An Investor Who Sees The Future

As financial instability spread, it began to affect the real economy as well. It was now at a point where everyone could feel it.

Just as in the financial crisis, car sales were the first to hit the brakes.

The automobile industry is large in scale and employs a large number of people. Even if cars don't sell, factories have to run, tens of thousands of workers have to be paid, and business relationships with parts suppliers have to be maintained.

In Karos's case, since orders were already backed up for more than six months, it wasn't enough to immediately disrupt production, but it was a difficult situation to execute large-scale investment plans such as building new factories.

GM, Ford, Toyota, Daimler AG, and the Volkswagen Group began to reduce factory operating hours due to a decrease in orders.

As the flow of funds became tight, everyone was on high alert. This was because almost all automobile companies were in the process of transitioning to autonomous electric vehicles.

Sales of existing vehicles are decreasing, and the amount of investment is gradually increasing, but they are not yet making a profit in the new industry.

Even though the real crisis hadn't even started yet, screams were erupting from all sides.

I spoke with President Trusova of Rosatom on the phone.

If electricity demand decreases due to a recession, there is no need to build nuclear power plants. In fact, the UK and the Czech Republic have begun to reconsider their nuclear power plant construction plans.

If this happens, Russia's plan to find a breakthrough in Western sanctions with TWR construction as a weapon is bound to be disrupted.

The VRMMORPG game development being carried out by OTK Games was also in crisis. There were more than thirty companies involved in the primary stage, and it was questionable whether they would be able to keep up. The construction of the data center was already in danger of being adrift.

We had been increasing our investments in anticipation of future profits. There were many places where money needed to go, but if a crisis occurred, the recovery period would be further delayed, and we would also have difficulties in financing.

Taek-gyu shook his head.

"The timing couldn't be worse."

I frowned and said.

"They must have chosen this timing on purpose."

It's the worst for others, but from the Rothschilds' perspective, it's the best timing to maximize their profits.

Taek-gyu asked me.

"But if what the Rothschilds say is true, then won't the Saemangeum development and North Korea's claim of $70 billion from Japan all become impossible?"

I thought for a moment and then shook my head.

"The foresight wasn't wrong. It was just postponed until after the financial crisis."

There is no crisis that lasts forever. It will be overcome someday. It's just that in the meantime, some will fall, and some will make more money.

When the dot-com bubble burst, countless internet companies collapsed, and countless talented people lost their jobs. But as the insolvent companies that had been eating away at the market disappeared, the industry's credibility rose, and government support was also concentrated on sound companies.

The surviving companies recruited talented people who had been laid off from the insolvent companies and developed technology to dominate the market where there were no competitors.

This became the background for the birth of giant internet companies like Gooble, AMZ, and Facenote.

The situation was similar now. The prices of numerous startups had soared with just expectations, even though they weren't making a profit, and the asset bubble had become serious worldwide.

As Warren Buffett said, now is a time when "far from being able to buy good companies cheap, you have to buy even bad companies at high prices," so a clean-up was needed at some point.

So, is this crisis also a necessary thing for a new era?

***

I received a call and headed to Saemangeum with Taek-gyu.

The reclaimed land, which had once been a place where only sand and dust blew, had now turned into a huge construction site. Heavy equipment was moving ceaselessly, and construction was in full swing everywhere.

In the areas where the ground work was finished, roads were already being paved and buildings were going up. If the construction proceeded as planned, a completely new city would be born in five years.

We met Nam Pung-hyeon, the head of the Saemangeum Development and Investment Agency, there.

"Until recently, everyone was clamoring to invest, but at some point, the calls stopped as if by magic. In fact, even existing promises are being canceled one after another."

People gather where people gather.

Unlike a satellite city connected to an existing metropolis, the development of a self-sufficient new city requires a strong driving force.

But if a financial crisis comes, large-scale investment plans will be disrupted, and the driving force will disappear.

He continued with a dark expression.

"Investors are concerned that the Saemangeum development will be delayed. Many companies are slowing down their investment speed."

Even the large conglomerates have declared emergency management and are focusing on management efficiency and cost reduction. As such, they have no choice but to be cautious about investment.

The construction of the Disneyland Universal Studios theme park also showed signs of being delayed. As the anchor investors hesitated, other investors also postponed the start of construction and additional investments.

Usually, in urban development, infrastructure is built with the money from selling land and apartments. If the funds don't circulate properly, everything will come to a standstill.

"Foreign investors are also constantly making inquiries. It seems they want to hear the representative's position directly."

The Saemangeum development is a project led by OTK Company.

No one can say it directly because they are watching my every move, but the rosy prospect that it would soon become a high-tech city that would lead the Republic of Korea has completely disappeared.

I thought of Dubai.

Dubai, which had been carrying out a new city development to the extent of being called a miracle in the desert, went bankrupt when the global financial crisis hit, and as payments were not made, many development plans were suspended or canceled.

Afterward, thanks to the support of Abu Dhabi, which can be called the leader of the UAE, it barely survived, but it is still facing difficulties.

At least Dubai was hit by the financial crisis after the construction was more than halfway through, but Saemangeum is just in the initial stage. As such, it is also easy to pull out.

"I will contact the main investors directly. For now, please proceed with the plan as scheduled."

"Understood."

***

Governments around the world made efforts to establish financial stability measures.

But as the saying goes, he who ties the knot must untie it. Since it was triggered by the US benchmark interest rate hike, there was no answer unless the US stepped in.

The whole world was just hoping that the US would stop raising its benchmark interest rate.

But as soon as the new year began, Fed Chairman McClay announced another 0.5 percent hike.

"We are raising the federal funds rate, which is currently operating at 2.5 percent to 2.75 percent, to 3.0 percent to 3.25 percent. The asset bubble is serious worldwide due to low interest rates. We need to take preemptive measures before a greater risk comes in the future."

As he said, the money released through low interest rates and quantitative easing had flowed not into the real economy such as investment and employment, but into the asset market such as stocks and real estate, creating a bubble.

Even in a situation where the real economy is stagnant and income is not increasing, liquidity is overflowing, and real estate prices in major cities have already exceeded a level that the middle class can afford.

In the end, to solve this, there is no choice but to raise interest rates to recover the money that has been released into the market.

The problem is that the speed is too fast. In terms of percentage, the interest rate has risen by more than 70 percent in just two months.

Now, even within the US, concerns about a recession are beginning to emerge.

Amidst the debate in the US Congress on this issue, President Ronald said in front of reporters.

"The interest rate hike is the Fed's decision. Chairman McClay is a very outstanding person, and I believe he is making an excellent judgment."

This was a statement that effectively revealed that the US administration had no intention of putting the brakes on the interest rate hike.

When this news was reported, the stock, foreign exchange, and bond markets fluctuated again.

***

With the US not stopping its solo run of benchmark interest rate hikes, the world's attention was focused on China.

Compared to 10 years ago, China's status is now completely different.

China accounts for about 15 percent of the world's GDP. If this economy collapses, an unimaginable shock will sweep the world.

And South Korea cannot be free from that influence.

As concerns grew, the KOSPI index, which had barely broken through 3,000, fell. Foreigners sold stocks and bonds and exchanged their money for dollars to exit the Korean market, and the exchange rate soared.

It has already risen by more than 10 percent. This may not seem like a big deal, but in other words, it means that all the assets of that country have fallen by 10 percent.

The entire nation has lost 10 percent of its wealth without even knowing it!

In the old days, thieves would climb over walls and enter other people's houses to steal money and valuables. But these days, thieves just manipulate numbers.

With just a few numbers changed, the owner of a house changes from an individual to a bank, companies go bankrupt, stores close, and people become unemployed.

Even though the houses, stores, and buildings are still in the same place.

This must be the frightening thing about finance.

I continued to check the financial markets. Fortunately, there was no movement of any particular force yet.

After the aftermath of the US benchmark interest rate hike passed, whether the government's stimulus measures were effective or not, the stock market temporarily stopped its decline and took a breather, and the rise in the exchange rate also slowed down.

But this is just the calm before the storm. The real thing hasn't even started yet.

Industrial capital has factories and offices, employs people, and everyone knows what it makes and sells.

On the other hand, it is difficult to grasp the clear substance of financial capital.

Like a ghost, it is everywhere, but nowhere. It freely crosses borders in pursuit of profit alone.

Even if you can grasp the flow of money, it is difficult to determine who the owner is. It's not like money has a name tag.

Taek-gyu asked.

"If a financial crisis breaks out, can't we make a fortune like we did with Brexit?"

I sighed and shook my head.

"It's not that easy."

Why wouldn't I have thought of that?

I have made money by using the future that only I know. But they, like me, know the future.

No, since they know when, where, and how it will happen, it would be better to say that they have more information than I do.

Besides, they have larger capital to move, superior operational skills, and a system to invest it.

Rothschild must have already secured most of the good investment opportunities. The money I could make by jumping in here would be a drop in the bucket compared to them.

"Most importantly, we don't have much money to use right now."

We have started too many things, and money is continuously being put into them.

OTK Company, as an investment company, has acquired several companies so far. But unlike other investment companies, we did not exit, but grew the companies through continuous investment.

Even if my wealth exceeds $1 trillion, that's just a value that people have arbitrarily set. The actual cash I can move is less than $100 billion.

On the other hand, it's impossible to even guess how much cash they have on the other side, or how much they can move.

As a case in point, the assets under management of the Redstone Group are known to be over $400 billion, and Albert Management is also said to have over $100 billion.

Since they have decided to cause a crisis, they must have liquidated their assets beforehand, so the actual amount will be even greater.

"We can hedge to some extent, but the loss will be much greater."

Electric cars, batteries, TWR, VRMMORPGs, Saemangeum, and so on. All the subsidiaries are already being hit.

After hearing my words, Taek-gyu blinked his eyes.

"Then shouldn't we stop it?"

"How?"

"Well. Isn't there some way?"

"So what is that way?"

"We have to start looking for it now."

The fact that Grace told me her plan so confidently in the first place must have been because she was certain that it could never be stopped.

So, what is the best choice I can make in this situation?

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