I Am the Third-Generation Heir of a Conglomerate - Chapter 497



Only Noblemtl

497. The Saboteur (2)

A few days later.

A vice president was called in.

It was to inform you of the contact from the conversation group.

“I heard that the conversation group has found a target for selling Nikola shares. They say they are selling all of them for a price slightly lower than the current market price.”

“The company that buys Nikola’s shares will be hit pretty hard. Do you know which one?”

“They said they were going to hand it over to a Wall Street financial firm. They said they were going to split up the shares and sell them to multiple financial firms to minimize losses.”

Frankly, Nikola stock was a mouth-watering product.

If only it could be listed, it would be a stock that could be worth more than 10 times what it is now.

Before the reversion, Nikola’s corporate value was more than 10 times higher than it is now.

But this time, that was unlikely to happen, as it would crash before taking off.

“The conversation group is certainly hot. Even though we have presented the decisive evidence, it is surprising that they can move so quickly. As expected from a gunpowder company, they are hot.”

“It’s not just about selling stocks. They’re also saying they’re going to spend hundreds of billions of won to build a factory in the Saemangeum Chemical Complex. Until the factory expansion, they’ve decided to jointly develop key materials at Taewoo Group’s research institute.”

In a few days, Executive Director Kim Jeong-kwon’s words changed drastically.

He had only agreed to share data and conduct joint research, but after hearing something, he suddenly decided to build a large-scale factory expansion.

“There are many vacancies at the Taewoo Research Institute in the Saemangeum Complex, so we can conduct joint research. But is there a reason why you want to conduct joint research with the Dialogue Group?”

“In the case of semiconductor materials, Taewoo Group has been conducting research for a long time, so it is not difficult, but it is difficult for us to proceed with core materials in other fields alone. We can shorten the time by joining hands with other companies.”

There wasn’t much time left now.

There are signs that a trade dispute with Japan will begin as soon as this year.

So, by shortening the time as much as possible, we could gain the upper hand in the trade dispute.

“To be honest, the profitability of the Saemangeum Chemical Complex is very low. Although it has large-scale mass production facilities, the actual amount produced is not much.”

“Things will change starting next year. To be exact, the atmosphere will change starting in October of this year.”

“Are there any big events in October?”

“The results of the lawsuit for compensation for forced labor will come out in October. The moment the Supreme Court rules in favor of the victims, Japan will definitely react sensitively.”

The starting point of the Japan-Japan trade dispute is not far away.

It was an issue where we had clear differences of opinion, so we couldn’t back down.

If the Korean Supreme Court ruled in favor of the victims, Japan would certainly take action at the government level.

“I checked through the court line, and it seems that this lawsuit is likely to be in favor of the victims of forced labor.”

“It is inevitable that diplomatic friction will increase. The Japanese political circles will also overreact in order to secure approval ratings.”

“Do you think they will go as far as banning exports of key materials?”

“The most lethal card Japan has is the core material. It is also a card that can shake up Korea’s semiconductor industry.”

The number one export item for Korea was semiconductors.

However, the moment we cannot import key materials from Japan, we will face major problems in semiconductor production.

“If the export restrictions on key materials actually take place, the value of the Saemangeum Chemical Complex will change.”

“We have secured the technology from long ago, and we have even established a large-scale mass production system. The moment Japan takes such measures, regulations will be lifted all at once, and the Saemangeum Chemical Complex will be transformed into a goose that lays golden eggs.”

Technology and mass production facilities.

The Saemangeum Chemical Complex already had two essential requirements.

However, mass production required deregulation, and deregulation required social consensus.

Social consensus is ultimately determined by public sentiment.

If Japan were to take measures to restrict exports of key materials targeting the Korean economy, public sentiment would naturally move toward deregulation.

“The results of over 10 years of investment in core material development are finally coming to fruition!”

“It may not be profitable enough to recover the investment right away, but it is worth it just because it does not interfere with semiconductor production.”

Key material cards held by Japan.

We’ve been preparing to neutralize this card for over ten years.

There was opposition from several executives who said that it was investing too much money, but he pushed ahead with it with his authority as chairman.

“We still have to wait and see. We don’t know exactly what the Supreme Court will decide. The US-China trade war is more important than the Japan trade dispute that hasn’t even happened yet.”

“There is a fierce exchange of words almost every day. Looking at the current situation, it seems that in China, companies are suffering losses, and in the US, consumers are suffering losses.”

It was a good thing for American companies.

This means that the price competitiveness of Chinese products that had dominated the market with their low prices has disappeared.

But for American consumers, the unfortunate situation arose where they had to pay a high price for a product that was once cheap.

“We don’t have to worry about American consumers.”

“I think so too. The Financial Tower has succeeded in penetrating deeply into the Chinese financial market. It has more than doubled its short selling volume and can increase it by more than five times by the end of this year.”

“Both the US and China have played one card.”

The card China played was US Treasury bonds.

The card that the United States pulled out was Qing Dynasty bonds.

We nullified the cards drawn by both countries as if we were dealers.

“Both countries have played their cards, and the situation now is more favorable for the United States. So China is trying to play a new card.”

“China is by no means an easy country. It probably still has a lot of cards to play.”

“There is a move to take the initiative by banning the export of resources, including rare earth elements.”

There were many resources that China monopolized.

In particular, China boasts an overwhelming production volume of rare earth elements, a key resource for cutting-edge products.

A stable supply of rare earth elements was necessary for the production of cutting-edge products including mobile phones, PCs, and electric vehicle batteries, and was a particularly important resource for Apple, which dominates the mobile phone market.

“The strategy is to use rare earth elements as strategic weapons.”

“It could be a strategy targeting the US IT industry. Apple is expected to take the biggest hit.”

“Rare earth elements are essential for cell phone production.”

“If China bans rare earth exports, Taewoo Group will also suffer huge damage. Various affiliates, including Taewoo Semiconductor, Taewoo Electronics, and Taewoo Automobile, use large amounts of rare earth elements.”

I didn’t think it mattered what China did.

However, if not only Taewoo Group but also other IT companies, including Apple, in which I hold the largest share, were to suffer damage, I would have no choice but to take different actions.

“Hasn’t Taewoo Corporation also been continuously mining rare earth elements?”

“We are developing rare earth mines in Brazil, Vietnam, and other places. However, there is no significant production volume yet. In particular, Vietnam, which has the world’s second largest rare earth reserves, is not producing properly.”

“For what reason?”

“Environmental regulation issues are the most serious. We are continuing negotiations with the Vietnamese government, but progress is slow.”

Taewoo Corporation held a huge amount of mining development rights.

A huge amount of money was poured into securing the resources needed by Taewoo Group in advance, such as iron ore, lithium, and rare earth elements.

“It seems like the amount being produced now is too small.”

“Even if we only use the Taewoo Group, the amount is not enough. If we can properly use the Dongpao mine that has been developed, we can solve the rare earth problem at once.”

“I guess the mine development is finished.”

“Thanks to David’s lobbying skills, we were able to complete the mine development. However, we invested a huge amount of money in the mine development, but production is not going well, so it is difficult to recover the investment.”

Dongpao Mine.

It was a mine boasting the world’s largest reserves of rare earth elements.

Although Taewoo Corporation acquired the development rights there, it was unable to properly produce due to regulations.

“It seems like it would be difficult to deregulate with just David.”

“David’s reach extends to the United States, Europe, and even Russia, but he cannot exert much influence in Southeast Asian countries like Vietnam.”

Lobbying ultimately required money and time.

If David had lived in Vietnam for a long time and spent a huge amount of money on lobbying, this would have been a solvable problem.

However, I couldn’t live in Vietnam because I had to handle so many things at the same time.

“In Vietnam, there is one lobbyist who is better than David.”

“Was there such a person?”

“There is a Korean living in Vietnam who is very close to many high-ranking Vietnamese people and is well-known all over the world.”

“Is there such a person?”

“Isn’t your grandfather in Vietnam?”

Honorary Chairman of Taewoo Group.

In Korea, he was someone who was considered a big name in the business world.

My grandfather was a person with considerable recognition worldwide.

Plus, having lived in Vietnam for several years, there was no one better suited to handle this matter than my grandfather.

“I need to get help from my grandfather.”

“If the Honorary Chairman moves, I think he will be able to sufficiently move the Vietnamese government.”

“Please check my schedule. I need to go to Vietnam as soon as possible.”

***

Two days later.

I arrived in Vietnam where my grandfather was.

When my grandfather heard that I was coming, he came to the Hanoi airport to personally pick me up.

“Is Chairman Kim here? I don’t even recognize his face.”

“Grandpa is only in Vietnam, so I don’t have time to see him. I miss him so much that my grandson flew all the way to Vietnam!”

He said, complaining.

I wouldn’t show this to other people, but I could do it in front of my grandfather.

Because he was my only blood relative. Because he was the only person who could embrace me even when I was weak.

“Have you brought any good news? As I said before, if I have a grandchild, I will return to Korea immediately.”

“If I had a grandchild, would I have come all the way to Vietnam? I would have called my grandfather and told him to come in right away.”

“You said you had other business. Are you planning to exploit me again?”

Grandfather’s persimmon did not die.

Should I say that it has become sharper than before?

Just like when he first founded Taewoo Group, he was a grandfather who had become younger in body and mind while doing pioneering work in Vietnam.

“This is a very important matter. It is directly related to the survival of Taewoo Group.”

“What’s going on that you’re so obsessed with? Even though I’m physically in Vietnam, I hear everything about how Taewoo Group is doing through the Chief Secretary. Where is the force that threatens Taewoo Group right now? Why are you acting weak?”

I linked arms with my grandfather smugly.

Then he groaned and started talking about rare earth mines.

“There is talk of China banning exports of rare earth elements. If China really bans exports of rare earth elements, many of Taewoo Group’s affiliates will come to a halt. That’s why we have to lift restrictions on the Dongpao mine in order to survive.”

“So you’re asking me to roast and boil the Vietnamese high-ranking officials instead?”

“Is that possible? If it’s difficult, I’ll assign you the best lobbyist in America. And you can use as much lobbying money as you want.”

Grandfather chuckled.

Then he pushed me away and beat his chest.

“Did you think I just had fun in Vietnam? Well, I did have fun, but what’s important is who I had fun with.”

“Are you saying that you can ease restrictions on the Dongpao mine?”

“Just trust me. When did you say you were going back to Korea?”

“I set aside two days to spend time with my grandfather for the first time in a long time.”

“That’s good. I’ll try to resolve the Dongpao mine issue before returning to Korea.”

The largest rare earth deposit area, Dongpao Mine.

If we can just solve this problem with my grandfather, we can suppress China’s rare earth card to some extent.