America: My Time

Chapter 487 Concerns from All Sides

Chapter 487 Concerns from All Sides
"Mr. John, if the Hong Kong government is willing to offer preferential land prices and convenient transportation arrangements, is there any possibility that Universal Pictures could invest? We know you have concerns, but we sincerely invite Universal Pictures to invest in Hong Kong!"

“If the Hong Kong government can help us, it’s not impossible. However, such an investment cannot be completed in a short time. It requires detailed assessment and design, as well as low land prices. As you all know, our Universal Studios project in Japan cannot be completed in one phase. We need multiple phases to complete it. Therefore, we need to acquire a large area of ​​land at once. I just don’t know if the Hong Kong government can accept our request?” John quickly passed the problem back to the Hong Kong government. Investment is not impossible, but we need to acquire a large area of ​​land at once. Land prices in Hong Kong have not yet skyrocketed. If we can get enough land from the Hong Kong government, everything will be fine!

"Sure, if Universal Pictures is interested in investing, we can discuss all of this. The Hong Kong government has chosen Lantau Island in the New Territories as the location!"

Upon hearing this, John frowned. This was not the future; Lantau Island in the New Territories was not developing much, and the Hong Kong Airport project had not been officially approved. This made John take it seriously, as a misstep could have serious consequences, and a large sum of money could be tied up.

"I'd like to know what arrangements the Hong Kong government has for transportation. Lantau Island doesn't offer any appealing features right now. To be honest, we won't accept it without adequate transportation!"

"Hong Kong Airport will be moved to Lantau Island in the future, and there will also be a dedicated line for the Hong Kong MTR. If Mr. John is worried that we might back out, all of this can be written into the contract. We sincerely invite Universal Pictures to invest!"

“Okay, if that’s the case, I have no problem. Universal Pictures will send people to negotiate, and we can start negotiations very soon. However, we need a much larger area of ​​land, since we need to consider future expansion. It would be best to conduct an on-site inspection. We need at least a hundred hectares of land resources. It can only be big, not small. After all, the environment on Lantau Island is different. If it’s too small, we won’t have enough space to expand. It would be best to have 150 hectares of land!”

Although John's requested land area was a bit large, it was not unacceptable. Lantau Island is currently inconveniently located and far from Hong Kong's urban area. If the Universal Studios investment is realized, it will play a vital role in the development of Lantau Island, so they did not feel that the request was excessive.

A verbal agreement was quickly reached. All that was needed now was the Hong Kong government's planning. As long as the Hong Kong government made a good plan, Universal Pictures would negotiate with it at any time. Following this project might seem a bit risky at the moment, but it would still be quite profitable in the long run, at least in John's view. As for how far the negotiations could go, that would depend on the subsequent negotiations between the two parties. However, that was not John's responsibility, but rather required the expertise of professionals.

The current development situation in Hong Kong has been significantly impacted, and the conditions offered by the Hong Kong government are not particularly favorable. Therefore, sharing the profits of this project with Universal Pictures is impossible. The Hong Kong government itself is aware of this, which is why it hasn't even brought it up. Proposing such conditions would only lead to a breakdown in negotiations; nobody is a fool. Looking at the situation at Universal Studios Japan, one can understand how confident Universal Pictures is.

It was thought that after the reception, and with the Hong Kong government's persuasion, Standard Chartered Bank would make some changes. However, Standard Chartered remained unchanged, maintaining its tight monetary policy. This caused even the Hong Kong tycoon to frown. Did Standard Chartered truly not believe in Hong Kong's development, or was it that John, this shrewd businessman, simply didn't believe in Hong Kong's future? If he truly didn't believe in Hong Kong's development, why did he acquire so many properties there?
The British-owned group quickly received notification from the Hong Kong government, learning about the agreement between the government and John, as well as the relocation of Hong Kong Airport and the development of the subway lines, all of which excited them. Although their properties and real estate in Hong Kong had been acquired by John and become part of the Mandarin Oriental Group, this did not mean they had no other options.

Relatively speaking, the Chinese tycoons were unaware of the secrets behind this, so some of them chose a time to sit down and discuss the changes at Standard Chartered Bank, as well as the changes at British-owned groups. It was clear that the Hong Kong government was excluding them and did not want them to participate in this opportunity.

"Please feel free to speak your mind, everyone. The current situation is very unfavorable to us. Standard Chartered Bank has not heeded the Hong Kong government's advice and is still tightening monetary policy. Even HSBC has made changes now. We have to be prepared for this, otherwise we could easily fall into an even bigger crisis."

After the reception, HSBC became more cautious, abandoning its previous arrogance and hesitant to spend lavishly. Standard Chartered's reaction had been too suspicious, and HSBC, with its experienced staff, gradually sensed something amiss. Competing with Standard Chartered for politeness at this point was unwise. Although Standard Chartered had still invested heavily in the yen's appreciation, much of its reserves were held in reserve, clearly preparing for a bank run. If a bank run occurred and neither Standard Chartered nor HSBC had sufficient funds to cope, they would suffer heavy losses. Could it be that Standard Chartered had discovered something that would trigger another bank run in Hong Kong? With this precautionary mindset, HSBC also made changes, tightening its lending.

"It's unlikely that Standard Chartered Bank's changes are due to a lack of confidence in Hong Kong's development. After all, John has acquired a lot of properties in Hong Kong and even bought up a large amount of assets from British-owned groups. So he is still very optimistic about Hong Kong's development. But what would cause Standard Chartered Bank to tighten its lending? Perhaps it's a problem with Standard Chartered itself!"

"Perhaps I can understand why Standard Chartered Bank is tightening its lending. It is indeed related to their own situation, because they are making many calculations regarding the appreciation of the yen. Not only has the depreciation of the dollar brought them huge profits, but the appreciation of the yen has also brought them unimaginable benefits. Perhaps this is the reason why, if they are capable of making more money, they would still take the risk of helping you at this time."

While there's some truth to this, it's impossible to convince everyone. The banks' tightening of credit isn't solely due to this reason; it's simply because they have the ability to earn more money. Perhaps John, this little fox, isn't pessimistic about Hong Kong's economy, but rather its financial market, and he's preparing for the worst.

"As for the financial market, perhaps John is only pessimistic about Hong Kong's financial market. There have been too many financial defaults in Hong Kong in recent years, making Standard Chartered Bank hesitant. Of course, it could also be for further consolidation. John doesn't only own Standard Chartered Bank; he also has Sinolink Bank and East West Bank in the United States. If he intends to consolidate them, such an arrangement is reasonable. Bank consolidation also carries risks!"

Integration? That's impossible. John wouldn't merge Standard Chartered and Chengxin Bank; there's no need, at least not now. As for the future, that depends on the circumstances. Right now, John is preparing for next year. Regarding the Hong Kong financial market, John isn't very optimistic. The Hong Kong financial market never truly calmed down throughout the 1980s.

"If possible, we should talk to Mr. John and find out his true intentions. It would be better than us guessing here. With the current recovery in the real estate market, we all need more funds to circulate. If Standard Chartered and HSBC tighten their lending, it will be very detrimental to our development!"

"Talk? How can we talk? Why should they talk to you about their thoughts? What right do you have to talk to them? Standard Chartered Bank doesn't even respect the Hong Kong government, so why would they care about your thoughts? It's ridiculous!"

These words may be unpleasant to hear, but they are the truth. Standard Chartered Bank has already been privatized, and why should John sit down with them to talk or offer them assistance? They have no such obligation. Especially now that the Mandarin Oriental Group has expanded beyond Hong Kong and is venturing overseas, it is completely different from them and does not care about changes in Hong Kong, thus having a stronger ability to withstand risks.

"Perhaps things aren't as dangerous as everyone thinks. This time, the Hong Kong government and John probably have some kind of deal, otherwise the British-owned group wouldn't have made such a change. However, we still don't know what their cooperation project is. Although Mr. John is young, he has more businesses in Hong Kong than any of us here. He can't possibly ignore the development of Hong Kong's economy. Does anyone have any information?"

Even if someone knew about the cooperation between the Hong Kong government and John, they wouldn't say it. The more people there were, the more people would benefit. Who would be foolish enough to tell others their valuable information? So soon the room fell silent. No one spoke. Some people knew a little about the situation, but not much. They just didn't want to talk about it.

Seeing this situation, the bigwigs at the top couldn't help but sigh. This is human nature. They all want to benefit and get more information from everyone, but no one is willing to share profits. It seems that they are sitting together to discuss the Standard Chartered Bank and HSBC Bank matter, but these people all have their own ideas and calculations. It is impossible to expect them to work together.

(End of this chapter)