Rise of the 1630s South America

Chapter 618 Cooperation ([-])

The great appetite of the Genoese was passed back to the executive committee at the first time.

Although the members of the executive committee were very dissatisfied with the Genoese's attempt to control the possible establishment of the Bank of La Plata, considering that this was a non-negotiable clause proposed by the Genoese, they did not say anything, and they acquiesced to Genoa People took control of the bank, which provides financial services for foreign trade on the east coast.However, in response, the East Coast people also put forward some other conditions.

For example, the East Bank has the right to send representatives to supervise and review the bank's operations and accounts; for example, the bank can set up a large number of branches in Europe, but the headquarters must be set up in Qingdao Port; All kinds of bills generated in the previous year are calculated by centralized transfer and offset. If there is a trade balance, people on the east coast should be allowed to withdraw cash. Cash withdrawal can be done in Europe or at Qingdao Port. There is a certain amount of cash in the headquarters of Qingdao Port.If there is insufficient balance in the current account opened by the Ministry of Trade on the East Coast, a certain amount of temporary overdraft shall be allowed, and no interest shall be charged on the overdraft.

The proposal of these conditions really cost the Genoese a lot of brain cells.They refuted a total of eight articles one by one, and gave reasons one by one, saying that this is unreasonable and there is no precedent. In short, they are "persuading" people on the east bank to give up their due rights.Facing the iron cock-like character of the Genoese, Qiang Quansheng simply announced the temporary termination of the talks, and let out the wind to "suggest" that the trade between the two parties should still be the original cash transaction. Nor is it willing to give up some of its interest in the bank.

After the Genoese were left in the air for three days, Mario finally took the opportunity of the signing ceremony of the food cooperation agreement on August 8 to express to the East Coast people the hope that the financial cooperation negotiations will continue, and hinted that they would make some concessions .

Since the Genoese have released a signal of goodwill, there is no need for the people on the east coast to continue to collapse, after all, isn't that what negotiations are about.Therefore, on August 8, the negotiations between the two parties continued in Qingdao Port.

This time the Genoese were very pragmatic. They first estimated the overall demand in Europe for several major commodities on the east coast (textiles, leather goods, hardware products, metal agricultural tools, soda ash, grain and oil, etc.), and then estimated the first year The approximate amount that can be sold, as well as the demand for various imported goods on the east coast, finally come up with the amount of reserve funds needed, so that people from the east coast can withdraw cash at any time.The funds were placed in the treasury of the head office, and the head office was finally determined to be located in Qingdao Port, the Republic of China on the east coast.

They also expressed their approval of the supervisory rights proposed by the East Coast people.They are initially planning to set up a total of eight branches in Genoa, Florence, Palermo, Innsbruck, Barcelona, ​​Bordeaux, Amsterdam, and Lisbon. Each branch can send 1-2 people to the bank and exercise reasonable supervisory power.

"With regard to the sales of your country's products in Europe, I think it should be authorized to the powerful St. George's Firm as the general agent. Does the other party have any doubts about this?" The negotiation has almost entered a critical period now, and the Doria family as One of Genoa's top families represents the interests of the entire Genoa business circle at this time, so he very much hopes to obtain the exclusive monopoly of goods on the east coast, but of course he also knows that the possibility is unlikely.

"In view of the latest cooperation agreement signed by the Chinese government with the Dutch West India Company in July this year, the Dutch have obtained 7 east coast commodities including grain, leather, metal products, steel, textiles, boats, soda ash, etc. in Dutch Brazil, West India, etc. Indies, New Spain, North America, West Africa and the mainland of the Netherlands have a ten-year monopoly franchise. Our country does not want to destroy the validity of this agreement, so after careful consideration, we can only give it to St. George's Firm in your country In Peru (except La Plata), all of Italy (except Florence), Austria (including the neighboring South German states), Spain (including the Spanish Netherlands), Portugal, France (except Bordeaux), Morocco An exclusive monopoly right in this area. Of course, your monopoly period can be more favorable than that of the Dutch, let’s set it at 13 years.” Xu Xin, the foreign affairs committee member who came here to participate in the negotiation because of today’s topic, continued at this time.

According to the domestic meaning, the agency rights of goods on the east coast must be divided by region, and cannot be handed over to the same force for operation.For example, the Caribbean Sea, North America, West Africa, and the Netherlands were handed over to the Dutch West India Company, which had rich connections and a certain number of strongholds in these areas; and the Western Mediterranean and the Spanish Governorate of Peru, because they were the traditional sphere of influence of the Genoese, Therefore, it was handed over to the Genoese to operate; as for the British Isles, North Germany, the Baltic countries, and Moscow, it has not yet been finalized. The influence is declining quickly, so whether to consider introducing Dutch wholesalers has become one of the focuses of discussion.

In Bordeaux, Riga, Florence, and the huge Ottoman Empire, because the people on the east coast have already established local business stations and accumulated certain personal connections, they leave it to themselves to operate exclusively.After all, you can't leave all the markets to others, that would be very passive.

There is no doubt about the settlement currency between the Ministry of Trade of the East Coast Republic of China and the St. George's Firm in Genoa. The currency used is the international trade accounting unit recognized in the Western Mediterranean and South Germany—the mark (there is also a gold coin under the mark. Ecu - non-French ecu, originating in ecu from Savoy, where a mark is divided into 64 or 66 gold ecu as the case may be).In the agreement of the local merchants, the value of one mark is fixed at 28 ounces of gold, so the mark is also called the gold mark.At the trade fairs in these regions at this time, merchants from various countries will gather to clear the bills before the start of the transaction, and then determine the exchange rate of their respective currencies against the gold mark, and finally start the formal transaction.

Whether it is clearing the bills or determining the price comparison, these businesses are all represented by bankers from Italy, such as St. Piacenza, Lyon, Catalonia, the hereditary territories of Burgundy (including the Spanish Netherlands), along the Rhine and South Germany have established a large number of banking outlets, and Geneva is the clearing house for international trade in these areas In the center, the gold mark is its only settlement currency unit.

Mario was somewhat displeased that the East Coasters had excluded them from the trade with New Spain and the West Indies, but considering their competitor was the Dutch West India Company, it was inconvenient for him to say anything more.Of course, the Genoese also have connections in these areas. The Netherlands is legally still an enemy of the Kingdom of Spain. I don’t believe we can’t compete with you there. Let’s wait and see.I will secretly sell the East Coast goods to New Spain, and see what you can do to me!

After negotiating these issues of principle (detailed issues will be discussed in detail by the assistants of both sides in the next few days), the Genoese made a request for the production capacity of the East Coast Republic's commodities.For example, they demanded to know exactly the current maximum production capacity of cotton textiles on the east coast, the proportion of various textile products (towels, socks, capes, etc.), and the production of various cotton cloths (including dyed cloth and printed cloth) at the high, medium and low end. configuration.

They must have their own understanding of market demand—and this understanding is often more accurate than the information held by people on the east coast, so they need people on the east coast to cooperate with their sales in production.Tao Chenxi, director of the East Bank Textile Industry Bureau who also came here specially to participate in the negotiations, expressed his understanding. He told Mario that the current limit production capacity of East Bank Ping An Machine Weaving Factory is 100 million pieces per year—of course, the current production capacity may be insufficient. ——If the Genoese are willing, they can of course buy more machines and recruit new workers to expand production capacity, and they are also willing to accept the opinions of the Genoese to adjust production tasks and enrich the product line. This is no problem.

This is true of textiles, and other commodities are also very similar.For example, the people on the east bank promised to increase the amount of grain exported to Genoa by 10% in each of the first five years based on the previous year, and the price of grain was negotiated every year.All commodities, including food, are partly transported by the South China Sea Transportation Company of the East Coast Republic of China, and some are transported by Genoese merchant ships in Europe. The specific ratio will be negotiated later by the two parties, and the freight calculation will also be further negotiated.In addition, if necessary, the Genoese can ask the East Coast Republic to send capable naval ships to escort the transport fleet, and the expenses incurred will be shared by both parties.

In general, although there were some small twists and turns in the negotiations, the progress was still very fast, thanks to the positive and candid attitudes adopted by both parties.After discussing the issues of principle, the following will be some detailed consultations, which will be conducted by the assistants and entourages of the negotiators of both sides.After the details are negotiated, the two parties will initial an agreement, and then Mario will return to Genoa with a copy of the agreement, waiting for the final review of the speaker.If the review is approved, the two parties will sign a formal cooperation agreement, and with this agreement, in addition to a larger number of professionals in various industries in Genoa, there will also be a total amount of money issued by the government of the East Coast Republic of China on the Genoa financial market. Ten-year war bonds of 1000 million bank lire.

(End of this chapter)