Chapter 250: Population

The influx of foreign capital was something Gao Da had not anticipated, but for Spain, this was a good thing.

Companies listed on the stock exchange benefited as a result, especially the share prices of railway companies, which rose by at least ten percent.

The biggest impact for Spain was that many railway companies obtained additional funds, making the completion of the railway construction scheduled in the Third Five-Year Development Plan a certainty.

The influx of French capital had both pros and cons, but for the current Spain, the benefits definitely far outweighed the drawbacks. The massive amount of funds brought by French capital could accelerate Spain's industrial development and make Spain's Five-Year Development Plan more effective.

Although this would also allow French capital to have a more profound influence on Spain, the extent of this influence was controllable.

Spain followed the path of state capitalism, and the largest capital in the country was the government and the royal family. Under such circumstances, unless all French capital were transferred to Spain, partial capital could not influence the decision-making of the Spanish government.

In some cases, these foreign capitals could even become lambs to the slaughter; once the relationship between Spain and France broke down, the industries and properties invested in by French capital in Spain would be forcibly reclaimed by the Spanish government.

Because the Spanish government did not block the influx of French funds into the Spanish stock exchange, this led to rapid growth in the share prices of all enterprises involved in railways.

At this time, Spain was indeed a better destination for French capital. Due to the impact of the previous economic crisis, the economies of various European countries had not yet fully recovered.

Conversely, Spain, which had not been significantly affected by the economic crisis, had an economic growth rate that was definitely among the fastest in all of Europe.

It was not just the railways in the Five-Year Development Plan that attracted the attention of French capital; other plans related to industrial construction also attracted capital from France and even other European countries.

The influx of a large amount of money set off an investment wave in the Spanish stock market, and many investors even saw their assets multiply several times over in just a few days.

With Spain welcoming all comers, French capital soon reached close cooperation with Spanish enterprises. These capitals were not satisfied with just buying stocks released by Spanish enterprises; they even wanted to purchase large-scale stocks directly from the shareholders of some railway companies.

Regarding these actions by French capital, Gao Da adopted a laissez-faire attitude.

At least for now, French capital posed no threat to Spain; instead, they could accelerate Spain's industrialization and make Spain's capital strength even more powerful.

If one were to rely solely on domestic capital to drive Spain's industrialization, by the time Spain completed its industrialization, other European powers would have long since completed a higher level of industrial progress.

Even if only to accelerate the progress of Spain's industrialization, absorbing these foreign capitals was very necessary.

Since it was already certain that a large amount of capital from France and even other countries was pouring into Spain, the most important thing to do at this time was to reasonably utilize these foreign capitals to promote Spain's economic development.

Currently, foreign capital was mainly concentrated in Spain's railway construction, and they were primarily investing in industries related to railways.

As long as a way was found to make them pay attention to other industries in Spain, Spain's economy would have the hope of achieving comprehensive growth.

Under Gao Da's intentional promotion, Spanish newspapers also began to report news related to other industries, and even industries related to finance began to predict that certain sectors would achieve great development in the future.

Although it did not have the same effect as the railway industry, it did indeed attract a small portion of foreign capital to invest in Spain's agricultural product processing, manufacturing, and other industries.

It could be expected that with these foreign capitals as a driving force, other industries in Spain would also enter a golden stage of development.

Although the influx of these foreign capitals would cause some local small and medium-sized enterprises to face larger-scale competition or even the crisis of bankruptcy, it was helpful for the industry as a whole.

As long as it could help various industries in Spain develop rapidly, sacrificing some small and medium-sized enterprises was very necessary. This era was inherently an era of monopoly giants; these small and medium-sized enterprises did not play such a large role in Spain, and there was absolutely no need to feel sorry for them.

Of course, development is development, but one must also prevent the problem of overcapacity.

The hidden dangers brought by overcapacity were quite huge, and it was even highly likely to trigger a new round of economic crisis. Although Gao Da hoped that Spain's economy and industry could achieve rapid development, Gao Da even more did not want Spain to face a serious economic crisis.

It was precisely because of this that, under the circumstances of foreign capital pouring in to drive Spain's rapid economic development, Gao Da also issued several requirements to the cabinet government, the most important of which were preventing overcapacity and blind development.

Spain's development should be purposeful, building those industries that Spain lacked and desperately needed, rather than focusing eyes generally on industries where Spain was already quite strong.

For example, in terms of steel manufacturing, Spain's steel output was already firmly ranked fifth in the world, and there was no need to pursue greater steel output for the time being, unless the domestic demand for steel products in Spain expanded.

If one blindly pursued steel output, the inability to sell the produced steel products would lead to the outbreak of an economic crisis.

While the rapid development of various industries was gratifying, one must also firmly prevent the occurrence of an economic crisis, avoiding the blind development of these industries, which would eventually lead to the problem of overcapacity.

With Spain's rapid economic development, the one that suffered was Portugal, which was forced to engage in economic trade with Spain.

Ever since the train tracks of the two countries were synchronized, economic trade between Spain and Portugal had become quite frequent. Spain was Portugal's only land neighbor and also the only channel for Portugal to conduct land trade with other European countries.

Since the two countries conducted economic trade and synchronized their train tracks, the total trade volume between Spain and Portugal had achieved a huge increase in a short period of time.

At the beginning of the First Five-Year Development Plan, the total import and export trade volume between Spain and Portugal was less than 1 million pesetas, and the relationship between the two countries could be said to be on the verge of war, with basically no trade relationship existing.

By the end of the Second Five-Year Development Plan, the total import and export trade volume between Spain and Portugal had already reached 46 million pesetas, and Portugal had also become an important trading partner for Spain.

Of course, the only one to benefit from such a trade relationship was Spain; the disadvantages Portugal received were far greater than the advantages.

The first was the impact of the influx of a large number of industrial products on Portugal's industrial environment. Under the premise that the impact of the economic crisis had not been completely eliminated, Portugal's industry had suffered quite a serious impact.

Many smaller-scale factories went bankrupt directly during the economic crisis, which also caused Portugal's total industrial output to plummet by nearly a quarter.

The remaining factories appeared so powerless when facing the impact of Spanish industry.

During the period when the economic crisis was relatively severe, Spain's export of industrial products to Portugal was not very effective.

After all, many Portuguese workers had lost their jobs at that time, and they were completely unable to afford Spanish industrial products.

But when the impact of the economic crisis gradually decreased and these unemployed workers found jobs again, Spain's dumping of industrial products had obvious results.

Compared with Portugal's industrial finished products, Spain's industrial finished products were not only more comprehensive but also had the advantages of better quality and lower prices.

This was also what Spain relied on for its industrial finished products to impact the Portuguese market. Under such circumstances, the total import and export trade volume between Spain and Portugal continued to climb, and the trade deficit between the two sides continued to expand.

As of now, Portugal had to import more than 30 million pesetas of goods from Spain every year, covering various industrial finished products, and even large items such as steel rails and trains.

There was no other way; Portugal also needed to build railways domestically. Under the premise that the output of Portugal's steel mills had collapsed, Portugal could only purchase cheaper steel rails from its neighbor Spain, which could even reduce Portugal's expenses for building railways.

The total value of goods imported by Spain from Portugal was only about 16 million pesetas, and the trade deficit between the two sides reached a staggering 14 million pesetas.

Companies engaged in import and export trade and bulk commodity trading therefore made a fortune, and most of those engaged in these industries were Spanish nobles and capitalists.

Currently, the import and export trade between Spain and Portugal mainly relied on the railway from Badajoz to Portugal, which was also the only connection point between the Spanish and Portuguese railways.

It could also be seen from the map that Spain's railways were well-developed, but only a small strip of railway in the bottom left corner connected with Portugal's railway.

It was not that the Spanish government had not proposed the requirement of connecting more railways to the Portuguese government, but it was ultimately rejected by the Portuguese government.

The reason was also very simple: if the Portuguese government fully connected its railways with Spain, then Portugal's safety would be at the mercy of Spain.

Although Spain's land had many high mountains, the route from Toledo to Lisbon was almost flat and had no dangerous terrain to defend.

If Spain really had any ideas about Portugal, it could completely rely on the railway connecting the two countries and reach Portugal's capital, Lisbon, in just a short time.

This was something the Portuguese could never accept, and it was also the reason why they were always only willing to connect one railway with Spain.

With only such a small railway for connection, if a rift appeared in the relationship between the two countries, the Portuguese side could blow up this railway at any time to ensure that the Spanish army would not quickly enter the Portuguese border by rail.

If the north, center, and south were all connected to Spain by rail, it would become quite difficult to stop the advance of the Spanish army by blowing up the railway.

Gao Da still felt it was a pity. If the railway lines with Portugal could be fully connected, the Iberian railways would form a super-large railway network, promoting economic exchanges in various regions of Iberia.

This was of course a good thing for Spain, but it might not be for Portugal, which was also the reason for the Portuguese government's refusal.

As of now, Spain's domestic development was relatively smooth, but there were still many problems with the development of the colonies.

A long time had passed since the establishment of the Congo Territory, and population had always been a major problem for the development of the Congo Territory.

Currently, the total population of the Congo Territory did not exceed 30, 00, and many were Russian immigrants who had been forcibly sent there.

After these Russian peasants arrived in the Congo Territory, they soon reclaimed a large piece of land with the help of the local indigenous people. If nothing unexpected happened, they would settle in the Congo Territory permanently and contribute their strength to the agricultural development of the Congo Territory.

Of course, Spain would not treat them badly. After these Russian peasants arrived in the Congo Territory, they possessed absolute freedom, and they were also first-class citizens of the colony, possessing some privileges.

In Russia, they were at the bottom of society, unable to earn any income after working themselves to death for a year, and even had to face large debts because of renting land from nobles.

But in the Congo Territory, for any physical labor, one could rent a few slaves from the colonial government, or even directly buy a few black slaves to do it.

The status of these Russians underwent an instantaneous transformation, which also made them not repulsed by settling in the Congo Territory, and they were even glad that they chose to immigrate to change their lives.

Facts proved that these Russian immigrants were very useful.

Their arrival accelerated the agricultural development of the Congo Territory and also allowed the Congo Territory to barely meet its own needs in terms of agricultural products.

If it were not for the fact that the Congo Territory had organized a colonial division with a full 20, 00-man army, the current agricultural scale of the Congo Territory would actually have been able to meet the requirements of self-sufficiency.

Because food sources had to be provided for the army, the agricultural scale of the Congo Territory still needed to continue to expand. There was no crisis of overcapacity for food; after all, there were always people in this world who could not get enough to eat.

Even during the economic crisis, the price of food would instead rise. After all, people not using industrial products would only make their lives inconvenient, but if they did not eat food, they would starve to death in a few days.

The question of how to increase the population of the Congo Territory had troubled the Spanish government for a long time.

At a cabinet meeting, the newly appointed Minister of Colonial Affairs, William, put forward a proposal that made Gao Da's eyes light up: that was to attract a large number of gold seekers through a gold rush, thereby expanding the population of the Congo Territory.

The so-called gold rush was actually attracting gold seekers by making gold mines public. The event of a large number of gold seekers pouring into areas with gold mines to pan for gold was also known as a gold rush.

Many colonies developed gradually precisely because of gold rushes; famous cities among them included San Francisco and New Gold Mountain, and these two cities became large cities precisely because of gold rushes.

Do not underestimate the obsession of gold seekers for panning gold. Even in deep mountains and old forests, as long as news of a gold mine spread among gold seekers, it would attract a large number of gold seekers to come.

The Lanfang Republic also developed because of a gold rush, and at its peak, it even gathered tens of thousands of gold seekers.

As long as Spain released the news that there was a large gold mine in the Congo Territory, it would definitely attract many gold seekers to go there.

As long as a portion of the gold seekers could be kept, the problem of insufficient population in the Congo Territory would be solved.

Of course, attracting population through a gold rush was double-sided. These gold seekers would indeed leave a portion to settle in the Congo Territory, but a gold rush would also attract the attention of other countries.

This was gold, one of the most valuable rare metals in the world. Small gold mines were destined not to trigger a gold rush; gold mines capable of triggering a gold rush were basically those large, unmined gold mines.

Such large gold mines could attract gold seekers, and naturally, they could also attract the attention or even covetousness of other countries.

Therefore, before adopting a gold rush to attract population, one also had to consider whether the gold seekers in the Congo Territory would attract the attention of other powers.

After careful consideration, Gao Da finally decided to adopt the method proposed by William.

The Congo Territory was relatively special; there were few colonial competitors on this land, at least that was the situation for now.

In the entire Congo River basin, there were actually only two colonial powers: Portugal and Spain. The next closest colonial power was the French, whose colony was more than 500 kilometers away from the Congo River.

Coupled with the fact that France at this time needed Spain to get rid of the impact of the isolation policy on France, it was impossible for the French to have conflicts with Spain for the sake of gold, at least not in the short term.

In the absence of French participation, Spain only needed to pay attention to Portugal's colonial movements.

Little Portugal was not yet in Gao Da's eyes, and precisely because of this, Gao Da decided to adopt the suggestion proposed by William.

In fact, besides France, the British might also intervene in the gold rush in the Congo Territory.

But the British colony was far away from the Congo River basin, the closest being the Huang Jinhaian, which was separated by nearly 2, 00 kilometers.

Spain's Congo Territory was located in the African interior; if the British wanted to intervene, they could only occupy the lower reaches of the Congo River and then penetrate deep into the Congo Basin.

If the British really did this, Gao Da would instead laugh out loud.

Because what was entrenched in the lower reaches of the Congo River at this time was precisely Portugal; if the British seized Portugal's colony, the relationship between Britain and Portugal would plummet.

Portugal without British support was a lamb to the slaughter for Spain; if the plot really developed according to this, the merger of Spain and Portugal might be in the near future.

The paper data after the merger of the two countries was still very exaggerated. Judging from last year's data, if Spain and Portugal merged, the two combined would have a population of more than 24 million and an army of 250, 00, industrial output would remain at the world's fifth level, the navy would also be the world's fifth, and the comprehensive strength would still be relatively powerful.

If the two countries merged, Spain's rapidly developing economy would also affect Portugal, allowing Portugal's industry and economy to enter the fast lane of rapid development.

After several years of low-profile development, the merged federation could be called the premier power after Britain, France, and Germany, and it would even have no problem going toe-to-toe with the French.

Last month we reached one thousand monthly votes, so today there is an extra chapter; I humbly beg for more monthly votes!

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