The journey starts from the Titanic

Should Shanghai's literati travel farewell to the slow rickshaws in movies and TV?

Indeed, some eye-catching rickshaw drivers have turned their attention to cars. It is said that a taxi company is preparing to buy cars and recruit drivers.

Distributors in Wuhan, Guangzhou, Nanjing, Tianjin and other places saw the hot sale of Shanghai brand cars and successively sent orders to SAIC Motor.

In order to open up the market, Song Zian set his sights on the taxi industry and invited the bosses of Shanghai taxi companies to visit the car factories in the second phase of the Baoshan Xingang Industrial Zone, and actively promoted Shanghai brand cars to these taxi company bosses.

At the same time, it also hinted that if the taxi company does not purchase Shanghai brand cars, the Song family will personally go down and set up their own taxi company to sell their own cars.

This trick is very harsh, and the bosses of Shanghai taxi companies are not calm at once. Once the Song family enters the taxi industry, with strong capital and strong government resources, Shanghai’s taxi market will have no place for them to survive. They succumbed to a cooperation agreement with SAIC Motor.

Song Meiling has been paying attention to Yaodidi Automobile Company. After resigning from the government, she accompanied her mother to Shanghai to take care of her business by the way.

She is a person who can't be idle, she is energetic, and she is coming to Shanghai this time to plan a big event.

Chapter 218

Song Zian inspected the production situation of the automobile factory, went to the assembly workshop to watch the workers assemble the engine suspension system and other accessories, and watched his Shanghai brand car roll off the assembly line. His heart was full of accomplishment and the company was on the right track.

To increase car sales, he asked the bosses of Shanghai taxi companies to "drink coffee."When I got home, I was caught by the third sister and asked: "Have you collected all the bosses of Shanghai taxi companies? Give them the loan?"

"Incorporated? It's barely counted. The ten or so taxi companies in Shanghai have less than one car in total, and their strength is limited. They are more than enough to include them.

I am optimistic about the future taxi market. As for loans, my second brother and I have discussed, and he also agreed that our Shanghai Commercial Bank will provide loans to taxi companies to buy our cars.

Now the banking industry is also optimistic about the taxi market. If this model is successful, we can promote it nationwide."

Song Zi'an smiled.

"With a car mortgage, the bank is not afraid of taxi companies running away. Maybe the taxi company is working for the car factory and the bank."

Song Meiling quickly figured out the thoughts of the two younger brothers, nodded and smiled.

"The two sides are just mutual benefit." Song Zi'an said lightly, and said with some dissatisfaction, "It's really unfair to say that our automobile company must be self-reliant, and Dasheng Automobile Company can easily receive 5 military vehicles. Truck orders!"

Song Meiling smiled when her younger brother looked dissatisfied: "The load can reach one and a half ton. The technology comes from the American Dodge Company. The engine is powered by the cooperation between Meihua Electric and Yangzi Machinery Company. You have to admit that Dasheng's trucks are more powerful than yours. Nondescript pickups are much stronger. Even if Ziwen comes forward to help you fight, the odds of winning are not great."

"Why are pickup trucks so nondescript? The owner of the Shanghai garment factory winery likes pickup trucks. They can carry people or goods. The price is cheap. The vegetable vendors in the suburbs are also used to transport vegetables!"

Seeing her sister belittle the pickup truck produced by her company, Song Zian had to refute.

The Shanghai brand pickup is also a variant of the T-type car. The butt of the car is cut off and installed on the body. The load is 400 to 500 kg. It is suitable for both passenger and cargo. It is very suitable for small city bosses and shopkeepers. It is the successor of Shanghai Automobile Company. After the success, another model was launched according to local conditions.

"Oh, still guarding your car factory like an old hen? You can't tolerate a bad thing."

Song Meiling gave her younger brother a glance. Regarding the competition between Dasheng Motors and SAIC Motor, neither she nor Song Ziwen would openly express their views. Compared with the well-known Shanghai Automotive Company, Dasheng Motors, which is more powerful, prefers Hejun. Party cooperation.

Dasheng Automobile Co., Ltd. chose to cooperate with Chrysler Automobile Company and introduced automobile manufacturing technology from Chrysler Automobile Company, somewhat because Chrysler Automobile Company manufactured tanks and armored vehicles during World War I, and has advantages in military industry.

Dasheng Automobile Company is also manufacturing civilian cars. After introducing Chrysler's Airflow brand car technology, it is taking the middle and high-end car route. The prices of the manufactured cars are all over two or three thousand yuan. They are welcomed by the rich and their sales are relatively high. Quite plain.

There are some secrets that Song Ziwen and Song Meiling knew, but they couldn't tell his younger brother Song Zian. But that's okay. Shanghai Automobile Company took the civilian route, which just allowed Song Ziwen to reduce attacks from political enemies.

"Sister, don't look at the Shanghai brand car sales are good, very popular in the market, but we basically did not make any money, we are supported by loans and prerequisite investment."

When Song Zi'an mentioned the situation of the automobile company, he complained again. After complaining, his face was not anxious, but rather confident.

"If you are short of money, sister's newspaper group can lend you." Song Meiling said generously.

"No, it's not necessary. The funding issue is not the main issue. What restricts the development of auto factories is the market environment. To be precise, it is the road issue."

When Song Zian said this, he took a look at his sister. Although the third sister resigned, the influence of the government in Wuhan is not worse than that of the prime minister, and even stronger. If the third sister comes forward, the government will introduce an initiative to encourage automobile development. Policy may be much easier.

"When I visited the United States, all major cities in the U.S. built highways and roads extend in all directions, but Shanghai—the road traffic may not be as good as Xintangshan, and the area from Jiangwan to Baoshan Xingang Industrial Zone is better."

Song Zian said.

"You mean..." Song Meiling probably understood her younger brother's thoughts, and Song Meiling thought to herself that Song Zi'an was on the right path to join the automobile industry.

Dasheng Group and Songjia set up their automobile companies in Shanghai. They are large local companies in Shanghai, and they are also attracted by the huge potential of the Shanghai automobile market.

"You don't need to worry about highways. The Bank of Communications and the government have already prepared and invested no less than the investment in railways." Song Meiling laughed.

"Sister, it turns out you were prepared to make me worry about cats and mice."

Song Zian complained, looking curious, and chased Song Meiling to inquire about the highway.

...

Little Kadoorie and Sassoon met for the second time, and the agreement for the joint development of the second phase of the Jiangwan project was implemented. The American Chinese Bank loaned Sassoon Company a sum of money.

After the incident, Little Kadoorie asked Sassoon whether he wanted to invest in expressways. The Shanghai Municipal Government wanted to build expressways and gave the expressway companies many preferential policies. The principle is that whoever invests will benefit and have the opportunity to develop land along the route first.

Sassoon had no intention of investing in expressways, but saw the business opportunities brought about by the appreciation of surrounding land due to expressway projects, so he did not refuse Xiao Kadao.

"HSBC must really like this project. Didn't they also invest in the Guangdong-Han Railway?" Sassoon suggested with a smile.When the goal was achieved, he was very relaxed and recommended HSBC to Kadoorie.

HSBC has always had a tradition of investing in China's infrastructure, and HSBC's participation was indispensable in the Qing Dynasty's railway plan.Had it not been for the birth of American China Bank, the Guangdong-Hanzhou Railway would have been swallowed by HSBC.

Of course, Xiao Kadao knows that HSBC is interested. Apart from American and Chinese Bank, HSBC is the largest foreign investment in China. After years of running in, the two companies have cooperated and struggled and are very familiar with each other.

Faced with Sassoon’s kind proposal, Kadoorie said lightly: “In fact, both of us have reached a consensus on expressways and formed a bank group to jointly invest in expressways.”

"Then count me as one. I invested 20,000 yuan in fiat currency." Sassoon shrugged.

As Xiao Kadoori said, shortly after meeting with Sassoon, American and Chinese Bank took the lead in forming a bank consortium. More than a dozen major banks including HSBC, Citibank, Bank of Communications, Siming Bank, Zhejiang Industrial Bank, etc. participated in the expressway plan and Negotiations with the Ministry of Transport.

Shanghai has developed transportation, with shipping and railway covering the Yangtze River Delta region and even the entire Yangtze River Basin. In order to promote the road transport industry and drive the development of related enterprises such as steel, automobile, construction, etc., the Bank of America and China formed a bank group in conjunction with major banks in Shanghai. The government cooperated to form expressway companies, including two expressways from Shanghai to Nanjing and Hangzhou.

The Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge and the Qiantang River Bridge are also related to this and are connected to the expressway.

In early 1930, the Wuhan government proposed a national highway construction plan, which opened the prelude to the first large-scale highway construction in Chinese history.

Soong Meiling was unwilling to be lonely. She attended the meeting as a representative of the Shanghai Women’s Bank. The Women’s Bank is also a member of the banking group. At the same time, she is also one of the shareholders of American China Bank. With the support of the banking group and the government, Song Meiling is confident of obtaining this strategic project. Initiative.

"Sister, what's the situation? When will the Shanghai expressway start?"

Song Zian asked Song Meiling as soon as he got home.

The automobile company is one of the beneficiaries of the expressway plan. Although it is not directly benefited by the suppliers of raw materials and construction machinery such as Baoshan Iron and Steel Maanshan Iron and Steel Qixin Cement Yangzi Machinery, it is definitely an opportunity for SAIC Motor.

Imagine that after the Shanghai-Nanjing, Shanghai-Hangzhou expressway is completed, the automobile market in East China will explode. In addition to Shanghai, Wuhan and Guangzhou will also start expressway plans.

The more Song Zian thought about it, the more he felt that it was too right to invest in a car company.

"The general principles have been negotiated a long time ago. There are still some minor issues. It is estimated that it will take a few days to quarrel."

Song Meiling yawned, and she looked a little tired after driving for a few days.