Chapter 464 No One Can Replace Me (Bug Fix): The New Year is Here

On December 2nd, the Federal Reserve finally succumbed to the pressure, and its chairman, Alan Greenspan, made a public speech to reassure the market.

Xiao Gao and Xiao Zhao's English was so-so; they couldn't understand a word they heard after listening for a long time.

Old man, besides just shouting slogans, give us something practical, like cutting interest rates. That's the real trump card.

As a result, they didn't hear a single word about interest rate cuts from beginning to end.

Lacking confidence in their English proficiency, they turned to ask Lyuba for help.

The latter also shook his head: "No, they didn't mention anything about cutting interest rates."

Xiao Gao and Xiao Zhao couldn't understand it. Why not lower interest rates? Did this old man have so much confidence in himself? Did he think that everyone would listen to him just because he said a few nice words?

Wang Xiao was exhausted after a long day, her neck stiff. As she enjoyed Lyuba's massage, she laughed and said, "Don't underestimate him. He's a master among masters. In 1987, he took office and ended the financial crisis. Last year, he cut interest rates three times in a row as a precaution, keeping inflation at 2.5%-3% and successfully achieving a soft landing. It's a textbook example of his skill. He's incredibly impressive."

Xiao Gao was peeling an apple for his boss when he asked curiously, "Then why doesn't he lower interest rates? The stock market has been falling for over a month now."

With prices falling this much and no interest rate cuts, people are just too optimistic.

Wang Xiao waved his hand with a smile: "Raising or lowering interest rates isn't that simple; it can't be done just by talking. Take this interest rate cut, for example. What's your purpose? Anyone with eyes can see it: to save the stock market. But what makes you think you can save the stock market?"

Xiao Gao was stunned: "Shouldn't we save him?"

Wang Xiao sighed, "Why should we bail them out? What's the direct cause of this stock market crash? It's the garbage management company's financial fraud, and the accounting firm that audited it colluded with them to deceive the public. Oh, now that they've made a mess of things, the Federal Reserve is rushing to cut interest rates. Isn't that using taxpayers' money to clean up the mess for a fraudster? Isn't this indirectly encouraging fraudsters? It doesn't matter, as long as my scheme is big enough, big enough to not collapse and cause systemic risks, then I can deceive them to the extreme. Because the government can't afford the risk of my bankruptcy, the government will eventually come to my rescue."

Xiao Gao was dumbfounded. How could someone think like that?

Wang Xiao nodded: "A bunch of South Korean companies have so much foreign debt, yet they're fearless, because they think the government will definitely bail them out, right? A bunch of large Russian and Chinese companies are also heavily indebted, and they're also hoping the government will take over. The core idea is the same: they're betting the government won't let them go bankrupt."

Xiao Zhao thought about it for a while and felt there was a problem with his boss's words: "But besides the scammers, when the stock market crashes, the biggest losers are still the ordinary investors. Aren't we just going to ignore all these people?"

Wang Xiao smiled slightly: "You said it yourself, the stock market crash directly hurts individual investors, right? There are indeed many stock investors in the US, with about 40% of households directly holding stocks, but there's still the remaining 60%. Oh, you people with spare cash went to buy stocks, and when you made money, you didn't share a single penny with me. You might even laugh at me behind my back: 'You have no guts, you didn't dare to buy stocks, no wonder you didn't make money.' Now that you've lost money, why should I compensate you for your losses? If interest rates are lowered, won't the interest on my bank deposits decrease? That means you're losing my money."

Xiao Zhao was also stunned by the question. He never imagined that raising or lowering interest rates by the Federal Reserve would involve so many complicated matters.

Wang Xiao nodded: "When it comes to money, there are no small matters."

Xiao Gao asked curiously, "If it doesn't raise interest rates, can it pull the stock market back up?"

If you don't have any rice in your hand, you can't call a chicken.

If you don't offer real money, who's going to pay attention to him?

Wang Xiao shook his head: "It might work, after all, he's the chairman of the Federal Reserve. His words convey the subtext that the US government intends to rescue the market. As long as there's this attitude, it's a shot in the arm for the market. That's America!"

Everyone fell silent.

The world's leading superpower comes with its own background music and dazzling gold. Even if other governments were to throw out hundreds of tons of gold, they still couldn't achieve the same effect as it by issuing a single sentence.

Global confidence in the United States has sustained the hope that the US stock market will not fall.

You know what, Wang Xiao's mouth can be quite sharp sometimes.

On the evening of December 2nd, the Federal Reserve Chairman spoke, and the US stock market stopped falling the next day. It began to rebound on the third day, and by December 5th, the Douglas Index had surged by 6.7%.

Please remember this day; it was the last moment of glory for US stocks in December.

Just one day later, another major scandal broke out in the American business world: CUC International's financial fraud.

Moreover, this company is even more outrageous than the waste management company, having been falsifying data for 12 years.

What's even more coincidental is that the auditor for their company was still Arthur Andersen.

In less than half a month, two large companies, both clients of Arthur Andersen, went bankrupt one after the other.

Who wouldn't suspect that Arthur Andersen's audit quality is questionable after reading this?

Is the financial situation of the company you audit really trustworthy?

As one of the world's top five law firms, Arthur Andersen has a vast number of clients, most of whom are large companies.

Now, these companies have been exposed, and their true financial situation is highly questionable.

Either Andersen is incompetent and can't detect problems during the audit.

Or perhaps Arthur Andersen is in cahoots with these companies, even helping them commit financial fraud.

Large accounting firms that provide both audit and consulting services have serious conflicts of interest and are completely opposed to each other. How can they act as gatekeepers?

By the way, besides Arthur Andersen, are there no other accounting firms that have problems?

"Birds of a feather flock together." As one of the "Big Five," this whole affair has already been exposed; it's hard to believe the other four are completely innocent.

Are those companies you protect, whose financial statements are so perfect they could be used as models, also part of your conspiracy, or are they also fraudsters?

These remarks immediately took over online forums upon being posted online.

In 1997, traditional media were in their golden age and reacted swiftly, with newspapers and magazines raising questions almost simultaneously.

Radicals shouted: "You're all finished, you bunch of liars! You fabricated a false sense of American prosperity!"

Conservatives emphasized that this should be a chance to thoroughly investigate and find out just how many fraudsters are deceiving Wall Street and stock market investors.

Meanwhile, professionals are busy analyzing why such a shocking scandal occurred.

They considered the possibility of accounting firms engaging in internal competition, performing audits on one hand and consulting on the other (which included methods to evade audits).

It also takes into account the current corporate executive compensation system, where how much an executive earns is directly determined by the company's stock price. This seemingly reasonable performance evaluation actually encourages management to maintain a high stock price at all costs, regardless of the circumstances.

As is widely known, there is no more effective way to achieve results than data fabrication.

Scientific researchers may falsify experimental data, and listed companies may falsify financial statements.

But the devil is always one step ahead of the saint. Humans are born with an extraordinary talent for becoming demons.

The current accounting and financial regulatory system is completely unable to keep up with the complexity of financial innovation.

Experts are calling for this opportunity to urgently pass relevant legislation to strengthen financial oversight and executive accountability for listed companies.

Amidst the bleak market conditions and the chaotic public debate, have you noticed any problems?

Xiao Gao slapped his forehead: "Why do I feel like nobody's mentioned the waste management company, CUC International, and Arthur Andersen anymore?"

Wasn't it them who caused all this trouble? Why do they seem to have disappeared right now?

That's unreasonable!

“There’s nothing unreasonable about it,” Wang Xiao laughed. “It’s a public relations tactic called dragging your competitors down with you, which is common in the entertainment industry.”

For example, if a popular young actor is exposed for cheating, soon his peers will be exposed for similar or other scandals, and everyone will fall into the same trap.

When such scandals become frequent, the public develops the impression that "all men are like that," leading to inexplicable tolerance. Fans of other young actors whose scandals have been exposed also help to whitewash these men.

The young actor who initially broke the scandal will naturally be lost in the crowd.

Xiao Gao suddenly realized: "So, the current situation is due to the actions of these three companies?"

That makes sense, otherwise there's no reason why the fire would burn so brightly.

Wang Xiao shook his head with a smile: "Who can figure that out? Besides them, who knows?"

Lyuba felt that if it really was these three companies involved, then their public relations skills were quite sophisticated.

Because the role of public relations is always to amplify a certain true idea in people's minds.

Whether they are hidden or revealed, they truly exist.

If the public never harbors any doubts about the entire financial regulatory system, then even the most powerful public relations efforts will be in vain.

Now, it's just that this suspicion has been amplified.

Who would have thought that doubt could have such power?

On Wall Street in New York, Zhou Liang stared intently at the ever-changing green landscape on the trading floor's display screen.

His throat felt constricted, almost unable to make a sound. Sweat beaded on his forehead, let alone his back. The stock market crash had likely caused the trading floor to neglect its heating. White steam even billowed from his head, where he had taken off his hat.

No one had time to give him a second glance, because the stock market crash had turned everyone's eyes green.

It's unbelievable that it could fall this much!

Zhou Liang took a deep breath, turned around, and immediately returned to the hotel.

He is now certain of just how absurd his initial idea was.

The boss has never even been to the United States, so how could she possibly have orchestrated the exposure of a financial scandal involving an American company?

If she really was manipulating things, why didn't she short the stocks of the waste management company and CUC International beforehand?

The moment the scandals involving these two companies were exposed, their stock prices plummeted by half. The waste management company's stock price plunged 35% in a single day, wiping out $2 billion in market value. CUC International fared even worse, with its stock price crashing 80% in just a few days, losing nearly $8 billion in market value.

If you specifically short these two, then you're making the most of the most efficient investments.

But the boss never mentioned these two stocks from beginning to end.

It's clear they were just unlucky; they happened to be spotted by reporters, and they deserved their misfortune.

That's right, Zhou Liang didn't believe that among so many blue-chip stocks in the US, only those two had problems.

It's like telling you that there are only two corrupt officials in a certain circle, while the rest are all honest and upright.

Do you believe it? Well, Zhou Liang, an economics master's graduate, certainly doesn't.

When he returned to the hotel and called his boss to report on his work, he expressed similar sentiments, wondering how many more companies would go bankrupt.

Wang Xiao smiled and said, "If there are too many bombshells, everyone will become numb to them."

Zhou Liang was truly impressed by his boss's nonchalant tone.

No wonder she's someone who can make a lot of money. Every 100 points that the Douglas index drops means several more zeros for the boss's wealth. Why doesn't she get excited?

That's true, there are plenty of ways for a boss to make money. Finance is indeed incredibly lucrative, but even without this particular sum, she would have made a considerable amount.

For the boss, playing with 100 million RMB and 1 billion USD are probably about the same concept.

Otherwise, why would the boss have made a special trip to Bangkok in the summer, but now shows no intention of coming to the United States at all?

So, her interest in playing has waned.

After hanging up the phone, Wang Xiao turned around and made a serious request: "I want hot pot for supper."

The bodyguards and assistants in the office were all watching her. Some of them mustered up the courage to speak, but were silenced immediately by a glance from Lyuba.

Lyuba beamed, "Okay, let's eat hot pot!"

Half an hour later, Wang Xiao looked up from the pile of documents, staring blankly at the bubbling pot, and then looked intently at her busy assistant beside her: "Why do I want to eat this? I don't want hot pot, I want that bright red broth, understand?"

There are already hot pot bases available for sale in the market, so there's no issue of not having enough time to make the base.

Hot pot is so bland and watery, it's not stimulating at all.

Lyuba smiled and pushed her to sit down: "Try this, the fish is specially caught by breaking the ice, it's especially fresh. This chicken is also very tender."

Moscow winters are so cold, it's not easy to manage these living things.

"After eating hot pot, let's drink some soup and work up a sweat. How refreshing!"

No matter how much she protested, the people inside would absolutely not let her eat any of the bright red hot pot.

Good heavens, do you want to see how badly you've developed a sore throat? Jasmine tea isn't enough to soothe you, so now you're alternating between chrysanthemum tea and honeysuckle tea.

If you have another Chongqing hot pot, you can expect your throat to completely collapse.

You are still trying to persuade them: "If you can't speak, you can't see people, and you can't even make a phone call."

Just as Xiao Gao and Xiao Zhao were about to speak up for him, Mr. Ivanov must have been so anxious!

Lyuba's next question was: "How will we manage it then?"

Then their boss calmed down, obediently drank half a bowl of soup, and then obediently ate chicken pieces, fish slices, and crisp lettuce leaves—oh, that's called lettuce.

The two male bodyguards exchanged a glance, and without saying a word, they got to work.

Preparing these things in the dead of winter in Moscow is no easy task; otherwise, it would be such a waste if they were all eaten up.

Look how down-to-earth their boss is! To celebrate his successful shorting of US stocks, he simply had a hot pot meal.

And I haven't even had a single spicy bite.

After finishing his meal and working up a sweat, Wang Xiao felt relieved and a pang of conscience struck him: "I should call the White House office and see if Ivan is still awake and hasn't had a midnight snack. I'll prepare a hot pot for him too."

They hadn't seen each other for almost two months since they started guarding their respective areas.

The two finally met on December 31, the last day of 1997, the day before New Year's Day, when senior officials from the White House and the Kremlin came to the container market.

However, they still didn't manage to exchange more than a few words.

Because the renowned "father of privatization," Julius Chubbies, couldn't find anyone to express his surging emotions, he could only chase after Wang Xiao to express his disbelief: "How could the US stock market have fallen like this?!"

Well, actually, the Russian stock market has been a complete mess lately.

With US stocks remaining sluggish, few financial markets worldwide are having an easy time.

This is the power of the United States. When it sneezes, its throat swells and it develops symptoms of an upper respiratory infection, countries around the world will follow suit with muscle aches and systemic symptoms of a severe cold.

Even so, when you are in pain and see others in pain, at least psychologically you will feel much better.

This is the subtle feeling that Russian officials are experiencing as they watch the turmoil in the US financial markets.

It's not exactly gloating, it's more like, "Oh, so you're like that too."

It doesn't seem as amazing as I imagined.

After finishing his reflections, Qiu Baisi followed up with Wang Xiao and asked, "Miss Wang, what do you think?"

He still can't believe that the American economy is really in trouble.

In fact, the US economy should still be in good shape and showing a vigorous development trend.

Therefore, the performance of the financial market is actually contrary to its economic reality!

Wang Xiao accompanied them towards the Russian National Goods Pavilion, laughing, "I don't understand finance, how would I know? I have heard a saying, though: what drives market fluctuations is often human greed, fear, and arrogance, not data details. (Note ①)"

Chubais was slightly taken aback.

Wang Xiao stepped over the stairs and said with a smile, "There's another saying that the stock market was designed by God based on human weaknesses. The rise and fall of the stock market always fluctuates between human greed and fear."

Chubais couldn't help but shake his head and exclaim, "My God!"

As for what exactly he wanted to express with that exclamation, he himself couldn't say for sure.

Wang Xiao had no way of knowing, nor did he care.

"Gentlemen, this way." She led the group into the store, bringing together the Kremlin and the White House in a triumphant meeting.

Don't think this description is exaggerated.

When Ivanov, Chubais, Diachenko, Punonin, Nemtsov, and Soskowets put their hands together, the camera shutters of the media present, including a large number of foreign journalists stationed in Moscow, were practically smoking from clicking away.

This scene is definitely going to be the headline news today.

The Kremlin president's daughter has been endorsing Russian products for over a month, persistently promoting domestic goods.

She even replaced all her clothes, including her handbag, with domestic products, personally promoting them.

It has become the focus of public attention.

Now, Russian liberal figures, including Chubais, a senior Kremlin official, Deputy Prime Minister Ivanov, who spearheaded the economic reforms, Nemtsov, a representative of local government reformists, Punonin, head of the security services, and another recognized old-school official, Deputy Prime Minister Soskovets, have all come to support Tyachenko.

What does this signify? It signifies an attitude of unity.

Well, this doesn't seem particularly special; it's just a superficial political show, nothing much to say.

But if you notice that the current time is 1997 and the event took place in Russia, you will find that its significance is extraordinary.

As is well known, the Russian political scene in the 1990s was quite turbulent, especially the position of deputy prime minister, which changed hands frequently.

Because the government's economic reforms were unsuccessful, and the shock nearly killed it, the Kremlin will not hesitate to replace the White House staff if public sentiment becomes unrested.

The relationship between the two was so delicate that even when the president was recuperating, he dared not hand over power to the prime minister. Instead, he made Chubais, who had already taken up a post in the Kremlin, bear the ridicule of domestic and foreign public opinion and reluctantly take on responsibilities that should not have belonged to him.

Yes, yes, most ordinary Russians don't really care about this.

The pressure to survive has made them indifferent to everything, and they wouldn't care even if the Kremlin changed presidents again.

Whether they care or not is not something the government is concerned about now.

This is because the general public, who occupy the bottom of the population pyramid, although numerous, are not participants in the financial market.

They don't even use cash; neither dollars nor rubles are relevant to their lives. They only recognize food as a hard currency.

Therefore, they are actually the most stable foundation and do not require excessive attention.

At this moment, who is the government concerned about? The government is concerned about the middle class, the middle class who are contributing money to GKO investment.

Although they make up a small percentage of Russia's total population, they are the backbone of the GKO market.

On November 4th, after the government proposed a 15% devaluation of the ruble, they suffered huge losses in the GKO market.

Because they are not foreign investors, they are not protected by dollar futures contracts. As Russian citizens, they can only swallow the bitter pill of the ruble's devaluation.

Fortunately, the government did not completely ignore their plight and timely launched a plan to convert short-term bonds into long-term bonds, which means converting short-term government bonds into long-term treasury bonds with a minimum term of three years and a maximum term of five years.

What are the benefits for investors choosing this project?

That means investors holding short-term government bonds can have their principal calculated based on the pre-devaluation standard of the ruble and invest it in new long-term government bonds, which is equivalent to no devaluation.

Furthermore, the government has promised that if the ruble depreciates due to force majeure during the three-year period, the government will provide interest subsidies to cover the losses.

That sounds really good.

But wait, the interest rate on newly issued long-term government bonds is lower than that of GKO, so are investors still losing money?

But there's nothing we can do about it.

Because the government announced that the country has passed the most difficult stage and the Russian economy has entered a period of steady development, the government will not continue to issue GKOs (Gross Open-ended Taxes) to stimulate the economy, in order to avoid financial overheating and triggering an economic crisis.

Therefore, for GKO's domestic investors, they currently only have two options: one is to take the money and leave, even if it's only at an 85% discount, losing money is better than not getting the money at all.

Another option is to shift from short-term to long-term investments. Although it may not be as profitable as when you were a GKO (Government Koil Institution), it is higher than bank deposit interest rates. Most importantly, it is guaranteed by the government, making it more reliable than banks.

It's important to remember that the wave of bank failures in recent years has already terrified everyone.

However, the biggest problem with the latter is still a trust issue.

That is, the government is saying nice things now, but what will happen in three years?

Especially in the Russian political arena, which is fond of changing officials frequently, one day the deputy prime minister makes a solemn vow, and the next day he steps down. Who will they hold accountable then?

Therefore, what determines the direction of middle-class investors' wallets is their level of trust in the government.

These people happen to be those who pay special attention to domestic and international news and plan their next investment direction based on news information.

Now, ladies and gentlemen! Open your eyes wide and look carefully: Russia now has the most united government since it became an independent nation.

By sending the president's daughter to be stationed at the store long-term, the Kremlin made it clear that the president fully supports the new economic reform plan led by the White House.

The joint appearance of the two first deputy prime ministers proves that the White House will persist in reforms and will not back down.

The fact that the head of the tax police force appeared as a representative of the security forces indicates that the security forces will stand behind First Deputy Prime Minister Ivanov and support him in completing this financial reform.

The governor of Nizhny Novgorod Oblast, who was shaking hands with them as a representative of the local government, explained that the reforms had gained local support.

The financial frenzy that was previously concentrated in Moscow, while creating economic prosperity for Russia, did not actually benefit other regions.

The ruble devaluation reforms are directing money towards local areas, especially Siberia and the Far East, which have abundant energy resources.

It reflects the central government's responsibility as the head of the nation, rather than serving only Moscow.

What reason is there not to trust such a government?

The reporters frantically pressed the shutter button.

Those with quick minds, seeing this lively scene, had already begun to speculate about Moscow Mayor Luzhkov's attitude.

It is well known that Russia's policies are biased towards Moscow, and even the White House cannot control Moscow.

That's why there's the saying, "Moscow is Moscow, and Russia is Russia."

The current stance of the federal government is like that of a family's darling, suddenly seeing its parents decide to try to treat them equally.

Could the darling of the family bear it? No, none of the vested interests would easily relinquish their benefits.

If the two sides were to confront each other, that would be quite a spectacle.

As is widely known, the president of the Kremlin underwent a dangerous heart surgery at the beginning of his second term, and has been taking frequent breaks and getting sick every now and then since.

People have even gotten used to him not appearing in public for three to five months at a time.

Without a doubt, once he finishes this term, he can bow three times in farewell.

So, who will be the next leader of the Kremlin?

Moscow Mayor Luzhkov is quite popular; he has a good reputation, and his approval rating is consistently high in polls.

Hey! When he took office in 2001, things were going to get interesting.

Does the White House's current action preemptively offend their leadership?

Moscow's interests are now being harmed, which will also affect Luzhkov's presidential campaign.

This is something you can't really figure out; the more you think about it, the more interesting it becomes.

As everyone was lost in thought, a path suddenly appeared at the entrance of the venue, just as if Moses had parted the sea.

Walking on this newly opened road was none other than the very person everyone had just been gossiping about—Moscow Mayor Luzhkov.

An uproar immediately erupted in the crowd. Good heavens! Was Mr. Luzhkov here to cause trouble?

Quickly raise your camera; you absolutely must capture this iconic moment.

As a result, the burly Luzhkov smiled broadly. The first thing he did when he stepped to the front of the stage was to hug Ivanov, and then hugged everyone else in turn. When he reached out to Diachenko, he jokingly said, "It's a pity I'm not a handsome young man, ma'am, otherwise I would definitely give you a big hug."

After selling goods for over a month, the originally shy engineer, Dyachenko, had also become more assertive. She first shook hands with Luzhkov, then smiled and opened her arms to hug him.

Luzhkov laughed heartily: "Thank you, I feel like a handsome young man now."

The scene was filled with laughter, creating a relaxed and lively atmosphere.

When asked by a reporter why he had come, Luzhkov replied earnestly, "As a builder of Moscow, I have always hoped that all our factory machines would be running and that no piece of land on our farms would be left to languish. Our current economic reforms are moving in that direction, and we are all seeing the results. Every Russian should support this."

Many onlookers secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Thank God! Mayor Luzhkov prioritized the greater good and showed no intention of engaging in any open or covert struggle with the federal government.

In this way, the Kremlin and the White House work together, and the federal government and Moscow do not intend to compete with each other.

Their government leadership has finally stabilized, and the long-awaited stability has finally arrived.

That's good; they really don't want any more turmoil.

Punonin watched with a smile as Luzhkov personally took the stage to vigorously promote local Moscow products, but inwardly he felt a chill.

Don't be fooled by the sweet words this cunning old fox says, all for Russia's sake.

In fact, Punonin knew perfectly well that the reason he did not contradict Ivan and was even willing to show his support was because Ivan had assured him that he would never participate in the 2001 presidential election.

Given Ivan's current popularity, if he were to run for office, he would be an absolute formidable opponent for any other candidate.

Now that there is one less competitor, Luzhkov, who is aiming his guns at the Kremlin, is certainly willing to give face.

However, Luzhkov is also a formidable opponent, and Punonin has to consider how to defeat him in the general election four years later.

Yes, balanced development, allowing the economies of other regions to flourish, would make Moscow seem less dazzling.

As for whether this will lead to the decline of Moscow, and whether its decline will trigger the decline of the entire Russian state?

Punonin thought of Wang Xiao's words—there are only two kinds of people in Moscow: the rich and powerful, and those who serve the rich and powerful.

As long as the former exists, the latter can live a good life.

As long as Moscow remains the capital of Russia, it will always have a steady stream of wealthy and powerful people.

As for other social classes, sorry, because Mayor Luzhkov enforced a strict household registration system, those who didn't have enough money couldn't stay in Moscow.

There's absolutely no need to consider it.

Could this be considered Luzhkov helping him?

When Punonin thought about this, he couldn't help but feel unhappy.

This joyful atmosphere lasted throughout the entire New Year.

On January 1, 1998, New Year's Day, the Russian president delivered his New Year's address at the Kremlin.

Then, as the time difference changed, the US president, who was in Washington, D.C., also delivered his New Year's address.

At the subsequent press conference, he stated bluntly: "The stock market's performance may be disappointing, but I still stand by my view that as president, I will not easily comment on the daily performance of the stock market."

However, if any country's head of state speaks up, it means that he or she is paying attention to it.

This kind of attention is itself a silent comment, or even a silent statement.

That afternoon, the Federal Reserve held an emergency press conference and finally announced the interest rate cut plan that stock market investors had been eagerly awaiting.

Interest rates were cut by 25 basis points.

The moment this news was announced, the market erupted in chaos.

Some accuse the Federal Reserve of using taxpayers' money to bail out shameless swindlers, arguing that this financial appeasement policy will ultimately turn the United States into a country rife with swindlers, and the financial markets into a battleground for fraudsters.

Chairman Greenspan had to publicly emphasize that punishing fraud is the responsibility of the Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), while the Federal Reserve's mission is to prevent financial market turmoil from spreading to the real economy in order to protect the jobs and incomes of ordinary people.

He earnestly appealed to everyone to calm down, arguing that the entire national economy shouldn't be dragged down just to punish scammers. This is not a rational approach and would ultimately harm the interests of all citizens.

The media was in an uproar, and the International Financial Forum was thrown into chaos.

Everyone is waiting to see if an even bigger financial scandal will break out, and whether that will trigger another stock market crash.

Hey hey hey, if I short now, will I make a killing?

Previously, the Douglas Index almost fell below 5,000 points. From a high of over 8,000 points to over 5,000 points, it dropped by a full 3,000 points. How much market value was wiped out?

Good heavens! Those who bought options before the market was bearish are making a killing.

Indeed, in this era, financial investment is the most profitable business.

Amidst the commotion, Zhou Liang was quietly liquidating the accounts.

His liquidation process began in late December, which pained him somewhat. If it had been delayed by two days, he could have made an even greater profit.

The current market trend proves that the US stock market did not rebound sharply as soon as the Federal Reserve announced an interest rate cut; it merely stopped falling, and many people are still watching and waiting.

They were afraid that another shocking scandal would occur, turning what they thought was a bargain into a trap for those who were left holding the bag.

However, his boss said earnestly, "Don't overthink it. It's come to this point. The overall economic situation in the United States is still quite good. If the government wants to bail out the market, it can do so very quickly."

Zhou Liang was still a little doubtful: "Won't anyone else try to trip us up?"

He bet that during this period of stock market crash in the United States, the whole world was watching America's drama unfold.

Oh dear, so you're nothing special after all.

Wang Xiao countered, "Who dares? If the US really collapses, who can prop it up? The EU? The EU was just established; it doesn't even have a unified currency yet, and each country has its own agenda. How can they possibly work together in one direction? Japan? The real trigger for this Asian economic downturn was Japan's economic recession. It suffered a lot this time; where does it get the strength to withstand it?"

The remaining countries simply do not have the economic strength to do so.

So, after all that, the engine of the world economy is still the United States.

If America falls, people might gloat a bit and that's fine. But if it really collapses, everyone will be the one who suffers.

With such a huge consumer market, how many people are counting on making money from it?

When the benefactor dies, everyone will truly feel as if they have lost their own parents.

Wang Xiao sighed: "A good order is better than a bad order, and a bad order is better than no order. The world order led by the United States may not be good, but it is definitely better than no order."

Therefore, this financial crisis in the United States should be coming to an end.

It remains a global economic safe haven in the eyes of many.

But is this necessarily a good thing? The influx of global hot money means the next crisis is yet to come.

Financial markets are forever tossed about by human greed and fear.

After New Year's Day, Wang Xiao will also be leaving Moscow.

Go back to South Africa? She'd love to, but she's not destined for it.

She had to fly to South Korea to check out the small and medium-sized semiconductor companies she had her eye on early on.

The key to her next stage of career transformation lies here.

Ivanov also left Moscow with her, his destination still being South Korea.

Stop daydreaming. Ivanov is too busy to take a vacation right now. His purpose in going to South Korea is very simple: negotiation.

It is well known that the prosperity of Russia's financial market is due to the large amount of foreign investment.

27% of GKO buyers are foreign investors.

South Korea is a significant investor in this sector.

Ivanov needs to talk to people and persuade South Korea not to rush to withdraw its investments from Russia in order to stabilize the Russian economic market.

————————!!————————

Note ①: This is Greenspan's market psychology game theory: human greed, fear, and arrogance dominate market fluctuations, rather than data details, pointing directly to the root cause of the 2008 financial crisis.

While correcting typos, I realized this chapter was too dry, so I added some more content.