Chapter 559 Global decline
Black Monday!
It was undoubtedly Black Monday!
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell so sharply that it set the largest single-day drop in the US stock market since 1914.
On that day, all 1,600 stocks listed on the New York Stock Exchange fell. Among them, 1,200 stocks fell to the lowest level in 52 weeks, and many representative blue-chip stocks were also doomed.
Almost all stocks of major companies fell by about 30%.
For example, General Electric fell 33.1%, AT\u0026T fell 29.5%, Coca-Cola fell 36.5%, Westinghouse fell 45.8%, American Express fell 38.8%, and Boeing fell 29.9%.
"Everything is out of control" and it is "the worst day in the history of Wall Street." The New York Times reported this.
And global stock markets were hit hard!
On the day of the Hong Kong stock market, the Hong Kong Hang Seng Index fell 420.81 points throughout the day, a drop of 11%, which forced the Hong Kong Stock Exchange to hold a press conference to announce a one-week suspension of trading.
But this did not calm people's panic at all. After reopening, the Hang Seng Index seemed to have taken a laxative. The market fell by 1,120.70 points that day and closed at 2,241.69 points, a drop of 33%, setting a record for the world's largest single-day drop. The spot futures market even hit the limit four times.
The Nihon Keizai Shimbun stock price average index in Tokyo, Japan fell by 620 points, or 2.35%, on the same day, and then fell by another 3,800 points, or 14.6%, on the 20th, a drop of 4,420 points in two days.
Singapore's Straits Times Index fell by 169 points, or 12.4%, on the 19th.
Australia's All Ordinary Price Index fell by 80 points, or 3.7%; the FTSE30 index fell by 183.7 points, or 10.1%, and the FTSE100 index fell by 249.6 points to 2,053.3 points, with investors losing 50 billion pounds.
In Europe, the London Financial Times Index fell 183.70 points that day, a drop of 10.1%; the Credit Suisse Bank Index fell 11.3%; the Federal Republic of Germany fell 3.7%; France fell 6.1%; the Netherlands fell 7.8%; Belgium fell 10.5%.
The stock markets in Brazil and Mexico fell by more than 20%, and the stock markets in Paris, Frankfurt, Stockholm, Milan, Amsterdam and other cities fell by 6% to 11% to varying degrees...
In just 8 days from October 19 to 26, the wealth lost by both buyers and sellers due to the stock market crash was as high as 2 trillion US dollars, which is 5.92 times the total direct and indirect losses of 338 billion US dollars in World War II!
Therefore, Wachtel, an economist at Merrill Lynch, a world-renowned investment group, called the stock market crash on October 19 and 26 "an out-of-control massacre."
Banks went bankrupt, factories closed, and companies laid off a large number of employees... It seems that the Great Depression of 1929 will repeat itself.
Of course, many people suffered heavy losses, but some people also made a lot of money.
For example, Liu Tao took this opportunity to make a lot of money.
That was not just the money earned on Black Monday. For example, in the US stock market, he started to make a lot of money from October 3.
The money earned was absolutely jaw-dropping.
In addition to buying some stocks through various accounts, the rest of the money will slowly flow into Hong Kong.
Here, the bank's channel is particularly important.
Otherwise, it is not impossible to be swallowed alive by bankers.
Envious money will make people take risks.
This time, Liu Tao not only wants to make money from this wave of plunge, but also the money from the US rescue.
However, for him, the most important thing is to make money in the pocket, and only leave a part of the money to make money from the US rescue.
Sure enough, the Federal Reserve soon issued a clear rescue signal: "The Federal Reserve System, in accordance with its responsibility as the central bank of the country, hereby announces that it will provide assistance to all economic and financial systems as a source of circulating currency."
This point is clear and unambiguous.
Moreover, after the opening, the Federal Reserve began to buy up government bonds in the market, and the federal funds rate fell by 0.75%.
All of this shows the government's determination to rescue the market.
American commercial banks immediately understood the government's intentions, and many banks announced interest rate cuts one after another. Trust companies also stated in a high-profile manner that they would guarantee customers' capital needs under any circumstances.
In Hong Kong, Liu Tao also manipulated the company and began to rescue the market.
After all, Hong Kong is one of its own bases, and it is naturally impossible to sit back and watch the stock market really collapse without rescuing the market.
In addition to repurchasing the stocks of various companies under its umbrella and acquiring the stocks of some high-quality companies, the rescue of the market is to release the third quarter financial reports of various listed companies under its umbrella.
There is no doubt that the financial reports here are very beautiful, which has injected a shot of adrenaline into the entire Hong Kong stock market and given confidence to Hong Kong stockholders.
At the same time, in terms of media publicity, it is to publicize that Hong Kong's economic structure is very good and the performance of Hong Kong listed companies is also outstanding. The crisis this time is just affected by the Black Monday of the US stock market.
Soon, the Hong Kong stock market began to stabilize and warm up.
After dealing with these matters, Liu Tao invited Zhao Guoping and Li Fuguo to have a barbecue together.
As military and political leaders, Li Fuguo and Zhao Guoping were often in Hong Kong, at least nearly half of their time was in Hong Kong.
After all, they have a lot of things to do in Hong Kong.
And the two now have an additional identity,
instead of simply belonging to Panshan Group as before.
For example, Zhao Guoping is also responsible for Panshan Group's business in Hong Kong.
Usually, Liu Tao may not see them once a month.
Normally, he will only see them when he holds a meeting or has something urgent.
Before leaving Hong Kong, Liu Tao asked the two to have a barbecue together.
Of course, they did not have a barbecue outside, but at a beach, drinking while barbecue.
The three of them usually don't drink much, nor do they smoke much.
But when they get together, they will have a few drinks.
"You two will spend most of the time in Hong Kong in the next two years. Do you want to arrange for your spouse and children to come to Hong Kong?" Liu Tao clinked glasses with the two, drank the wine in the glass, and asked.
The two of them will stay in Hong Kong for at least two years.
"Forget it, they are used to living in Yun Province, so they can stay in Kun City." Li Fuguo shook his head.
As a member of the Party Leadership Group of Panshan Group, Li Fuguo has arranged a villa at the headquarters. His wife works in the Women's Federation, where her job is relatively easy and she has more time to take care of the children. His children are all studying in the schools of Panshan Group. The older ones are already in college, and the younger ones are in junior high school.
He doesn't want his children to be moved around.
Zhao Guoping also nodded and said, "I think so too. My wife and children are doing well in Kun City. It's not that we don't want to go back."
Unlike Li Fuguo, his wife is both a singer and the head of the cultural troupe of the group headquarters. She is also very busy at work. In addition to performing everywhere, she also performs art performances.
They are a couple who are rarely together and often apart. Sometimes he may not see his wife when he returns to the headquarters.