The Rise Of Australasia-Chapter 1256 - 926 The Economy Surges Forward_2

Chapter 1256: Chapter 926: The Economy Surges Forward_2

Chapter 1256 -926: The Economy Surges Forward_2

This was an unavoidable issue, as the United Kingdom had not made adequate preparations for war beforehand, and naturally, they would need to manufacture more weapons and equipment.

Moreover, the United Kingdom also possessed an extremely large navy. Although the navy provided an unparalleled sense of security to the British mainland, the cost of deploying these forces was also extremely large.

If the British hadn’t occupied half of the Persian Gulf, just the cost of petroleum alone would have increased the United Kingdom’s financial expenditures by another ten percent.

At least the British mainland had not been occupied by the Germans, despite being bombed multiple times by Germany.

In France, over one-third of the territory, including the capital city of Paris, was occupied by Germany.

After Germany occupied these French territories, it was natural that they wouldn’t just sit idle; pillaging and looting were inevitable, and the destruction of the French economy goes without saying.

Not to mention, on the day the German Army occupied Paris, at least ten thousand French women were raped by the German Army. Fortunately, only a few months have passed; otherwise, Paris would have a few thousand more Franco-German mixed-children.

But it was also the brutal acts of the German Army that strengthened the French people’s determination to resist Germany.

The biggest change in Paris, France before and after its fall was probably the public’s attitude toward supporting the war.

Before the fall of Paris, many French people still did not want to fight against Germany and even repeatedly erupted in protests against the war.

But after the actions of the Germans were repeatedly publicized in the newspapers, most French people began to support the war, at least they did not want their families to suffer greatly at the hands of the Germans.

In the new week’s government finance report, Arthur finally saw the current situation of the government’s available funds.

Before the outbreak of the war, the treasury of Australasia had approximately 433 million Australian Dollars, which was the accumulation of government fiscal surpluses over the years.

But last year’s fiscal deficit alone reached 110 million Australian Dollars, which caused the available funds at the beginning of this year to drop to about 323 million Australian Dollars.

That’s not all, as nearly half a year had passed since 1937 had started. And during this half-year, the government’s finances remained in a highly deficit state.

As of May 15, the government’s current fiscal revenue was 269.1 million Australian Dollars, which was about a 3% increase from the same period last year.

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However, the government’s financial expenditures also maintained a slight increase, reaching 328.9 million Australian Dollars in just five and a half months’ time.

This also means that in these five and a half months of this year, the government’s fiscal deficit has already reached 59.8 million Australian Dollars. It is precisely because of the fiscal shortfall in the first half of this year that the government’s available funds have now reduced to about 172.2 million Australian Dollars.

Based on the current annual fiscal deficit figures, this 172 million could last at most a year and a half.

More importantly, such fiscal shortage comes with a premise that Australasia has not significantly mobilized its military.

Once Arthur decides to officially commence combat operations against the Island Nation, military expenses will certainly climb drastically, and the fiscal deficit will increase even more.

If you also take into account the government bonds issued by the government at the early stages of the war and with some projects, then the government’s available funds will need to be further reduced.

However, the good news is, the level of public support for this war is very high.

Especially since Australasia, forced into declaring war on the Island Nation due to attacks, the public strongly supports combat against the Island Nation, and everyone is eager to join the fight, displaying fervor and belligerence openly.

If more war bonds are issued domestically, they could generate at least 100 million Dollars for the government.

Alongside the relatively healthy economy within Australasia, supporting the country to finish this war was not a problem at all.

Moreover, with the support of the Royal Consortium, if the government really ran out of funds, Arthur could also issue interest-free loans to the government, with amounts even reaching several hundred million.

Without exaggeration, Arthur was now richer than the government. The Royal Consortium held 49% of the shares in the Persian Gulf Petroleum Company, and just the income from these shares alone was already substantial every year.

Furthermore, the Royal Consortium also invested heavily in cars and airplane companies, Military Factories, Factories, and other enterprises, generating countless income annually.

Although Arthur was not aware of the Royal Consortium’s income last year, several years earlier, the Royal Consortium had already surpassed 200 million Australian Dollars in annual revenue.

Given the current popularity of Penicillin and the continuous growth of the Military Industry, the annual revenue of the Royal Consortium should be around 300 million Australian Dollars, which is almost more than half of the total national annual fiscal revenue.

The government could not possibly actively promulgate antitrust laws to hinder the expansion of the Royal Consortium, especially since Arthur had already voluntarily split the Royal Consortium, causing the major consortiums to scatter like stars in the sky.

The current openly known assets of the royal family were already quite astonishing. Just one Royal Bank could bring in at least 30 million Australian Dollars in pure income annually for the royal family, and they also had access to hundreds of millions of Australian Dollars in adjustable funds.

This was not an exaggeration, for as the largest bank in the entire empire, supported by the endorsements of the royal family and Arthur, the Royal Bank became the most credible and the most popular bank in the entire empire.

Moreover, the Royal Bank was one of only two banks in Australasia that had the right to print currency, with nearly half of the Australian Dollars being issued by the Royal Bank.

In such a situation, it was difficult for the Royal Bank not to make money, they could even earn money while lying down.

In the entirety of Australasia, the only institutions endowed with the right to print currency were the government-controlled National Bank and the royal family-controlled Royal Bank.

These two banks together formed the Monetary Issuance Committee, which was responsible for regulating the exchange rate of the Australian Dollar and managing the issuance of the currency.

The Royal Bank was purely owned by the Royal Consortium with a 100% stake, and Arthur was the sole owner.

The National Bank was jointly held by the government and the royal family, with the government holding 66% of the shares and having control over the National Bank. The royal family held a 34% share and did not participate in the operations of the National Bank, simply waiting for dividends each year.

Because both banks had the right to issue the Australian Dollar, these two banks were simply two unmatched giants in Australasia.

However, due to Arthur’s prestige, the Royal Bank was clearly more popular and occupied more than 50% of the market share in the banking industry in Australasia.

Only below these two banks were domestic banks like the Nobility United Bank and Empire Bank, as well as banks established by foreign consortia and other enterprises.

The Royal Consortium controlled far more than just the two currency-issuing banks; it also held 49% of the shares in both the Nobility United Bank and the Empire Bank, and 51% in the Industrial Development Bank.

If one had to describe the specific scale of the Royal Consortium, Arthur would find it indescribable. Because the vastness of the Royal Consortium was simply beyond words, any of its major enterprises could potentially compete in the World Top 500 in later generations.

The Royal Bank, Persian Gulf Petroleum Company, Royal Military Factory, Douglas Aircraft Company, Boeing Company, Mercedes Car Company, Medical Group Headquarters, Diesel Engine Factory, etc., if placed in later generations, these could definitely compete for the top 100 and even top 50 positions in the World Top 500.

Because Arthur was not given to extravagant spending, the Royal Consortium had amassed an incalculable amount of wealth over the many years since its establishment.

Even just the Royal Consortium personally controlled by Butler Kent alone could mobilize funds of at least 200 million Australian Dollars.

If including all other consortiums, Arthur could mobilize at least 500 million Australian Dollars in a short period, which was already equivalent to Australasia’s annual fiscal revenue.

This was also why Arthur was not at all worried about the government’s fiscal situation. If the government really ran out of money, the royal family could easily offer the government an interest-free loan, without any need to worry about the issue of funds.