Chapter 668 War without Gunpowder

The year 1879 was a turning point for the whole world, both politically and economically, were affected by the Russian-Prussian War.

Affected by the tense situation in Europe, France and Austria both stared at the European continent, and did not go out to do things. The British only stepped in in South America, and the main energy was also on the European continent.

The three big hooligans are not doing anything, let alone other countries.

In these years, colonial empires are very politically sensitive. The tension in the European continent does not focus on the mainland. What if the situation gets out of control?

The colonial empire did not do anything, which is undoubtedly good news for those independent countries that are precarious, and they can finally live a comfortable life for a few days.

The Russian-Prussian War started, and even the contradictions between Britain, France and Austria were suppressed. For common interests, the three great powers stood together early on.

Of course, this alliance of interests is not reliable. Once the international situation undergoes major changes, or the power of the three countries is out of balance, this alliance may collapse at any time.

If the influence of the Prussian-Russian War on the international situation is more after the war; then the impact on the world economy is immediate.

There are many affected industries, affecting almost every field. Among them, agriculture, manufacturing, finance, and service industries enjoy the greatest dividends.

In the capitalist economic world, a new round of prosperity has begun. The most typical example is that the agricultural crisis has disappeared, the overcapacity of the manufacturing industry no longer exists, and the prosperous economy directly promotes the development of the financial and service industries.

Although the war has just begun and the biggest dividends brought by the war have not yet fully erupted, the capitalists are full of confidence.

A large amount of hot money has poured into the market, and the economic environment has suddenly improved. Recruitment advertisements can be seen in the streets and alleys, and the wages of workers in the fields related to the war have risen slightly.

According to statistics, the new investment in Austria in November alone was as high as 160 million Aegis, an increase of 76.4% over the same period last year.

Most of this part of the funds flowed into the manufacturing industry, and factories rose up one after another. Obviously, investors are very optimistic about this opportunity.

Not just in Austria, but all over the European continent. Capital is like crazy, constantly pouring into all walks of life, wanting to take a share of the Russian-Prussian war.

Looking at the statistical data, Franz frowned: "The market is too hot now, although the war costs a lot, but Prussia and Russia have some wallets.

Neither Britain nor France will provide them with unlimited funds. It won't be long before a new round of overcapacity erupts, and the post-war European economy may be wailing. "

Economy Minister Reinhard Haldegen explained: "Your Majesty, this is the inevitable law of economic development. In the previous wars, many people have made huge fortunes, and they have been blinded by interests and ignored. the existence of risk.

Not only domestically, but the entire European world. According to estimates by economic experts, in the past two months, new investment in Europe has increased by at least 50% compared with the same period last year.

Overcapacity after the war will become a common problem for all European countries. This is a huge problem, but also a huge opportunity.

As long as we seize this opportunity, we can take the opportunity to crush the French manufacturing industry and weaken this biggest competitor. "

There is no anti-dumping argument these days, and free trade is the mainstream of the times. The French have not resisted the pressure and joined the free trade system six months ago.

The core of "free trade" is that the government cancels restrictions and obstacles on import and export trade, cancels various privileges and preferences for domestic import and export commodities, and enables commodities to be imported and exported freely and compete freely in domestic and foreign markets.

On the surface, it is good for everyone, and it can have a global market at the same time, which has cleared the obstacles to the circulation of commodities.

In fact, there are also gaps between enterprises and between countries, and this gap directly reflects the competitiveness of the market.

There is no doubt that the resource-poor France is at a disadvantage in this round of competition. Importing raw materials directly increases production costs.

In order to cut costs, capitalists naturally want to lower wages, and the influx of cheap Italian labor has created favorable conditions for lower wages.

In the last ten years, per capita wages in Europe have increased by 23.8 percent, while those in Greater France have only risen by 5.4 percent.

In this context, conflicts between the French and Italian people are naturally emerging one after another. Even if the Paris government tries to suppress it, it still has little effect.

Regrettably, the international competitiveness of most French industrial and commercial products is still not high, even with lower wages.

No way, who makes labor costs cheap these days? Except for labor-intensive industries, the labor cost of most industrial and commercial products is less than one-fifth of the total cost, or even less.

Industrial raw materials occupy the bulk of production costs. How to improve market competitiveness without solving the problem at the source?

The market is a whole, and while reducing labor costs, it also weakens the purchasing power of the market.

Although Grand France has a population of 60 million, the market consumption power cannot catch up with John Bull, which has only 30 million people.

Market consumption power is not enough, and it is fed back into industrial production, forcing companies to produce cheaper goods. This is a vicious economic cycle.

Taking coal as an example, the cost of industrial coal in France is 1.3 times that of Austria, and even more than twice as much in some inland areas.

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In the beginning, the high price of coal led to an increase in the cost of power generation, which in turn led to an increase in electricity costs. The high electricity price was undoubtedly the biggest obstacle to the promotion of electricity.

One step at a time, there is no promotion of electricity, and there is no way to talk about electricity-powered mechanical equipment.

Affected by this, upstream power machinery and equipment manufacturers are limited in their development, unable to invest in research and development of more advanced equipment, and gradually lag behind in international competition.

Downstream equipment users, because they did not adopt the most advanced productivity in time, were surpassed or even eliminated by their competitors in the market competition.

In this age of the weak and the strong, falling behind will be beaten. The French are strong enough in military strength, and no one will attack them for no reason, but the economy is different. Everyone is a competitor, and it is inevitable to attack them.

As long as it can beat the competition, it is naturally worth paying some price. Under the free trade system, large-scale overcapacity appears, and all countries have to compete for industrial strength.

In this regard, the Vienna government is confident, and Franz is also confident. Because Austria's infrastructure construction is the complete king of the era.

Not only is the transportation developed, it is also the first country in Europe to popularize electricity, and it is also the birthplace of the second industrial revolution. The field of emerging industries is at the forefront of the world.

In this regard, Yingao has two extremes. One focuses on emerging fields and the other focuses on traditional industries, and both have become industry overlords. This creates favorable conditions for cooperation between the two countries.

Franz: "In this case, let the crisis come more violently! It's better to destroy it together with the manufacturing industries in Europe and the United States, as a clearing before the curtain opens.

This time, we can cooperate with British capitalists and let private enterprises take the lead, instead of directly involving the government. As soon as the Prussian-Russian War ended, they were launched together to set off this capital war. "

A war without gunpowder is sometimes more brutal. The damage caused is no less than a war.

It is conceivable that it will not be long before unemployment and bankruptcy will once again become a hot topic in the whole society.

After pondering for a while, Economic Minister Reinhard Haldegen: "As long as it is a country that has joined the free trade system, it is easy to handle.

The United States of America has some difficulties. They are still stubbornly implementing trade protection policies. It is very difficult to pry their doors open. "

learn from mistakes. The American capitalists have been scourged by British capital a few times, and now they are frightened, and they simply close the door and play by themselves.

Anyway, its own rich resources, directly copying the technology of European countries, in addition to its own market is a little small, life is not bad.

Franz: "It's up to the Foreign Office. The British are the vanguard when it comes to promoting free trade.

Everyone can unite to put pressure on the United States, and if they join in, they are half their own. If they are stubborn, then there is no need to be polite.

Since they want to play trade protection, they simply let them play enough, and the international embargo is a good choice. "

To tell the truth, the industrial and commercial products of the United States are really not very competitive these days, and many products are not even comparable to the Russians.

If there is no trade protection and open the door to competition, they will absolutely die badly.

Franz did not expect the United States to be able to fully open up the market, as long as it opened a crack in the door, it was acceptable not to smuggle.

Franz never gave up an opportunity when it came to taking down his competitors.

Prime Minister Felix: "Your Majesty, if we push it further, the post-war economic crisis will probably be catastrophic.

If the crisis lasts too long, the situation on the European continent may be broken again, and we are not ready. "

Man-made disasters are the most terrifying, especially such man-made disasters that can only manipulate the beginning and cannot control the ending, and their destructive power is even better.

With the advent of the industrial age, the economy has an increasing influence on the political situation. Due to the deterioration of the economy, there have been countless turbulent situations, and many wars have erupted.

Franz shook his head: "There is not so much time to prepare, we can never be fully prepared, and when we are ready, the opportunity is missed.

Moreover, if we do not take action, it does not mean that the British will not act either. It is better to take the initiative to fight than passively. "

When you get older, you tend to be conservative. It does not mean that being conservative is not good. In fact, for a big country, being conservative often means that the country will have long-term prosperity. Radicalism is a disaster for a country.

It's just that the opportunity is too rare. Once you miss this opportunity, if you want to take action, the price you need to pay is not a single star.

To put it bluntly, Franz did not live peacefully. In addition to not daring to take risks in the military, in the economic field, he still doesn't mind giving it a try.

Succeed, of course, is the best; failure, unlucky is also a speculator. The Vienna government's experience in dealing with economic crises has been very rich, and it can't hurt the fundamentals of the country.