Chapter 1493: Commerce

The items used for trade are grain, but from the very beginning, Grain Coupons have been used instead of physical grain; grain is also accepted, but it is troublesome to carry and troublesome to weigh, so Grain Coupons with fixed weights are the best items.

Baifeng also did not expect that one of his reforms could actually have such a far-reaching influence, laying a more solid foundation for currency circulation for him in advance. Now, everyone's level of recognition for Grain Coupons is very high. Although other coupons can also be used as items for trade, after all, the quota in everyone's hands is not much, so no one is generous enough to use Cloth Coupons or Meat Tickets for shopping.

Through Baifeng's secret promotion, other shops besides restaurants have gradually appeared, among which are tailor shops, which are side jobs for Zhinu after they get off work. Regarding food, clothing, housing, and transportation, the other two types of shops cannot appear in the short term, but two types have already appeared now, and this is a great step forward for Huaxia.

Coupled with the opening up of professions, various people with their own skills will surely develop their manual abilities to the extreme. When that time comes, the productivity of the people will also rise, and the goods that can be sold will naturally increase.

A major reason why the ticket system cannot be directly abolished now in favor of using currency is still because productivity is too low, demand is high, and supply is insufficient; it must be distributed in this way, otherwise, all the goods would be bought up by the wealthy. When everything has a surplus, then gradually withdraw all the tickets and use currency entirely.

The current top priority is to promote the development of commerce and the rapid circulation of grain within these few years. On this basis, Huaxia can also levy commercial taxes.

Levying commercial taxes is a necessary process, because when everyone discovers that doing business yields more benefits than farming, they will all turn to engage in commerce. However, with the restriction of commercial taxes, the development of commerce can be limited to a certain extent.

Baifeng is, after all, someone who has studied a certain amount of economics, so he will not be like those ancient Emperors who prevent commercial development to an excessive degree. When everyone discovers that the market is saturated and they cannot make money, it will naturally be healthy competition, eliminating those who are not suitable for doing business and returning to farming.

And the tax revenue that can be obtained from commerce will, with the future development of Huaxia and the development of commerce, eventually exceed agricultural taxes. Engaging in agriculture is for the sake of being well-fed and warmly clothed, so one cannot levy excessively heavy taxes, but engaging in commerce is for the sake of obtaining more benefits and for wealth, so more taxes should be levied. Besides limiting the stable expansion of commerce, it is also a means to balance the gap between rich and poor.

In the plan of Baifeng and the Ministry of Revenue, about five commercial streets are to be established in Huaxia City, specifically for them to open shops. The scale of each commercial street is not very large, as the number of people engaged in commerce in Huaxia is still small now, and the several commercial streets are mainly concentrated in residential areas and industrial areas.

The more people there are, the more prosperous the place, the better; for example, in factories, the canteens provide free meals, but there is no variety, and it is always the same. The canteens outside might have other varieties and different flavors. In order to change their tastes, everyone might choose to eat outside. After all, in the current Huaxia, it is no longer about just filling one's stomach; everyone is thinking about how to eat better.

Furthermore, the support for commerce must also be reflected. For commercial development, in the first few years, it should also be tax-exempt, and only after it has developed should commercial taxes be levied. After all, they are also crossing the river by feeling the stones—no, it should be said that they are the stones themselves, going to scout the path for the development of Huaxia's commerce.

Everything is still in the discussion stage, because the current urban construction of Huaxia City is already very dense, and wanting to demolish and rebuild is a very troublesome matter. This year, not much demolition and reconstruction work for the Second and Third Ring has been carried out; many people have only signed agreements and are waiting to move, but unfortunately, it has not yet been demolished to their doorsteps.

Expanding commercial streets, site selection, construction, and some supporting facilities must also be built; all of these are very complex problems. There is also the question of where the merchants will come from and how to choose them; after all, for the first batch, the quota is limited, and one cannot force them to go.

Some people with a business mind who have not yet waited for an opportunity, if they knew that Huaxia was promoting commercial development, would definitely go to seize the first opportunity. When that time comes, to whom should this opportunity be given?

Another point is that because of the supply problem of Huaxia's basic products, the shops that have appeared are all small in scale, because there are no raw materials, and they can only sell their own manual labor, such as those who process ingredients to cook food, or tailors who make clothes to order with provided materials, but there are no shops selling ready-made clothes, because the shopkeepers themselves have no cloth.

Regarding this situation, Baifeng's opinion is that starting now, the government will provide subsidies for raw materials. If you run a tailor shop, you can also become a ready-made clothing shop. If you have no cloth, as long as you have a business qualification, you can purchase cloth in bulk from the Huaxia government at a low price. Not only is the price lower for you, but it can also be supplied in large quantities.

Those running restaurants cannot just make noodles and stir-fried vegetables; there must be meat as well. Then they can purchase more meat from Huaxia. Huaxia can appropriately provide a little more in bulk. As far as the present is concerned, Huaxia's future meat supply is still quite optimistic, and in the future, a portion of the meat put into the market can be given directly to merchants; in the end, it all goes into the mouths of the masses anyway.

Doing this is of no benefit to Huaxia's finances, because it is low-price and large-volume; it cannot even be considered small profits but quick turnover, because they are all hot commodities that would sell out quickly at high prices in the State-run Store. However, supporting commerce is a long-term matter, and it is beneficial for the future. Giving a little support now, the future commercial taxes will be enough to offset the support of these years.

A greater benefit of commerce is free competition; they can stimulate potential and create better things at a faster speed and in a shorter time. Food and clothing will quickly show new styles and new flair under the elimination and pressure of the market.

Current food, clothing, etc., and aesthetics are all from Baifeng's family; the market does not have much possibility for selection and promotion, which also limits diversified development. If one wants to make the whole of Huaxia more vibrant, then the development of commerce is imperative.

Baifeng even wants to dye various colored fabrics after alum is mined, and then hand them directly to merchants to make clothes, letting the market screen them and giving the market a big impact, rather than letting the rigid State-run Store operate them.

After the rationed ticket system is abolished, the State-run Store will probably also be abolished; it might turn into a Royal Family store belonging to Baifeng's family, specializing in selling high-end luxury goods.