v2 Chapter 1448： pricing power

The press conference continued, although the second son gave a tone. But the Japanese media may pay more attention to what Mitsubishi thinks. Or what achievements they have achieved in Iraq; these are all heroic deeds of Japanese companies' outward expansion, and the domestic people are eager to know and are still waiting for their reports.

As for Xiangjiang Media, they basically didn't come over, so Bao Zixuan felt that it didn't matter. And he didn't want to show too much limelight today, so as not to overshadow the other two.

After all, one needs to let the world see the demeanor of Iraq's successor and whether he has the ability to govern a country. One needs to let the Japanese people understand the personal charm of the future head of Mitsubishi and the ability to lead the group to a higher level of glory.

As for the richest man, he no longer needs to prove himself to anyone. Heiyun Group is not a listed company, and it does not need to disclose financial statements; as long as it is doing its best to make employees and partners have confidence, there is no other problem.

The Asahi Shimbun is very positive about this matter, and Japan's domestic economy no longer needs to prove to the outside world. People instinctively believe that Japanese companies are capable and should expand their territories abroad. Because only in this way can the status of a great power be manifested. With the current military strength of Japan, it will definitely not do anything; most importantly, it will not dare to do anything. If there is such an idea, it is courting death.

But this does not prevent the use of economic means to capture high ground. Oil, as the most important energy source in the world, can be said to be inseparable from people's lives. Now Japanese companies can obtain mining rights in the core energy area; it is a great victory in itself.

The Asahi Shimbun reporter first asked: "Mr. Iwasaki, hello! May I ask whether Mitsubishi has obtained the qualification to exploit oil in Iraq this time, and what price has Mitsubishi paid for this?"

It's reasonable to pay a small price to get the benefits. However, asking this question has a sense of exchange, which makes it uncomfortable to listen to. In fact, it is normal. The Asahi Shimbun newspaper phalanx has always insisted on facing the intellectual class and following the line of mass newspapers. Its reader positioning has always taken the line of mass newspapers that absorb the intellectual class. The Asahi Shimbun still maintains the color of an "elite newspaper" among Japanese newspapers. That is, its readers have the highest education, and 33.2% of readers have college or above.

That is to say, readers of the Asahi Shimbun prefer to see the truest side, and readers will not buy it simply by fooling around.

Iwasaki Hiroyuki said with a smile: "Mitsubishi Heavy Industries has always been at the world's advanced level in terms of oil extraction and smelting. And it has long wanted to have its own oil field; but oil is a strategic resource, and there is almost no domestic oil."

"So when Iraq invited Mitsubishi to visit Iraq, I think any company would be tempted; Mitsubishi is the same. It is our technical strength that has been recognized by Iraq; and because Iraq has just ended the war, there is not much money for it. oil extraction."

"That's why we agreed to develop an oil field entirely by Mitsubishi. Of course, Mitsubishi must pay the taxes and other costs in full. However, the Iraqi side does not interfere with the pricing power. That is to say, when the oil is shipped back to China, Mitsubishi has its own Pricing power."

"Iraq's sincerity and determination to reform deeply touched me. Mr. Bao Zixuan from Heiyun Group is planning to build a steel plant, a power plant, and a shipyard in Basra. These are Mitsubishi's strengths, and Because of the relationship with United Aircraft Corporation, I am very familiar with Mr. Bao Zixuan."

"He dared to invest, and Mitsubishi certainly couldn't let go of this opportunity. Therefore, they decided to invest together to expand the scale of the project. The two companies will divide labor and cooperate, and I believe that these factories will be able to create brilliant results in the future."

"And the Basra Shipyard, in the preliminary planning, only produces oil tankers and natural gas carriers, which can be said to be very suitable for the Middle East market. As for whether you say that oil extraction has anything to do with the construction of factories; I can tell you that we went to the oil field to determine the contract first. Only later did Mr. Bao Zixuan propose to build a factory in Basra."

The media finally made it clear that it turned out that Iraq did not have any extra funds to invest in oilfield exploitation; it was only then that Mitsubishi picked up a big bargain. In fact, it is normal to think about it; after all, the scale of the Iran-Iraq war was not small, and both sides suffered heavy losses. If we do not think of ways from the outside, then it will be difficult to develop in the short term only by relying on domestic strength.

As for Mitsubishi's so-called pricing power, it's just a flicker of a Japanese hit. Let the Japanese instinctively feel that Mitsubishi Oil will definitely be cheap. At the same time, I will also believe that Mitsubishi is indeed getting a big bargain in the Middle East this time.

In fact, this is a bit taken for granted. Oil pricing power is very involved. Mitsubishi Heavy Industries is exploiting a small oil field, and it can't make any waves at all.

From the end of World War II to 1972, the world's oil pricing power has been in the hands of European and American countries. Before that, several major oil-producing countries in the world have worked hard for more than 10 years to try to regain the oil pricing power from Europe and the United States, but all ended in failure.

Relying on the backing of strong military forces and the huge capital, technology and equipment of their own oil giants, Europe and the United States continue to obtain more oil exploration rights from oil-producing countries. In order to win more oil exploration rights, several large companies in Europe and the United States jointly acted, which made it difficult for other oil companies to get involved. For example, if you are going to grab the exploitation rights of a certain oil field, Europe and the United States will unite to suppress oil prices; you will not dare to exploit it after you buy it, because the more you exploit, the more you will lose. The means of uniting and suppressing with low prices are very effective. Soon, the global oil-producing countries are basically monopolized by seven European and American companies. They are the famous seven oil sisters.

The term "Seven Oil Sisters" first appeared in the 1950s, when it was proposed by Enrico Fontaine, the president of Italian oil giant Eni. Oil companies; the remaining two were BP and Shell, which was then jointly operated by the United Kingdom and the Netherlands. Of course, it's not just these seven, other oil companies also have a layout; it's just that their strength is too weak compared to the seven sisters, so they are rarely mentioned. But they all acted with the seven.

Europe and the United States control the oil pricing power, and it stands to reason that they should raise prices to make huge profits. After all, these capitalists are greedy, but they do the opposite, that is, they keep suppressing oil prices. Even starting in the 1950s, the export price of refined oil was lower than the extraction price. Why did the oil giants sell at a loss?

This involves the huge conspiracy of the United States and Britain. After World War II, the West was eager to restore the economy, so it urgently needed cheaper oil, natural gas, etc. In order to support its European allies, the United States, of course, also seeks to better control them. Therefore, oil companies are required to sell at a low price, and these oil companies have to cooperate with the actions of the US government; after all, the big US capitalists at this time did not have too much influence on the US government.

At the beginning, everyone exported crude oil and refined oil at low prices, and the giants still made money. As the United States continued to target the Soviet Union, the curtain of the Cold War slowly rose. At that time, the Soviet Union discovered a large oil field; and the extracted oil began to be exported to the European market, which made the United States and the United Kingdom anxious. So the two countries launched an oil war, constantly reducing the price of exports; trying to hit the Soviet Union's share of oil exports, thereby hitting the Soviet economy. This sacrificing the interests of oil-producing countries and oil giants to help the United States and Britain fight their opponents; of course, oil-producing countries are very upset, but they have no ability to resist.

In September 1960, the five major oil-producing countries in the world gathered in Baghdad, the capital of Iraq, and announced the establishment of the "Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries", that is, OPEC. These five countries were Iran, Kuwait, Iraq, Saudi Arabia and Venezuela. Hope to join hands to regain the oil pricing power But the initial effect was not good, until the Libyan head of state appeared, through a series of operations; the oil price was returned to OPEC's hands. However, Mitsubishi directly enters the upper reaches of the supply chain, and it can be said that there are no middlemen. At the same price, the profit is bound to be higher, so it is just too much to say that it has obtained the Japanese pricing power.

But they didn't dare to cut prices too hard, after all, the price of crude oil is basically in the hands of OPEC. At the same time, Mitsubishi must ensure sufficient profits, otherwise it will be difficult to survive.

But this is enough to make the Japanese excited and looking forward to it. After all, they were not qualified to participate in the oil exploration field in the Middle East.

As for the construction of several factories, that is also the company's outward expansion. The Japanese are not ranked in this regard, their own land area is small; it is impossible to build all factories in the country; in that case, it will take up too many resources and the gains will outweigh the losses.

On the contrary, the government and the public also hope that enterprises will go abroad. Go abroad to expand territory, make money from outside, and subsidize it at home.

As to whether the two sides operate under the shadows, whether to agree to start a factory or invest in an oil field first; it is not so important anymore. The current effect is very good, it can be said that it is a win-win situation. As for the rest, no one cares!