The Rise of Australia

After the Russian representative proposed to exchange gold for sufficient foreign currency, the loan talks could proceed normally.

In any case, gold is still attractive enough to a country, especially in the current era when the gold standard is generally implemented in the world.

It can be said that the amount of gold owned represents the amount of currency a country can issue.

Having sufficient gold reserves is not only related to the credibility of the national currency, but also to the specific value and value-preserving ability of a national currency.

Australasia has accumulated a lot of gold in the past 20 years, but it is destined to be unable to compare with those old powers.

In particular, the old powers, led by Britain and France, have accumulated a large amount of wealth during their hegemony of more than a hundred years, including property and gold absorbed from colonies and other countries.

The current gold reserves in Australasia can exceed 1,000 tons. If converted into Australian dollars, it is almost only 272 million Australian dollars.

This figure is still far behind the gold reserves of Britain and France, but a thousand tons of gold reserves is not small in the entire world, at least it can be regarded as a gold reserve level at the level of the great powers.

If Arthur's guess is correct, Russia's gold reserves are at least thousands of tons, or even a lot more.

At present, Russia sells or mortgages only a few hundred tons of gold to foreign countries, which is not consistent with Russia's previous status as a top power.

With such a vast land and a huge population, the Russian royal family would only accumulate more gold.

Because of this, Arthur was very interested in Nicholas II's proposal to exchange gold. He was also curious about how much gold Nicholas II could exchange for gold.

"How much gold can you put out?" Arthur asked slightly curiously.

"If your Majesty is willing, we can transport at least 200 tons of gold from Russia to the Baltic Sea. Your Majesty only needs to send a fleet to receive it." After getting to the point, the Russian ambassador did not dare to conceal anything and said it directly to Nicholas II. Accepts numbers within the range.

200 tons of gold is not a small number. If calculated according to the current gold price, it is equivalent to approximately 27.28 million pounds, which is equivalent to Australasia's military expenditure for more than half a year.

Although the Russian army has a larger number, the Russian navy has basically not been dispatched. Coupled with the assistance from other countries, there is no problem in supporting this fund for half a year.

This was exactly what Nicholas II expected, and the government was financially able to sustain the entire summer offensive.

As for the funds after the summer offensive, it still depends on whether this summer offensive can be successful.

If successful, Tsarist Russia will repel Soviet Russia and regain control of most of Eastern Europe, and funds will no longer be a problem.

If this battle fails, Tsarist Russia will completely lose its advantage in Eastern Europe. Nicholas II will have no choice but to flee St. Petersburg. Whether he can escape safely to Siberia is a question. Naturally, there is no need to worry about future fund consumption.

"Two hundred tons of gold? It's quite a big deal." Arthur nodded with satisfaction, still satisfied with the amount of gold.

This gold can increase Australasia's gold reserves by 20% and make the Australian dollar more stable.

Compared with this, those banknotes are nothing. After all, the value of banknotes is determined by gold, and having more gold is the last word.

"According to the current exchange ratio between pounds and gold, 200 tons of gold is equivalent to 27.285 million pounds. Do you plan to mortgage the loan or directly exchange it for banknotes?" Arthur asked with a smile.

In Arthur's eyes, the Russian ambassador opposite had turned into a stupid rich man, and was taking out the gold from his pocket bit by bit.

"Your Majesty, although the exchange rate between gold and pounds is indeed like this, you must also know how important gold is to a country's monetary system. ıllıllııllıllı We hope to be able to mortgage a loan of at least 50 million pounds. If we cannot in ten years If you repay it, the gold will be used as collateral to compensate you. This is the condition of His Majesty the Tsar." The Russian ambassador smiled awkwardly and did not agree with what Arthur said. The mortgage and exchange should be determined based on the specific value of the gold. ratio, but put forward their own opinions.

Arthur shook his head and directly rejected what the Russian ambassador said about Nicholas II's proposal. He retorted: "Although gold is very important to a country, the value of gold is also limited. 50 million pounds is almost the same At twice the value of this gold, judging from the current situation in your country, it is difficult to use this gold for mortgage loans."

"If you really want a mortgage loan, the maximum mortgage for 200 tons of gold is 30 million pounds. For the sake of the royal families of the two countries, Australasia does not want to lose Russia as an ally." Arthur continued.

The difference in value between 30 million pounds and 200 tons of gold is less than 3 million pounds. This difference is completely acceptable to Arthur.

After all, the future depreciation of the currency must also be taken into consideration. Using 30 million pounds in exchange for 200 tons of gold reserves, this transaction is still very cost-effective overall.

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"30 million pounds? Your Majesty, I still need to discuss this matter with the country. I'm afraid I won't be able to give you an answer in a short time." The Russian ambassador said with a slight embarrassment.

This is 20 million pounds different from Nicholas II's expectations. It is obvious that the Russian ambassador cannot make independent decisions, so he needs to consult the domestic government and Nicholas II for instructions.

"Of course, Australasia welcomes your country's mortgage loans at any time. No matter what, Australasia will always be an ally of Russia. Please convey my regards to His Majesty Nicholas." Arthur smiled and nodded. Said undeniably.

Although the Russian ambassador did not agree in person, according to the current situation in Russia that Arthur knew, Nicholas II's consent was inevitable.

Although Russia can still obtain loans from Britain and France, the hearts of Britain and France are much darker than Arthur's. Whether 200 tons of gold can obtain a loan of equal value is a problem, let alone a loan with a mortgage exceeding the value.

In addition, a considerable part of Russia's arms trade is conducted with Australasia, which is actually the reason why Russia came to Australasia.

There is more trade in grain and other materials with Europe. After all, Europe is closer to Russia, and the transportation of materials is relatively convenient.

Sure enough, just the next day, the Russian ambassador approached Arthur again and agreed to the 30 million pound loan mortgage proposed by Arthur.

Of course, because the loan was made in Australasia, the loan amount was actually AUD 60 million equivalent to GBP 30 million.

However, this has almost no impact on loans and subsequent purchases. After all, Australasia has a close relationship with the British Empire, and the release of the Australian dollar is directly linked to the pound. The 2:1 exchange ratio between the two is almost fixed.

In addition, Australasia suffered almost no losses during World War I and even obtained a lot of gold reserves from Russia, making the Australian dollar even stronger.

At present, the only currencies in the world that have not depreciated significantly are the pound sterling and the Australian dollar. There is a relatively fixed conversion ratio between the two. Whether the currency of the loan is the pound sterling or the Australian dollar, it has no impact on the loan itself.

Russia itself is doomed to be in chaos, and it is almost impossible to hide major events in this country.

Within a few days, the news that Russia had mortgaged 200 tons of gold for a loan spread throughout Europe. Everyone was very greedy for the Tsar's gold reserves, and they were also trying to squeeze Nicholas II's gold reserves through various channels. .

However, Nicholas II was not a fool after all. It was naturally impossible to use gold in any trade.

Especially with a mortgage loan, Nicholas II had sufficient funds, and there was almost no problem in sustaining it for the first half of the year. Naturally, he would not take the initiative to use gold to mortgage goods.

Among the Russian government, Nicholas II is quite satisfied with this mortgage loan. After all, the current situation is different from usual. It is good news that he has not been blackmailed.

With the funds officially arriving, Nicholas II couldn't wait any longer. He called the Prime Minister again and asked impatiently: "Prime Minister, with this money, can the government stably survive the entire summer offensive?"

"Theoretically, there is no problem, Your Majesty. The purchasing power of the Australian dollar in Europe can still be maintained. As long as it does not experience major depreciation, there will be almost no problem in surviving the summer offensive." The Prime Minister thought carefully for a while, and then gave a comparison Proper reply.

Nicholas II had already demonstrated his own methods when liquidating some nobles and capitalists.

This also caused the Prime Minister to dare not give more precise guarantees. After all, Nicholas II really knew how to settle the scores.

"Well, in that case, the government will quickly prepare the supplies needed for the summer offensive. I don't want the front line to face a shortage of various supplies during the launch of the offensive, which may affect the final outcome of the war." Nicholas II He nodded with satisfaction and ordered.

During World War I, Australasia conducted a large amount of trade with European countries, which also brought the Australian dollar to Europe, where it was recognized by European countries and circulated in small quantities.

Compared with the depreciating mark and franc, the pound and the Australian dollar are still relatively strong, and even if they depreciate, they are destined not to be too large.

Nicholas II firmly believed in this and believed in the government's answer that it could stably survive the entire summer offensive.

There is only more than a month left before the launch of the summer offensive. This period of more than a month is Russia's most precious material preparation stage.

At least the reserves of supplies must keep up with the rate of consumption. Otherwise, supplies will have been exhausted before aid from Western countries has arrived, and it will be impossible to survive this war.

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