Chapter 226: Act Tonight
After thinking it over, Lin Haoran quickly came up with an idea. In Hong Kong, there were two main bus companies: Kowloon Motor Bus and China Motor Bus, something well known to everyone. What Lin Haoran had not expected was that three powerful consortiums had simultaneously targeted Kowloon Motor Bus. He had chosen Kowloon Motor Bus back then because he knew it owned far more land and was more profitable in public transport than China Motor Bus, so he had opted for it instead of China Motor Bus. After all, controlling both companies was impossible; the government would never allow it. Now, if he wanted to divert Kwok Tak Seng's attention, China Motor Bus was clearly the best bait. If he could eliminate such a strong competitor, Huanyu Investment's acquisition of Kowloon Motor Bus would become much easier, and the rapid rise in stock prices would also slow down. As for the other competitor, Eagle Group, Lin Haoran wasn't too worried. His current holdings had already reached 24.58%. As long as Kwok Tak Seng switched targets, Huanyu Investment could likely push its holdings over 30% within ten days or even a week. At that point, just a small leak of this information to Lo Ying Shek would be enough to make Eagle Group back off.
As for how to steer Kwok Tak Seng toward China Motor Bus, Lin Haoran already had a plan. "Zhixue, get me the recent trading data for China Motor Bus," Lin Haoran ordered. "Yes, Boss, I'll call our stationed employees at the Stock Exchange and have them fax it over," Su Zhixue responded, immediately making the call. Since Huanyu Investment expanded, they had placed their own people inside the Stock Exchange to avoid relying too much on external brokers and thus minimize the risk of leaks. Ten minutes later, Su Zhixue returned with the faxed data. "Boss, this is the daily trading volume for China Motor Bus over the past three months," he said, handing the papers to Lin Haoran.
Lin Haoran compared the numbers between China Motor Bus and Kowloon Motor Bus. Back in February, when he was deciding which one to target, China Motor Bus actually had a slightly higher market capitalization. But by May, Kowloon Motor Bus had surpassed China Motor Bus by more than 100 million HKD. The reason was obvious: continuous accumulation by investors like Lin Haoran and Kwok Tak Seng had inflated the stock price. Meanwhile, China Motor Bus's daily trading volume was extremely low—barely a fifth of Kowloon Motor Bus's.
In recent decades, as Hong Kong's economy boomed and living standards improved, citizens demanded better bus services. However, Yim Shing Kwan, the boss of China Motor Bus, stubbornly believed that citizens only needed cheap bus rides and refused to modernize his fleet. His increasingly conservative approach left China Motor Bus outdated and dilapidated: an aging, crumbling headquarters, old buses, infrequent services, demoralized staff, deteriorating service quality, and endless passenger complaints. As a result, the company's stock was neglected by the market, its trading volume low, and its share price stagnant.
By contrast, although Kowloon Motor Bus also faced challenges, it was much better managed, with more frequent fleet upgrades and better service overall. Lin Haoran stared at the trading data, thinking that had he known competition for Kowloon Motor Bus would be so intense, he might have chosen China Motor Bus after all. But now, with nearly a quarter of Kowloon Motor Bus already in his hands, switching targets would make no sense. Besides, the land assets and income from Kowloon Motor Bus were far more valuable, making the potential gains from its acquisition much greater. The fact that both Sun Hung Kai and Eagle Group had chosen to target Kowloon Motor Bus only confirmed that it was the better choice.
Lin Haoran quickly made his decision. "Starting tomorrow, allocate part of the traders to quietly buy up China Motor Bus shares, as many as possible, but make sure not to alert their management," Lin Haoran instructed. "Boss, are we planning to acquire China Motor Bus too? But the government won't allow it," Su Zhixue asked, confused. "You don't need to know why. Just follow my instructions," Lin Haoran replied with a smile. "Understood, Boss," Su Zhixue nodded.
Lin Haoran's purpose was very clear. The next day, the stock market opened as usual. Su Zhixue set up a small three-person team dedicated to China Motor Bus. Compared to Kowloon Motor Bus, China Motor Bus had many more sell orders and a much lower price, making it much easier to accumulate shares quietly. No one else seemed interested in it, and there was no competition.
Meanwhile, Lin Haoran didn't go to Wanqing Tower that morning. Instead, he visited Kwun Tong District. Liu Luanxiong had called him the night before about some updates regarding Aimeigao Company. Lin Haoran hadn't been there for some time.
Since April, Aimeigao's orders had surged dramatically, no longer the small, scattered orders seen in the first quarter. This year's order trend was much like last year's, showing no signs of decline; distributors were still crazily placing orders, clearly indicating that demand for fans in Europe and America remained strong. In May, orders were still pouring in at the same pace as last year. It was almost certain that this year Aimeigao would again bring Lin Haoran over 100 million HKD in profits.
However, Lin Haoran knew that starting next year, North America's demand for fans would plummet. When that happened, generating even 20 to 30 million HKD a year would be considered good. The market was becoming saturated, and others were beginning to notice the European and North American markets too. Various factors combined meant that orders would inevitably drop, and so would profits. Right now, though, no one could see it, as demand was still peaking this year.
Lin Haoran stayed at Aimeigao until the afternoon, inspecting the entire plant before sitting down with Liu Luanxiong in his office. Thanks to Aimeigao's explosive growth, Liu Luanxiong had amassed a fortune and now carried the demeanor of a tycoon. Still, in front of Lin Haoran, he instinctively behaved humbly. After all, no matter how wealthy he became, he was still far behind Lin Haoran, who owned multiple major enterprises.
"Haoran, do you think I should sell my land and use the money to acquire a listed company?" Liu Luanxiong asked sincerely. Over the past year, he had poured almost all his profits into land purchases, and those assets were now worth nearly 300 million HKD.
Lin Haoran immediately understood what he meant. Smiling, he replied, "Ah Xiong, I suggest you hold onto the land for now. From the current state of Hong Kong's property market, there's no sign of collapse. Your land value will continue to rise. Even if you buy a listed company now, it might not earn you as much as your land's appreciation. If you really want to become a listed company owner, don't worry — your opportunity is coming soon."
The obvious solution would be to list Aimeigao Company itself. However, Lin Haoran didn't plan to take it public until it had squeezed every last drop of profit from the current boom. Maximizing benefits was always his priority.
It was already past 3 p.m. when Lin Haoran left Aimeigao and headed back to Wanqing Tower.
When he returned, the market had already closed, and Su Zhixue had compiled the day's results.
"Boss, competition for Kowloon Motor Bus shares remains fierce.
Today, despite stepping up our efforts and even pulling two reinforcements from the Jardines team, we only captured about 35% of the total trading volume.
Our holdings have just passed 25%, reaching 25.13%," Su Zhixue reported.
Lin Haoran nodded.
Today's absorption rate was slightly lower than yesterday's, and worse,
the stock price had risen even faster.
Today's closing price was up by 3.2% compared to yesterday — an extremely sharp rise.
If this kept up, Kowloon Motor Bus's stock price could double within a month — something Lin Haoran absolutely could not allow.
Now that there were three powerful forces competing — Huanyu Investment, Sun Hung Kai, and Eagle Group —
such price explosions were inevitable.
He had to stop them quickly.
Otherwise, the later they acted, the higher the price they would pay.
And besides Sun Hung Kai and Eagle Group,
there were still two major hurdles:
current Kowloon Motor Bus boss Tang Siu Kin, and major shareholder Lui Che-woo.
"Boss, the absorption rate for China Motor Bus is surprisingly high," Su Zhixue said, handing another report.
After just one day, they had already accumulated 4.82% of China Motor Bus's shares.
"This is actually quite normal," Su Zhixue explained.
"China Motor Bus stock has low daily volume and many low-priced sell orders.
We took advantage of this to quietly scoop up a lot on the first day.
Still, to avoid arousing suspicion, we'll have to slow down tomorrow."
With 4.82% in hand, Lin Haoran knew — tonight was the time to act.
That stake was already enough bargaining power for what he had planned next.