America: My Time

Chapter 830 The Crisis of Neon

Chapter 820 The Crisis of Neon

While everyone's attention was focused on finance and scheming against John, no one noticed that he had quietly begun a new round of investments and development, targeting his land holdings in Australia, Asia, and South America. As trade with Russia grew, his own reserves were far from meeting Russia's needs, and with the continuous expansion of his food factories, his own food demand was also increasing. Under these circumstances, he was easily vulnerable to being held hostage.

No one noticed that John had established a new company in Australia to consolidate his land investments in various countries. Even if someone did discover it, they didn't pay much attention, since John also had considerable land investments in the United States, but those lands produced organic, green food products, completely different from those of grain traders—they weren't following the same path. However, this time, the company wasn't focused on green industries, but rather on real grains and meat.

The Russians can't hold on any longer, and Japan is sliding into the abyss. This is my chance, a chance to seize the market. 7-Eleven and other retail stores will all be changing. John plans to take a share of the Japanese food market and a share of the global market. The opportunity is coming soon, so we need to prepare in advance.

The grain-producing countries in Southeast Asia, the livestock farming in South America, and the expansion in Australia are all progressing rapidly. Moreover, John is not short of money right now, and this is the best time to make a move. After all, 7-Eleven convenience stores and his own retail network have spread throughout Asia and are also accelerating their pace in Europe. It can be said that John has already occupied a significant share in the retail market, and there is a considerable gap in the supply of goods he needs. At least these goods cannot be completely taken over by other companies!
"Akiko, Momoko, how's the survey you two were doing?" John was conducting surveys on the Japanese market and numerous companies. The people in charge were Hitomi Kuroki and Momoko Kikuchi. Although they didn't need to conduct the surveys themselves, they were responsible for arranging them. After all, John himself was currently unavailable, and those guys in Japan were keeping a close eye on him, all trying to get their hands on him, making all sorts of invitations.

Faced with this situation, John could only reduce his outings and avoid contact with these guys to prevent being led by the nose by these bastards. John was not unaware of their schemes, after all, Legendary Entertainment and Phoenix Group had a strong influence and market share in Japan, and he was well aware of what was going on in the Japanese entertainment industry.

When John learned that these guys were about to use their feminine wiles again, he dared not continue to contact them, especially since no one knew what kind of trouble they might cause. Although beautiful women were tempting, John didn't want to ruin his reputation in Japan due to a moment of carelessness.

You get what you pay for. Since they've offered you a beautiful woman, John naturally couldn't refuse. The situation in Japan isn't ideal right now; it's on the verge of collapse. The stock market crash is just the beginning, and the real estate market will soon follow. John doesn't want to deal with those guys right now, and he won't even accept an invitation from a Japanese bank, lest he fall into their trap.

With the stock market crashing, followed by the housing market crash, the next target would be the banks. John naturally needed to be cautious. If leaving now wouldn't disrupt his plans and alert the Japanese, John would likely have already left Tokyo instead of choosing to stay and observe.

John was fully aware of the situation in the United States. Rockefeller's actions couldn't possibly have escaped his notice, but he didn't care, letting the other side target him. Western Energy was completely unconcerned about Rockefeller's underhanded tactics, and the spun-off gas and power companies stubbornly clung to their original assets, remaining completely undisturbed. However, their rhetoric was excellent: to protect the interests of shareholders and investors, they would cease all expansion and focus solely on managing their existing assets.

When John learned of the slogan "Gas-Power," he was furious. It was a clear slap in the face to Rockefeller. The more Rockefeller secretly pushed things along, the less John gave him the chance. No matter how much Rockefeller intervened, or what the White House thought, John had no intention of allowing Western Energy and Gas-Power to expand. Even military companies like Gulfstream Aerospace remained unaffected by the changes in the Middle East and did not make any expansion moves.

Of course, John couldn't completely disregard the White House or Old Man Bush. In retail, he didn't stop expanding, especially in organic food, where he accelerated his expansion, opening one organic food store after another in major cities across the United States and in wealthy neighborhoods, seizing this market share.

In Japan, John remained in control, orchestrating the entire operation, a new round of strategic planning. Japan was now a central focus of his strategy, with Hitomi Kuroki and Momoko Kikuchi representing him. "It's basically complete, but some investigations will take a little longer. Japanese consumption patterns are indeed changing; luxury goods consumption is decreasing, and many Japanese have been affected by the stock market crash. However, the real estate market hasn't been significantly impacted and is still rising!" Momoko Kikuchi shared her findings. She was somewhat puzzled by the investigation, as 7-Eleven hadn't continued its expansion and its market share in Japan wasn't particularly large. After that sale, 7-Eleven had suffered a severe blow in Japan.

"It's coming soon. The stock market has already crashed. How long do you think the real estate market can hold up? Although Japan's energy crisis has been resolved, the soaring oil prices have had a significant impact on the Japanese economy. And how many Japanese people do you think can afford their own homes now? Don't you think Japanese housing prices are insane? Those young people can't afford a property in Tokyo in their entire lives. The stock market crash won't affect the banks, but if the real estate market has problems, the Bank of Japan will be in crisis. You'd better transfer your funds from small banks to large banks, so that if the banks have problems, you won't be able to withdraw your funds." At this point, John had already realized the problems with the Bank of Japan. After all, during the bubble economy, they made too many loans. When those guys couldn't repay their loans, it would be strange if the banks didn't collapse.

Although John is also burdened with a lot of debt, he has no intention of repaying it. After all, his loans were based on agreements and contracts. Even if the Japanese banks wanted him to repay early, it would be impossible. Even if John had the ability to do so now, he wouldn't give them the money. If he wanted money, he would have to offer something tempting.

Don't be fooled by John's current success in helping Japan escape the oil crisis. With the collapse of the Japanese stock market and the intervention of the Japanese central bank, the Japanese real estate market won't be long before it crashes. At that point, Japanese banks will also face difficulties and immense pressure. To alleviate their own problems, getting John to repay the loan early isn't out of the question.

Hitomi Kuroki and Momoko Kikuchi couldn't believe John's words, nor did they want to. After all, it was too crazy. The stock market crash had already brought devastation to many Japanese people. If the real estate market collapsed, the consequences would be even more severe. They had investigated the situation in Japan and found that there were quite a few people speculating on real estate, and the situation in the entertainment industry was even worse.

"No way! Even if Japan's economy is experiencing a slight fluctuation right now, it's impossible for it to affect the whole of Japan. If there's a complete collapse, the entire country will be plunged into a huge crisis!" At this moment, Momoko Kikuchi's face had turned pale. She could imagine what Japan would be like if such a situation were to occur.

"This is bound to happen because some people are too crazy. Those guys at the Japanese central bank are doing crazy things, but they underestimate human nature. If the Japanese economy collapses, the whole of Japan will fall into an even bigger disaster. The more frantically they consume now, the more frantically they will practice frugality after the Japanese economy collapses. At that time, good quality and cheap goods will become their target. That's why I'm trying to transform the clothing industry in Japan, and even relocate production. Times have changed, and Japan is about to enter a crazy era."

After John said this, Hitomi Kuroki and Momoko Kikuchi were unwilling to accept it, but they instinctively felt that it was right. After all, they both knew how sharp John's judgment was and that John had made amazing gains in oil futures and the Japanese stock market this time, because Martin's personal fund had been fully replenished, which shocked them.

If they could, neither Hitomi Kuroki nor Momoko Kikuchi would want to get involved in these business ventures. They both wanted to have their own children, as the profits were too tempting. It was precisely because they knew about Martin's situation that they believed John's words even more, even though they were unwilling to accept them. However, this was not something they could decide, and there was nothing they could do about it. It was an inevitable trend that no one could reverse.

A crazy era is about to begin. John knows how crazy the Japanese can be. With the end of Japan's bubble economy, Japan has fallen into a crazy era of low desire and lust, swinging from one extreme to another. Although John knows about the changes that are about to happen in Japan, caution is paramount. He still needs to conduct thorough investigations and cannot be careless!

(End of this chapter)