Chapter 170 Industrial Base Development

Although the economic crisis has been temporarily alleviated, the impact of the economic crisis cannot be resolved in a short period of time.

The biggest impact is the impact on the industrial and economic markets of various countries.

The impact of the economic crisis is completely different depending on the causes of the economic crisis. Take this economic crisis as an example. The economic crisis caused by serious overproduction has led to a crazy plunge in industrial output and prices in various countries, mainly in the metallurgical industry and metal processing industry.

The global demand for steel is gradually increasing, and the price of steel is also constantly rising. But after the outbreak of the economic crisis, the price of steel in European countries has dropped by more than half, and in some more serious countries, the decline has even exceeded 60%.

However, with such low steel prices, the amount of steel imported by European countries is still not much, much less than before the economic crisis.

After the outbreak of the economic crisis, Spain greatly reduced its imports of foreign materials to protect its fragile domestic economy.

Even though countries led by Germany have reduced the price of steel exports to a level lower than the cost of steel production in Spain, Spain has not chosen to import steel from abroad.

After all, if steel is imported from abroad, domestic steel mills will receive fewer orders. This will not only affect the business of domestic steel mills, but also affect more companies because of steel mills.

When the economic crisis broke out, all countries tacitly reduced the scale of imports and tried to export more materials.

But except for those countries with small industrial scale and more dependent on material imports, other countries will not increase the scale of imports.

After all, these industrial products are cheap, but they will have an impact on domestic industry and economy. This kind of cheapness is not so easy to enjoy, and it will also make its own industry and economy affected by other countries.

Among many European countries, Spain is a special one. Because it has not been affected too much by the economic crisis, domestic industrial enterprises in Spain are still in uninterrupted production.

After the government announced the second five-year plan, these private factories were like taking stimulants, completely relieved, and production work became more passionate.

But because of the overall reduction in European prices, prices in Spain are also inevitable. So far, the overall price in Spain has dropped by about 10%, which is already a relatively good level compared to other European countries.

"Prime Minister Primo, does the current price change have a big impact on various industries?" Carlo asked a question that he was more concerned about at a cabinet meeting.

Prices, which are the selling prices of all goods, have a serious impact on the economy. Both price reductions and increases may cause economic fluctuations and even turmoil in an industry.

"There is a certain impact, but the current impact is not too serious and is acceptable to us." Prime Minister Primo replied: "

The metallurgical and metal processing industries are the most affected by the price reduction. Under the timely control of the government, they have been effectively alleviated.

After the announcement of the second five-year development plan, my country's prices have recovered to a certain extent, and are still at a relatively healthy level compared to other European countries.

However, the price of industrial products cannot be restored to the level before the economic crisis for the time being. At present, the price of steel in my country has dropped by about 15% compared to before the economic crisis, but because the demand for steel has increased instead of decreased, the factories and enterprises in the steel industry are currently operating stably and there are no major problems for the time being."

European prices are constantly falling, and Spain will certainly not be spared.

If Spain's prices remain at a high level, it will lead to a lot of smuggling. Buying a large number of cheap products from abroad, as long as they can be shipped back to Spain, can make a lot of profits, which will cause many people to take risks.

However, compared with the price reduction in other countries, the price reduction in Spain is under certain control, and the impact is not so serious.

Although the price of steel industry has dropped significantly, the overall demand for steel in Spain is expanding due to the construction demand for railways mentioned in the second five-year development plan.

With enough demand, it means that steel mills have enough orders. Although the money earned is much less than before, as long as there are continuous orders, steel mills can survive on these meager profits.

What's more, steel mills are not low-profit enterprises. The profits of steel mills were originally frighteningly high. Even if the price of steel is much lower now, steel mills will not go bankrupt.

It's nothing more than that one order could make a lot of money before, but now one order can only make a small amount.

"What's the price of agricultural products? Is this economic crisis a big impact on farmers?" Compared with the industrial aspect, Carlo is more concerned about the income of farmers.

There is no way. Most of the population of Spain are farmers. Caring about the income of farmers is actually caring about Carlo's throne.

"This is good news. The economic crisis has not had a big impact on agricultural products. The prices of industrial products are constantly falling, but the prices of agricultural products have been relatively stable, and generally remain at the level before the economic crisis." Speaking of farmers' income, Prime Minister Primo smiled and said with a smile.

"That's good." Carlo nodded and also breathed a sigh of relief.

No matter how hot the industrial construction in Spain is, it cannot change the fact that Spain is currently a major agricultural country.

Whenever this economic crisis has a major impact on agricultural products, Prime Minister Primo and Carlo will not be able to smile.

As long as the income of farmers is not affected, the basic foundation of Spain will still be there.

This is also why this economic crisis lasted for several years, but the final impact was not so fatal.

It did not hurt the root, and the impact on industry can even be made up in just a few years.

Although this economic crisis effectively curbed the industrial expansion of Germany and the United States, it only curbed it for a few years.

In history, the economic and industrial scale of the United States eventually surpassed the British Empire, and Germany followed closely behind. Its industry had surpassed Britain before the First World War.

"How is the construction of Barcelona's industrial base?" After confirming that agricultural products were not affected, Carlo turned his attention to the industrial base being built in Barcelona.

In Spain's development layout, Barcelona is second only to Madrid in importance. It is the future industrial center and economic center of Spain, and an important port for Spain's export of foreign products.

There are many reasons for choosing Barcelona. In addition to Barcelona's large population, which is suitable for industrial development, Barcelona's geographical location is closer to European countries. After all, Spain is located on the Iberian Peninsula and is already on the edge of Europe.

"At present, the construction of the second phase of the Barcelona Industrial Base is going very smoothly. It is expected to be fully completed and put into production next year." When mentioning the Barcelona Industrial Base, the smile on Prime Minister Primo's face never stopped.

The construction of the Barcelona Industrial Base is also a great credit to Prime Minister Primo, because it represents a great progress of Spanish industry from 1 to 10.

As for the previous Seville Industrial Base, it is more like a small-scale demonstration base that summarizes Spain's original industrial capacity.

The Barcelona Industrial Base is the most expensive and largest industrial base in the construction of Spanish industrial bases, and it is also the industrial center envisioned by the Spanish government.

The total investment in the construction of the first phase of the industrial base exceeded 15 million pesetas, and the total investment in the construction of the second phase of the industrial base exceeded 45 million pesetas.

What can such an industrial base with a total investment of more than 60 million pesetas bring to the Spanish government?

Of course, it is an industrial zone with a total steel output of more than 300,000 tons, which is expected to accommodate more than hundreds of factories and enterprises, and is equipped with dozens of super-large storage warehouses and cargo transportation routes.

The construction of the first two phases can provide nearly 100,000 jobs for Catalonia in total, which will greatly meet the employment needs of the people in Catalonia and make Catalonia a region with both industrial and economic development.

You know, the total population of Catalonia is only more than 1 million. This also means that after the completion of the second phase of the industrial base, one in ten people in Catalonia will have the opportunity to work in the industrial base.

Catalonia alone is difficult to meet all the employment needs of the industrial base. Therefore, after the completion of the second phase of the industrial base, Spain will also need to select suitable workers from other regions to move to Catalonia to help the Barcelona industrial base to build better.

There is actually another potential benefit to doing this, which is to reduce the proportion of Catalans in Catalonia.

When the main population of Catalonia becomes Spanish, it will not be so easy for Catalans to make trouble again.

As long as the problem of Catalonia is solved, the Basque region alone can't cause any big waves.

Relying on the size of the Basques, they are destined to submit to the rule of the Spanish government. If any radical Basques dare to make trouble, the Basque region will be greeted by a high-pressure rule policy.

At worst, all these hundreds of thousands of Basques will be transferred to areas outside Spain, and Spanish immigrants will occupy this area.

Under the premise that the Basques can't cause any big waves, solving the Basque region is just a matter of whether the Spanish government wants to.

Hearing the news that the Barcelona Industrial Base was successfully built, Carlo nodded, and then instructed Prime Minister Primo: "

The construction of the industrial base is not urgent, and our demand for steel production is not that great. In addition, when the industrial base introduces various factories and enterprises, the proportion of other industrial industries should be increased, such as the chemical industry, shipbuilding industry and mechanical processing industry.

After the second phase of the Barcelona Industrial Base is completed, remember to remind me that I will personally attend the celebration ceremony for the completion of the industrial base construction."

Primo Prime Minister nodded, indicating that he understood.

In fact, it is not just Carlo, Prime Minister Primo also attaches great importance to the construction of the Barcelona industrial base.

This is not only related to the future development of Spanish industry, but also to the Spanish government's layout in Catalonia.

When the industrial base is completed, it will be the time for a large number of Spaniards to enter Catalonia and dilute the Catalan population.

This is the most promising way to solve the problem of Catalonia in a peaceful way, and it is also the reason why Prime Minister Primo pays great attention to the construction of the Barcelona industrial base.

As a Catalan, Prime Minister Primo certainly knows the problems in Catalonia. Although many radical Catalans have been forced to immigrate, this cannot solve the root of Catalonia.

In the final analysis, it is caused by the awakening of national consciousness. Either Spain assimilates this nation before the national consciousness of Catalonia is fully awakened, or it can only reduce the proportion of Catalans in Catalonia through subtle ways, so that Catalans will completely become a minority in Spain and cannot become the main population of any administrative region.

Prime Minister Primo is currently taking a two-pronged approach. On the one hand, more effective policies are used to assimilate most Catalans, and on the other hand, more Spaniards are attracted to enter Catalonia by building industrial bases to reduce the proportion of Catalans.

After these Spaniards who enter Catalonia marry local Catalans, their offspring can be more easily assimilated into Spaniards.

Coupled with the population growth of the main ethnic group, there will be fewer and fewer Catalans in the future, while the proportion and size of Spaniards will increase.

"How are the industrial equipment we bought from other countries and the dismantled production lines of the acquired companies being handled?" In addition to the development of the industrial base, Carlo is more concerned about the things purchased from foreign countries.

After all, the Spanish government spent 300 million pesetas in real money, so it is natural to make full use of these equipment.

"We took out some equipment and means of production and sold them to major domestic companies through auctions. As for those means of production and equipment that are not easy to control, they were sold to state-owned enterprises at a low price.

A large number of industrial equipment has been transported to the Barcelona Industrial Base. They will accompany the second phase of the construction of the industrial base to expand the factories and enterprises of the industrial base.

It is estimated that it will take at least three years for us to fully utilize the production capacity of these equipment. In the next three years, our industrial production will enter a relatively stable growth state. Those companies that have obtained means of production and equipment will have the hope of taking this opportunity to continue to expand production." Prime Minister Primo replied.