up the remaining 500 yuan/ton-degree difference at the price of 1000 yuan."

"Don't even mention if the price exceeds 1000, or even reaches 2000 or 3000 yuan per ton, and don't shout slogans like 'We won't release goods until it's below 1000.' In reality, as long as the price exceeds 800, I dare say the molybdenum company will ship out goods like crazy. They're afraid the price will drop again, and besides, with money, they're not afraid of not having enough mines. As long as they work overtime to mine, the mines will naturally come back. So even with those high prices, at least for this batch of goods in the mine, the molybdenum company won't get a price above 1000 yuan per ton."

Wen Ye nodded in agreement with Zhao Chang'an's words.

The molybdenum company is now heavily indebted, with mountains of debt piled up in its mines. Every day, banks, workers, third-party service providers, and upstream suppliers—all sorts of creditors—come in droves with IOUs, demanding payment, just like visiting relatives during the Chinese New Year.

The group's leaders lived in constant fear, their hearts pounding as they watched the latest international prices for molybdenum concentrate, terrified that prices would plummet again.

Almost everyone was kept awake all night and became depressed.

Even before the price reached 700, the international price of molybdenum concentrate had already risen to over 500 yuan per ton before the end of the year when it was connected with the nanometer. The molybdenum company was facing various debts and unpaid wages, and its mine warehouses were full. So it decided to sell the equivalent of 2,000 tons of molybdenum concentrate powder to relieve the immediate crisis.

Two thousand tons of metallic molybdenum can bring 1.4 million yuan to the molybdenum company, which is enough to barely pay off some of the debts and pay two months' wages, so that everyone can barely have a good New Year.

However, this decision will also reduce the group's total assets by 4 million on paper, resulting in a loss of 4 million. It is conceivable that even with One Nano Holdings, if the international price of a certain grade of molybdenum concentrate reaches above 700, the pressure to sell will be considerable. If the total cost price exceeds 800, even Wen Ye would have frantically sold off his shares without Zhao Chang'an's judgment.

So let alone 2000 or 3000, even at a price of 1000 yuan/ton, the molybdenum company simply cannot get its hands on it.

Even achieving a median of 900 in these inventories would be difficult.

As Zhao Chang'an said, international molybdenum prices have been hovering at low, unprofitable levels for nearly seven years, and who knows if the sudden price surge will be just a flash in the pan.

The molybdenum company simply cannot afford to gamble; if it loses, it will be completely ruined.

Moreover, once the funds are obtained from the sale, mining efforts can be intensified. As long as prices remain stable, molybdenum concentrate can be produced continuously every day for sustained sales.

From the perspective of the molybdenum company, foolishly hoarding ore while it was profitable would be a recipe for disaster.

Seeing Wen Ye nod in agreement with his judgment, Zhao Chang'an continued, "If the price of 45% grade molybdenum concentrate does not exceed 1000 yuan/ton-degree throughout the year, the compensation will be made up according to the highest price of no less than the current 500 yuan/ton-degree within the year. If the price continues to fall, or even drops to 400, then One Nano Holdings will also accept this debt."

Wen Ye pondered for a moment and asked, "Are you trying to do a good deed? Although we will hold 76% of the shares in the molybdenum company after the joint venture, in essence, 3/4 of the funds and profits will still be transferred from one hand to the other."

"As you mentioned, the mines in several mining areas are almost full. Only by clearing them out can production continue and the ore be stored. Moreover, the companies need funds to maintain production and also need to repay some of the outstanding debts as soon as possible."

Zhao Chang'an said, "In this way, if the price goes up a year later, in addition to the original mine, we can also make a profit from the newly mined ore during this year, instead of having to rush into temporary production."

"If the price exceeds 1000 yuan per ton during this period, will you sell it?"

Wen Ye was a little skeptical: "With all these resales and various costs, even if you sell it for a thousand or two hundred, how much money can you really make?"

“The Crown Prince has a higher vision now. A difference of one or two hundred is a profit of one or two hundred million, which is already quite good. The molybdenum company has been holding on for almost two years. Even if I make up the difference to them at 1000, the total net profit margin will only be this much.”

Zhao Chang'an jokingly teased Wen Ye.

"Shancheng has a population of 140 million, and its fiscal revenue last year was only 3.04 million. Luanchuan has a population of 30, and its fiscal revenue was 1.67 million. One or two hundred million is definitely not a small amount. But considering your consistent ambition, how could this amount of money be worth all this effort?"

Wen Ye, who has a good understanding of Zhao Chang'an's business thinking, strategy, and tactics, made this judgment: "I know what you mean, that is, after acquiring the mine, you're betting that the price will surge to over 1000. According to the usual practices of international resource speculators, for niche mineral resources like this, if the price doesn't increase four or five times, it's considered an investment failure. So your estimated peak price should be no less than 2000 yuan per ton."