The Magician’s Memorial - Chapter 473



Only Krnovel

473. Buy at the low point (3)

It had been a long time since I had been to the Blue House during daylight hours.

As I entered the office, President Choi Jae-seok greeted me with a sigh.

“Whew, is Chairman Kim here?”

“Your complexion doesn’t look very good.”

“It’s a headache because diplomatic problems have arisen with Japan following China.”

Let’s say China is having a headache because of the THAAD ban.

But what diplomatic problems could arise with Japan?

As I recall, there were still two years left until the Japanese trade sanctions began.

“Have you received any strange requests from Japan?”

“There has been an unofficial request to cancel the recall of Taewoo Group.”

“How can the Japanese government interfere in the affairs of a company? This goes beyond interference in internal affairs.”

“It was more of a request than a demand. They asked me to do this because the Japanese company suffered severe damage due to Taewoo Group’s unilateral recall decision.”

It was an unreasonable act.

This also meant that the Japanese steel company data manipulation incident was having a negative impact on the Japanese economy.

“We can cancel the recall, but for Japan’s benefit, we don’t want to do that.”

“Is the recall helpful to Taewoo Group?”

“We have been preparing for the recall since the beginning of this year. We could replace all the defective parts in all vehicles as soon as this month. However, Japanese automakers are completely unprepared to deal with this.”

Taewoo Group’s automobile affiliates are taking swift action.

Conversely, Japanese automakers are taking slow action.

Even if we didn’t step forward, consumers would have made their own comparisons, and we would have reaped windfall profits.

President Choi Jae-seok also quickly realized the meaning of my words.

He was not a dull man, and thanks to his long experience in politics, he had the ability to judge situations faster than anyone else.

“Korean automakers could benefit from the windfall profits.”

“If we can gain more benefits from diplomacy with Japan than what Korean automakers can gain, we will cancel the recall.”

“In fact, it can be said that there is no benefit to be gained from diplomacy. It is only to the extent of further strengthening the friendship between the two countries.”

“Then we will not cancel the recall. This has already been announced. If we cancel the recall now, it will have a huge impact on Taewoo Motors’ credibility.”

I didn’t know the Japanese government would be this sensitive about this situation.

Maybe it was because Taewoo Group is a Korean company.

It is possible that they thought that if they put pressure on Korean companies, the problem would be resolved.

“There is a saying I hated the most when I was in politics. ‘Good things are good.’ I was disillusioned with the political world where people pretend not to know each other’s problems through collusion. But when I sat down here, I found myself doing the things I hated without even realizing it.”

“Don’t overthink it. Taewoo Group is strong enough to endure. And Korea is not weak enough to respond to unnecessary demands.”

It was said to reassure President Choi Jae-seok.

Still, Korea was not geographically or economically advantageous.

At least, only after President Choi Jae-seok was successfully re-elected could he rise to a position where he would not suffer such humiliation.

“I’m sorry for speaking weakly. My relationship with China is at its worst, and I’m worried that it might turn out the same way with Japan, so I guess I’m anxious.”

“Do this. Tell Japan that we asked Taewoo Group to cancel the recall, but they refused.”

“Are you saying that we should shift all responsibility to Taewoo Group? We can’t do that. If we do have to take responsibility, it would be better for the Korean government to take responsibility rather than Taewoo Group.”

I knew this kind of reaction would come out.

Because President Choi Jae-seok was not a leader who avoided responsibility.

“This incident could be a turning point in our relationship with Japan. However, if we pass the responsibility to Taewoo Group, we can maintain the current relationship.”

“How can a leader of a country pass responsibility to a corporation!”

“Taewoo Group is okay. It is recording lower sales in the Japanese market than in the Southeast Asian market. In Japan, there is a strong tendency to use domestic products, so Korean companies’ products do not sell well.”

Taewoo Group did not suffer any major losses.

Sales of its main products, such as automobiles and electronics, were low in the Japanese market.

Although Korean products are preferred in the US, Europe, and Southeast Asia, the Japanese market in particular prefers domestic brands.

“I’m sorry for bothering you. Japan’s request will remain silent.”

“Sorry for causing trouble.”

“What could you be sorry about? It was Japan that manipulated the data, and it was also Japan that requested the cancellation of the recall.”

“Please be patient and wait a little longer. Taewoo Group will grow further so that you will not experience something like this in the next term.”

“I just hope that not only Taewoo Group but all companies in Korea will grow significantly.”

The presidency was a lonely place.

The president had to take full responsibility for everything.

Even a small mistake in choice could have had huge repercussions.

All I could give to President Choi Jae-seok, who was in such a lonely position, was hope for the future.

***

The next day.

The recall has been officially implemented.

More than 10,000 vehicles manufactured by Taewoo, Kai and GM were subject to recall.

However, because we had prepared in advance, we were able to proceed with the replacement work quickly.

“We replaced parts on over 300 vehicles in the morning alone. There were only a few parts to replace, and since we had prepared the parts in advance, we were able to complete the work quickly.”

“If we go really fast, we could probably get everything replaced within this month.”

“It is certainly possible if we give up weekends and holidays. And the replacement speed is also expected to get faster.”

“Please provide compensation equivalent to the amount of weekends and holidays given up at the head office level.”

What reward could be more certain than money?

From the many mechanics working at the center to the private centers that are helping us.

There was no reason to save money, because the faster they could finish the job, the greater the return on our investment.

“But will Japan just sit back and do nothing? We even asked the Korean government to do so, so we are expecting a strong reaction.”

“It will be difficult to retaliate against us. We have the fire under our feet right now, so we won’t have time to worry about anything else.”

“But since the Japanese government has stepped in, Japanese companies will also speak out with one voice.”

When the government steps in, companies are bound to follow.

It was very likely that many Japanese automakers would join forces and speak with one voice.

And that prediction was proven correct within hours.

“Japanese automakers held press conferences almost simultaneously!”

“It is true that the government responds quickly when it steps in.”

Press conferences held sequentially.

They were saying similar things, as if they had copied and pasted them.

[The steel company’s materials were manipulated, but there was no problem with the quality.]

Japanese automakers including Toyota, Honda and Nissan all spoke in unison.

The announcement was that there were no quality issues and no measures such as recalls would be taken.

“They are trying desperately to avoid a recall.”

“Toyota suffered a huge loss in 2010 because of Pedalgate. It seems they don’t want to repeat that.”

Also known as pedal gate.

It was the largest recall ever, with 10 million units affected.

This has left Toyota struggling for several years and it is only now beginning to return to its former position.

So you don’t want to repeat the same thing again.

In order to somehow avoid a recall, all Japanese companies joined forces to defend against this situation.

“How is the market reacting?”

“Stock and corporate bond prices are falling sharply. The market seems to be expressing its anger at the continued ignorance.”

“I guess you think you can handle the market’s anger.”

“The Japanese government is stepping in and taking charge. They are buying up a lot of corporate bonds that are falling.”

The center of Japan was the automobile industry.

If the steel company data manipulation scandal shakes the auto industry, it could shake the Japanese economy as well.

The Japanese government had to defend itself even if it meant crying and eating mustard.

There was no choice but to empty the national treasury to protect the automobile companies.

“We’ll have to expand the scale to a level that the Japanese government can’t handle. Contact David.”

“I’ll call you right now.”

A vice president picked up his cell phone.

Then David’s voice came through the speaker.

“Have you seen the news? The Japanese government is protecting Japanese companies. Do you think you can break through it?”

[If the Japanese government is acting as a shield, we can just pierce it with a stronger spear! I’ve finished talking to the US Department of Justice. The US Department of Justice will take action by the end of this week at the latest, so you can look forward to it!]

The Korean government could not be moved.

I wasn’t trained enough to write with a spear yet.

Only by using the already-trained spear of the United States could one break through the shield of the Japanese government.

“It seems like the US government is moving more easily than I thought.”

[You know the keynote of this US government. America first! I think the US also sees this as a good opportunity to push out Japanese automakers and increase the market share of American automakers.]

“What about Europe?”

No matter how strong the window is, America.

It was much more efficient to have multiple spears attacking simultaneously.

Especially when the European Union takes action, the ramifications will be enormous.

[It may be difficult to move the entire European Union right now. But the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) can move. EASA has decided to announce a ban on the use of Japanese steel products soon.]

“It’s a shame that the European Union isn’t taking action, but even if EASA takes action, it will be a big boost.”

[With lawsuits being filed in several countries, the wind could grow into a typhoon!]

“Please continue to give strength to the wind.”

I finished talking to David.

He was working hard to create a wind while traveling around the United States and Europe.

“If what David said is true, the ripple effect would certainly be greater.”

“However, if the Japanese government perseveres and perseveres, a large-scale recall can be prevented.”

“It would be best if they went as far as a recall, but that won’t stop the decline in trust in Japanese automakers. And the plunge in stock prices and corporate bonds is sure to accelerate.”

The thing that Vice Chairman Han considered most important was, of course, profit.

If the US and Europe move, corporate bonds will naturally plummet and financial towers will be able to make huge profits.

“No matter what Japanese companies choose, we will benefit if we just take the right path. We can get windfall profits if we just complete the parts replacement work as quickly as possible.”

“It seems like the speed is increasing because we are replacing dozens of the same parts every day.”

“Once all the parts have been replaced, try to visit customers who haven’t visited the service center and have them replace the parts on site. If you’re going to do it, you should do it right.”

There have been cases where recalls were refused due to inconvenience or lack of information.

If we visit such customers and perform parts replacement work in person, wouldn’t we be able to increase reliability even more?