Chapter 1256

Seoul, Tsing wa Tai.

In a dressing room in the presidential palace, Jin Yongsan changed into an old-fashioned grey suit and asked the makeup artist to make up a tired look. Then he walked out of the room.

A staff member who chased out of the dressing room tried to put on Jin Yongsan's windbreaker, but was refused.

Seoul's current temperature is below zero, but the next thing to play is the sad card. If you get frozen, it will definitely increase the effect.

In the living room outside, a group of cabinet officials and presidential aides stood up one after another with dignified faces when they saw Kim Yong San appear.

Finally, he nods slightly to the crowd. Jin Yongsan looks at one side of the wall. The screen shows a sea of people outside the green house. He takes a document from his secretary Jiang Xuanhao and looks at it as he walks. Finally, he comes to the green house and builds a temporary public speaking platform for tens of thousands of people.

There are two big screens on both sides of the platform, reflecting the figure of Kim Yong San.

Under the stage.

The crowd stretched for several kilometers, far larger than the one on October 18.

Kim Yong San has already got some inside information ahead of time. This time, it was also incited, but it is no longer the same small team as last time. It is mainly the chaebols who have stronger mobilization ability in all aspects in South Korea.

It's the evening of November 20.

The contents of the 10:00 a.m. agreement were announced, which was beyond everyone's expectation. If the people were able to cope with it, the plutocrats, who were aware that their own interests were seriously threatened, could not sit still.

The $60 billion rescue plan involves specific agreements, each of which makes the chaebols feel that the next day will not be easy.

For example, some of the core provisions.

First, South Korea needs to raise its benchmark interest rate by 25% in one go.

The main problem that South Korea is facing in this financial crisis is debt, which is so huge that many enterprises need to maintain cash flow through revolving lending. A one-time increase of 25% of the benchmark interest rate will undoubtedly greatly increase the financing cost and difficulty of Korean enterprises, which will lead to the complete rupture of capital chain and bankruptcy of many enterprises.

Second, open trade and abolish import licensing and export subsidies.

The main reason for South Korea's rapid economic growth in the past 30 years is the country's foreign trade system.

Since the era of Park Chung Hee, the South Korean government has been supporting enterprises to earn foreign exchange through export at all costs, including a large number of explicit or implicit import protection and export subsidies.

This time, with the complete liberalization of trade, the abolition of import restrictions and the abolition of export subsidies, there is no doubt that the export competitiveness of Korean enterprises will not only be greatly reduced, but also face the competition of a large number of overseas enterprises due to the abolition of import barriers.

The first to bear the brunt is the Korean auto industry.

Before that, it had trade barrier protection and export subsidy support, which created the grand occasion that four of the top ten chaebols in South Korea are mainly engaged in automobiles. Next, we can imagine that if all these protective measures are cancelled, the Korean auto industry will face strong competition from auto companies all over the world.

Thirdly, it is also the most fatal one in this agreement. South Korean banks, securities companies and other financial enterprises need to be supervised by the IMF, and the financing, mergers and acquisitions of South Korean consortia need to be approved by the IMF.

This is the complete takeover of South Korea's financial sovereignty!

Among the specific details involved, the following financial measures of the South Korean government, such as the interest rate adjustment and the issuance of national debt, need to be approved by the IMF; the inflow and outflow of foreign exchange in South Korea need to be approved by the IMF; as for the South Korean consortia, of course, the IMF only supervises the capital operation of a considerable scale.

It's just that the threshold of this "considerable scale" is too low to bear.

One million dollars!

During the supervision period of the IMF, large South Korean consortia, financing, mergers and acquisitions with a scale of more than US $1 million, and other operations need to be reported to the IMF and signed by the chief representative of the IMF in South Korea before they can be implemented.

A mere $1 million may not be much for small and medium-sized enterprises, but for large consortia, it's just the extent to which they will be subject to supervision if they take a breath.

How can this be easily accepted by the chaebol families in South Korea?

So, if you don't obey, what should you do?

The final 291 page rescue agreement, of course, will not ignore these details.

If some enterprises are not willing to comply, it is very simple that the IMF will work with the South Korean government and overseas capital to recover all loans from the offending enterprises.

To put it bluntly, I don't want to abide by the rules. OK, just pay off the debt.

That's the problem.

South Korea's major consortia generally have a super high debt ratio of more than 300%, so they can't afford it at all. If they can't afford it, they are forced to recover it, and the only result is bankruptcy.

All in all, before contacting the IMF, the swaying financial groups in South Korea were very eager to seek help. However, when the agreement was finally finalized, they found that the agreement was too harsh. It was almost like a noose that could hang them at any time, and they were reluctant to get up.In addition, the case of October 18 is in front of us. Let's make it again.

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If the authorities are incompetent, let some people see that the South Korean people are not easy to get into trouble. Even if we can't overturn the IMF agreement completely, we are hopeful to get some concessions.

“…… Citizens, I do not deny that this crisis is a painful lesson for the Republic of Korea. Although it is extremely painful, we have to accept this lesson because it is the result of many blind and rash economic policies of the Republic of Korea in the past 30 years. "

“…… If we refuse the IMF's rescue, South Korea will become the first developed country to declare bankruptcy, and the wealth accumulated by its people for decades will disappear with the continuous sharp currency devaluation. The Republic of Korea will usher in the great depression like the economic collapse of the United States in the 1930s, with a large number of enterprises closing down, countless people losing their jobs, and the unemployment rate may be as high as more than 30% All of them will lose their future because of this. This is a result that we can't bear more... "

“…… Citizens, at this time of crisis, I only hope that you can unite as one and overcome the difficulties together, instead of deliberately creating differences and dragging the Korean nation into a more dark abyss... "

“…… Please... "

With Jin Yongsan bowing deeply, the noisy crowd at the time of the president's speech finally calmed down.

Jin Yongsan is very clear that this is a good start, so he must ease up a little bit, straighten up behind him, face the cold wind of sub zero temperature, and take the initiative to put forward with pathetic expression. Some media reporters and trade union representatives on the scene can ask public questions about their concerns, and he will answer them on the spot.

In the twilight, lights began to light up outside the blue house.

The microphone passed on and soon the first questioner appeared.

"Mr. President, I'm Lu Zhanhe from Chosun daily. I would like to ask if the authorities have signed a seven-year agreement with the IMF. Do we really want to accept the seven-year financial supervision of an international financial organization?"

Hearing the sad questions in the loudspeaker, Jin Yongsan was very happy.

This is exactly a question rehearsed by the staff team in advance.

After easing his mood, Kim Yong San's tone was still heavy and replied: "this is exactly what I hope to explain to the people. The total amount of the IMF rescue agreement is US $60 billion, but it does not mean that South Korea must bear all the US $60 billion loans. We only need to withdraw the funds needed by the country in batches, so we need the joint efforts of all the people. Similarly, the seven-year agreement is not fixed. As long as we can reduce the withdrawal of funds as much as possible and repay them as soon as possible through our own efforts, the day when South Korea pays off the IMF loan will be the time for us to get rid of the supervision of the IMF. "

No matter the hundreds of thousands of people on the scene or the countless people in front of the live TV broadcast in South Korea, hearing Kim Yong San's explanation, they can not help but breathe a sigh of relief at the same time.

That's how people feel.

When there is room for an absolute thing to turn around, the tit for tat mentality will inevitably fade.

Then another representative of the Trade Union asked a question: "Mr President, the IMF Agreement requires the authorities to change the current labor system and allow enterprises to carry out large-scale layoffs. Don't you think this clause is too harsh?"

"This is indeed a very harsh clause," contrary to many people's expectations, Jin Yongsan didn't deny it. He still looked heavy and said to the microphone, "however, it is a result that we have to bear in a short time. I have just said that this is a disaster in the Republic of Korea, and no one can escape. Therefore, I can only guarantee that the authorities will be the first to bear the consequences. Both myself and the three presidential candidates who signed the IMF Agreement will push the government to carry out large-scale downsizing to save the country's budget. Moreover, I believe that the predicament is only temporary. As long as the country gets through the difficulties, employment can also return to the previous level. "

Layoffs started with the government. Such a promise once again eased the mood of countless people.

The microphone passes on again.

Another question: "Mr. President..."

“……”

With the continuous questioning and Jin Yongsan's patient response, the public opinion mood unconsciously changed from the anger of the authorities signing the agreement of humiliating the country to a kind of unity of the upper and lower levels.

Until the night completely shrouded the city, the public speech and interaction finally ended.

Finally, Kim Yong San reminded everyone to disperse in an orderly manner and avoid trampling in the gentle tone of an elder. Finally, he returned to the presidential palace surrounded by escorts.

Back to a lounge inside the green house.

This time, Jin Yongsan, who was really tired, was sitting on the sofa, looking at the TV screen that still showed the crowd outside, and slowly drank a cup of hot tea until General Secretary Jiang Xuanhao came to report again. He was relieved to say that the crowd had begun to disperse.

However, it's not over yet.