Although the Plaza Accord would not be signed until the following year, the well-informed consortiums needed to prepare in advance. Even the top consortiums did not have much surplus capital. However, given the current situation, the more money you had, the more money you could make through aggressive acquisitions.
A 20% interest rate? Well, the Federal Reserve and the consortiums clearly had different ideas. The current leader was showing no signs of backing down at all.
Many people were appalled by such blatant robbery, but considering the overall trend, it was best to remain silent.
Everyone was scrambling for funds, and William White was no exception. Short-term borrowing rates in America saw a slight uptick for a while. As for long-term loans, best not to even think about them.
This financial setup concocted by the Americans trapped a lot of people. The current Federal Reserve publicly announced a strong monetary policy.
Several major consortiums and some stakeholders, of course, knew what strategies to adopt, but international capital was clueless. Some European investors and desert tycoons, seeing the dollar's strong exchange rate and sky-high interest rates, naturally began funneling funds.
Even knowing the historical trajectory, William White was still stunned by the present scenario.
It seemed this world had plenty of fools who thought that the Americans had good intentions and might even restore the Bretton Woods system.
The reasons for the Japanese giving in were many. Unlike many other countries, they naturally did not believe the nonsense about the dollar staying strong. They even believed that if they didn't compromise this time, they might witness a continuous plunge in the dollar.
Either accept getting robbed or face economic collapse. From this perspective, the Japanese had no choice.
...
"Sir, the prices of artworks are getting higher and higher; some masterpieces are really hard to find."
"Tsk, how about antiques?"
"Those are alright, but there's not much demand. We can't expand acquisitions either; many collectors are reluctant to sell."
"Forget it, let's acquire some jewelry, mainly those diamonds, the larger ones."
"Alright, the prices of those are still acceptable."
Filson didn't understand why the boss thought the dollar would depreciate. Even if the yen appreciated, it shouldn't lead to a widespread devaluation, especially with such high interest rates eliminating any chance of inflation.
...
No one else was funding it, so this Olympics were essentially privately owned. The authorities had no say.
There's uncertainty whether such an Olympics would happen again, but that year was the only privately organized Olympic Game in history. When this commercial model was found feasible, companies and individuals no longer had the chance to take over. It was a shame in a way.
For a long time afterward, everyone followed the Los Angeles Olympics' operations model. Though quite profitable, it wasn't particularly creative anymore.
That day, people worldwide forced to notice a bunch of brands.
Ice Age became famous, and so did McDonald's. The latter lost heavily, but certainly made its presence known.
[T/N: Ice Age is the mineral water brand by the MC.]
Nielsen was dumbfounded by the rising viewership ratings. They found that at least half of Americans were watching the Olympic events. If an American competed or won, viewership soared to over sixty percent.
NBC had paid $250 million for broadcasting rights, which many originally thought was senselessly costly.
But once again, this guy succeeded.
No one was calling it lucky anymore. Obviously, he knew how to manage a TV station. Luck like that doesn't happen frequently.
Although there was some time before the IPO towards the end of the year, NBC's valuation changed once more. While Morgan Stanley might not estimate gaming consoles accurately, they'd never err in media valuation. NBC's value was quickly adjusted to $5 billion.
Heh, that was about equal to all other media combined.
Despite the high valuations, it didn't affect investors' judgments. Many institutions were in great distress; they had cashed out of Legendary World too early and now couldn't buy back in. This damn company showed no intention of readjusting, and kept steadily growing.
As William White's third public company, they certainly didn't want to miss out. A bunch of seething guys swore they wouldn't get off early this time.
...
William White was unaware of their vows, nor would he care. If it ever came to that point, they'd still sell without hesitation.
"William, this is my friend."
William White gave a sideways glance and couldn't help but marvel at the wonders of the world. People of similar character somehow always end up as close friends.
It turned out that by Nastassja's side was none other than Demi Moore, one of her best friends from a past life.
Both young and beautiful, both troubled, which was why they became good friends.
"Miss Moore, you're very beautiful."
"Thank you, Mr. White."
"Nastassja, you've got a good eye; she has potential to become an actress. But tell me, where did you learn these skills?"
"Of course, I learned from you."
"Cut it out. Dealing with troubled girls isn't my thing. You know, I'm a nice guy."
Okay, in the eyes of these beauties, someone's shamelessness had taken on a new level. But she didn't really care about things like that.
Opportunities in Hollywood were scarce, especially for women. To strengthen her relationship with this rascal, she wouldn't mind putting in a little extra effort.
*****
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