Chapter 1041 What should I do if I encounter a price hike? Home search!
For a country that is in the early stages of the development of the industrial revolution, the demand for infrastructure materials such as steel is very huge. All walks of life have a huge demand for steel. However, limited by technology, the output of steel is limited.
is limited.
This is why many countries focus on the development of the steel industry in the early stages of industrial development.
Of course, whether it can develop depends on the specific situation of the country. The steel industry is a heavy industry, and it is the most important heavy industry in modern industry. It does not mean that it can be developed if it wants to.
However, in the Tang Empire, there were no obstacles to developing the steel industry.
There is huge demand, and minerals such as iron ore and coal can also be found in China. There is no problem in transportation in some specific industrial cities.
The population is large and there are plenty of workers of all types.
A basic modern education system has been established, and various types of current technical talents have begun to be cultivated. The talent gap can also be solved.
All this means that the steel industry in China is about to take off!
The Ministry of State-owned Enterprises is increasing investment in the steel industry.
As the state-owned enterprise management department of the Tang Empire, the Ministry of State-owned Enterprises is responsible for leading the development of domestic industry and commerce. It implements the concept of "industrial power" proposed by the Holy Emperor Li Xuan. It is also responsible for the development of the national defense industry. Therefore, the Ministry of State-owned Enterprises invests in
Enterprises often choose to invest in the three major categories of heavy industry, steel, chemical industry, and machinery, which have always been the core investment industries of the Ministry of State-owned Enterprises. Although other industries will also invest, they will choose private enterprises that are unwilling to invest or do not have the strength.
Some industries for investment.
Based on this concept, the Ministry of State-owned Enterprises is raising funds for the second round of expansion of Jiangnan Iron and Steel Company!
Because of limited funds and huge investment in steel, they are more inclined to use limited funds wisely. Jiangnan Iron and Steel Company is developing smoothly, and it is located in the Dangtu Iron Mine. It is backed by the Yangtze River, a main stream of inland transportation, and can be transported by ship.
Conveniently transport the produced steel products to the banks of the Yangtze River.
And it’s not just along the Yangtze River, but also the many tributaries connected to the Yangtze River, such as the Xiangjiang River, Ganjiang River, Beijing-Hangzhou Canal, Huaihe River, and Yellow River basins, all of which can be widely radiated.
Further afield, it can also be transported to coastal areas by sea.
Based on these advantages, the Ministry of State-owned Enterprises has built Dangtu Industrial Zone into the largest heavy industry base in the country with the steel industry as the core. It is reasonable to invest in the establishment of the second phase production base of Jiangnan Iron and Steel Company.
However, because of the huge market in the steel industry today, many private capitals have seen opportunities in the steel industry, and some powerful businessmen have already begun to enter the steel industry.
Over in Dangtu, there are already at least three civilian steel companies under construction. Although the scale is not large, the investment is only tens of thousands of taels of silver, and the output is not even comparable to that of the Jiangnan Iron and Steel Company.
All this proves that private capital has begun to get involved in steel, a typical heavy industry.
In many other places, small-scale steel companies have appeared one after another. The small ones may only have a few dozen people, but the large ones have hundreds of people, and they are widely distributed. Basically, iron companies have now been found.
Mines, or places with relatively convenient transportation, now steel-related industries have emerged one after another.
In the past, the shipbuilding industry was where most private capital entered, with relatively little steel, and even less machinery, minerals, etc.
But in the machinery industry, there are currently not many private capitals entering. It’s not that they don’t want to enter, or that the empire has policies prohibiting their entry, but that for machinery, you need technical talents!
Nowadays, the price of technical talents who understand machinery is not generally expensive.
A technician who can repair ordinary equipment has a monthly salary of at least ten taels of silver. This is just money, and you may not be able to hire one if you want. Besides, all kinds of mechanical equipment are also expensive.
The machinery industry is profitable now, and very profitable, but the entry barrier is also high. If you don’t invest tens of thousands of taels of silver to enter, you can’t even afford equipment or hire technicians, so what kind of business is there?
However, compared to heavy industry, light industry is currently the area where domestic private capital has concentrated its investment, especially the textile industry, which can be said to be making rapid progress. Other industries with small investment and low thresholds also have a lot of capital involved.
Seeing these reports on industrial and commercial development, Li Xuan couldn't help but lament that the Chinese people still dare to fight hard, and they still need to open up a policy loophole, and they don't even need to provide special support. The private businessmen will take care of it themselves.
Seize the opportunity and develop.
Today's Tang Dynasty is the most business-friendly dynasty in China for thousands of years. This era is a golden era for anyone who wants to engage in industry and commerce.
Policies allow it, and there is even tax support. Due to merit assessment issues, in order to be promoted, although most of the local officials are from traditional Confucian backgrounds, they also try their best to develop industry and commerce and develop people's livelihood.
At the same time, there is a healthy financial environment and the flow of funds is more convenient.
At the same time, there is vast domestic demand and overseas markets.
For those businessmen, there is almost gold everywhere. All they have to do is to gather a certain amount of funds, put up a sign, recruit workers for production, and then they can make a lot of money.
However, Li Xuan was also wary of this seemingly prosperous industry and commerce, because in his opinion, this situation was somewhat similar to the reform and opening up of later generations. In this process of rapid and barbaric growth, many things would definitely break out.
It's a problem. If it's not done right, it will cause big problems.
For example, many officials in the Jiangnan region have recently reported that due to the huge demand for silkworm cocoons and the high purchase price, many farmers have begun planting mulberry trees on land originally used for growing food, in addition to planting mulberry trees on their original land.
Although this situation has only started for a year or two, many officials are worried that the food output in Jiangnan will be greatly reduced, from a granary that can provide the empire with a large amount of surplus food, to a food that needs to be transported from other places.
Area of scarcity.
This situation made Li Xuan wary!
After all, although industrial and commercial development is very important, food issues are even more important!
Therefore, at the cabinet meeting not long after, Li Xuan convened a meeting in response to the memorial submitted by some officials on the matter, and asked the cabinet to come up with a suitable solution that would not harm the development of industry and commerce or the interests of farmers.
Stabilize grain production in the Jiangnan region.
The cabinet's Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Commerce and other departments held many meetings and finally finalized a preliminary plan!
First of all, since the current situation of converting grain fields to plant mulberry trees is not serious, and at the same time, the court cannot use various administrative means to forcefully interfere with farmers in what they plant, because the land is their private property, and they are free to plant whatever they like.
.
Moreover, since the Tang Dynasty was only a few years old, it could not take any drastic actions and put itself on the opposite side of the majority of farmers.
However, it is impossible to convert a large number of grain fields to mulberry trees.
Therefore, the preliminary plan is to start with tax incentives for official fields and newly developed wasteland.
Those who rent government land must grow food, and farmers are not allowed to grow other cash crops privately, including cotton, mulberry, etc.
The land obtained by renting and purchasing is also within this scope, with a restrictive clause that these official fields must be used to grow food.
Originally, newly reclaimed land could enjoy tax incentives regardless of type, but now it is stipulated that only newly reclaimed land for growing food can enjoy tax incentives. If the reclaimed land is used to plant cash crops such as mulberry trees or cotton,
, does not enjoy tax benefits.
In this case, to a certain extent, some land can be restricted from being planted with food crops!
At the same time, on the other hand, many officials in the cabinet believe that it is natural for farmers to pursue higher returns. You cannot make them have the consciousness to give up their interests and stabilize the grain output in the Jiangnan region for the empire.
The most fundamental solution is to reclaim more land, especially for grain development in the Huguang area!
At the same time, it is necessary to ensure that farmers’ economic returns from growing food will not be much lower than growing cash crops such as mulberry trees. In this case, it can also be adjusted through commercial, taxation and other means.
For example, if taxes on raw silk companies are appropriately raised to increase their costs, then in order to pass on the costs, they will inevitably put pressure on the price of raw materials, thus curbing the rapid rise in the price of silkworm cocoons.
In addition, food prices can be appropriately raised in certain areas to ensure that farmers can grow food profitably.
However, the cabinet has different opinions on how to raise prices. Some people believe that local government agencies can directly purchase grains to raise and maintain grain prices, so as not to harm farmers.
However, some people believe that the government should not interfere directly, but should take more flexible measures and let the Ministry of Commerce or the Ministry of State-owned Enterprises do this.
After repeated discussions, the Ministry of State-owned Enterprises decided to integrate several grain companies in the Sidao area of Zhili and establish a Zhili grain company in Jiangnan. Its core functions are grain reserves, stabilizing grain prices, and disaster relief.
If the effect is good, it will be extended to other provinces!
Zhili Grain Company, from its core, you can tell that it is not a company for profit, but a state-owned enterprise that maintains food security.
Of course, in this process of purchasing and selling grain, a certain amount of profit will definitely be generated, and these profits will also be used for subsequent purchases and storage of more grain.
The establishment of the Zhili Grain Company has a direct relationship with Li Xuan, because Li Xuan personally directed the relevant officials from the Ministry of State-owned Enterprises to propose this plan. Otherwise, the people below would be full of feudal antiques and not modern at all.
Officials with a sense of administrative management only know about direct government interference and forced pricing.
If you act so directly and recklessly, the effect will not be good, and the impact will not be good, and it will easily cause a backlash!
It would be great to directly set up a grain company. You can control grain prices in any way you want, and you can also easily crack down on unscrupulous grain merchants who like to hoard grain, take advantage of the opportunity to raise prices, and make fortunes.
Although the Tang Dynasty implemented grain restriction policies in many disaster-stricken areas in recent years, and dealt with some grain merchants who took the opportunity to hoard and increase prices, there was no clear reason for this kind of treatment, and most of the methods of treatment were
It is processed indirectly under other names.
Because in the Tang Dynasty, there were no crimes such as speculation and price gouging. Grain merchants bought their grain with money, and they liked to hoard it without selling it, or sell it at extremely high prices. Strictly speaking, that was
their freedom.
However, this kind of behavior is intolerable to the authorities. In the past, one case was discovered and dealt with, but the handling method was through other methods. The most commonly used method is 'crime endangering national security', and basically only the first offender is dealt with.
Those who follow the trend and whose increase is not that big will basically not be dealt with.
But to be honest, we cannot continue like this, and it is not possible to directly introduce relevant restrictive laws, so we might as well deal with it in another way.
Directly set up relevant grain companies, and then issue a guiding grain price range according to each different location. If it exceeds this range, administrative fines will be directly imposed and he will be punished with bankruptcy.
The purchase and sale prices of grain companies also fluctuate within this range.
When grain production is large, we should stabilize prices and prevent local grain prices from falling. When grain production is low, we should supply a large amount of grain to stabilize local grain prices and prevent grain prices from skyrocketing.
This is currently the main core task of Zhili Grain Company.
Although the Tang Dynasty did this in the past, it was usually done by local yamen, and it was done through administrative means. The name was not justified, and the work was not professional enough.
Nowadays, with this kind of professional grain company, it will be much easier and more convenient.
As for whether Zhili Grain Company can complete this task, what if we encounter bold grain merchants who are expected to drive up grain prices and compete with the grain company?
What else can be done? If the methods of these grain dealers are mediocre, just normal business methods, and they have not raised the price of grain to an outrageous level, then the grain company will directly use its extremely strong financial strength to bankrupt them.
Although the Zhili Grain Company, which is backed by the Ministry of State-owned Enterprises, has no money on its books, it can mobilize massive amounts of grain and funds every minute, and can directly bankrupt all grain merchants in the world.
What, the grain merchants are so powerful that the Grain Company of the Ministry of State-owned Enterprises cannot defeat them. What should we do if this happens? Do we need to allocate tens of millions of taels of silver from the national treasury to fight a vigorous grain war?