Golden Spoon Investment Portfolio - Chapter 227

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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227. You should pick your target before you start mouthing off.

In front of the New York Stock Exchange, where a massive American flag hung.
Debra, dressed in a crisp pantsuit, stood before the camera with a microphone in hand, delivering her report.

[Before trading opened today, GE announced that it had placed an order with Boeing, the aircraft manufacturer, for passenger jets valued at 4 billion dollars.
According to GE’s outlook that global demand for aircraft will continue to surge significantly, the company issued this order as part of its efforts to increase the aircraft holdings of “GE Capital Aviation Services,” its subsidiary specializing in aircraft leasing.
Experts have noted that GE is a major supplier of engines for various aircraft manufactured by Boeing, and they predict that this contract will further strengthen the cooperative relationship between the two companies going forward.
With Motorola and GM also announcing favorable earnings results, the market appears to be recovering somewhat from the shock of Black Tuesday, which was triggered last Tuesday by corporate earnings concerns.]

“Okay! That was good.”

At Yan’s shout as he pulled his eye away from the viewfinder, Debra lowered the microphone.

“Yan! Let’s get one more sketch shot with the Charging Bull statue in the background.”

Yan glanced at the watch on his wrist and nodded.

“It’ll be a bit tight if we want to get to the Broadcasting Station before rush hour. But sure, why not.”

As Yan detached the ENG camera from the tripod, he suddenly remembered something and spoke to Debra.

“You know, that Eldorado Fund representative is really something.”
“What do you mean?”
“The head of Eldorado Fund.”

Debra, who had been checking messages on her mobile phone that she’d turned off during filming, paused and looked up at Yan’s words.

“In that last interview, he said he’d shorted the S&P 500. I didn’t show it, but honestly, I thought he was crazy at the time.”

Debra nodded slightly in understanding.

“Back then, with the internet boom in full swing and the market ignoring the shutdown, the index kept rising, so it made sense to be skeptical.”
“Exactly. But who could have predicted a crash like this in just two weeks?”
“That’s what I’m saying.”

Debra, who hadn’t mentioned it to Yan but knew about the million-dollar bet I’d made with John Miller, the representative of P&P Partners, after the trouble at the year-end charity gala, grew increasingly anxious watching the stock market climb relentlessly.
To make matters worse, when the federal budget was dramatically resolved and the longest government shutdown finally ended, the stock market rebounded from its slight dip, and even that sliver of hope she’d been clinging to vanished.

‘I really thought there was no hope left at that point…’

Yet on the final day of the bet, the market suddenly collapsed with a massive plunge exceeding fifty points—something I never could have imagined in my wildest dreams.

‘Even thinking about it now, it’s hard to believe.’

Debra lifted the corners of her mouth slightly and murmured to herself.
Just then, Yan appeared with a large ENG camera in one hand, his expression tinged with envy.

“With all that chaos, other places must have been crying, but the Eldorado Fund holding short positions must have made an absolute fortune, right?”
“I suppose so.”
“Damn, I should have placed a bet following your lead.”

Yan exhaled a sigh and regarded her with a subtle gaze.

“We went on a date together at Christmas, but we haven’t been in contact since then?”

Debra found his hopeful expression utterly absurd.

“I told you we’re nothing like that. Stop wasting time with pointless talk and let’s go shoot the sketch footage.”
“Yeah, yeah. Let’s go together!”

She cast a sly glance and strode ahead, while Yan quickly grabbed the tripod he’d set aside and hurried after her.

***

At the same moment, Seok-won sat on the Penthouse living room sofa receiving a report from Landon Shore on the short-betting results.

“We completed all short covers this morning and fully liquidated our positions.”
“It must have been challenging to fill a volume of twenty billion dollars in such a short span of less than four days. You did well.”

Seok-won, dressed in a thin gray cashmere turtleneck and dress pants, sat with one leg crossed, setting down the teacup in his hand as he asked.

“How much profit did we generate?”

Landon Shore responded with a broad smile, his white teeth gleaming.

“The declines varied by stock, but most fell more sharply than the S&P 500 index, netting us a 16.4% return. After deducting expenses, we’ve earned three billion, four hundred and fifty million dollars.”
“That’s quite a respectable performance.”

Landon Shore continued speaking as he observed Seok-won’s satisfied expression.

“And as you instructed, we’ve completed our purchases of S&P 500 futures.”
“What was our average purchase price?”
“600.”
“I understand the S&P 500 closed at 580 today, so that’s slightly higher.”
“Given the sheer volume of our purchases, there was no avoiding it.”

He gave a small nod of understanding at Landon Shore’s cautious explanation and moved past it.

“Even with the S&P 500’s exceptional futures trading volume, absorbing forty billion dollars in purchases within just a few days would be no simple feat.”
“That’s absolutely correct.”

Indeed, as the Eldorado Fund had swept up virtually all available inventory, the index plummeted while the S&P 500 futures market experienced a corresponding surge in prices.
For profits to materialize, the S&P 500 would need to rise more than twenty points from current levels, but Seok-won spoke as though it were of little concern.

“It’ll rebound soon and break through the previous highs, so as long as we’ve accumulated our target amount, that’s all that matters.”
“With a crash severe enough to be called Black Tuesday, wouldn’t a V-shaped recovery be rather difficult?”

At that, Seok-won leaned back against the sofa’s armrest, his smile radiating confidence.

“The market was frightened by Apple’s results, but other companies like GE and Motorola, which reported earnings today, should show solid performance. When investors see stocks that have fallen so dramatically trading at bargain prices, we’ll see a relief rally unfold.”

Landon Shore nodded in agreement as he listened.

“Indeed, contrary to our initial concerns, now that the numbers are in, corporate earnings are quite strong, and stock prices have fallen excessively.”

The American stock market, particularly the NASDAQ, had climbed more steeply and higher than I remembered, and the decline had been correspondingly deeper.

‘This must be the result of my intervention affecting the market.’

The greater my influence became, the more pronounced these variables would manifest.

‘I’ll need to move with even greater caution and attention going forward.’

With that resolution, I naturally transitioned to the next topic.

“How is the trading Andrew is leading coming along?”

Landon Shore responded with a smile, his tone tinged with pride.

“I’m not sure if it’s because of the commodities you proposed, boss, but everyone has been trading with remarkable intensity, and we’ve already generated substantial profits. We sold off all our existing inventory early on, and now we’re buying back the stocks we shorted at the bottom. According to Andrew, the arbitrage gains will comfortably exceed fifty million dollars.”

Seeing that Andrew and the fund staff were delivering results beyond expectations, a satisfied expression crossed my face.

“In that case, I should place an advance order for Rolex watches.”
“Yes, I think that would be wise.”

Landon Shore accepted the remark with a pleasant smile, then brought up a matter he had momentarily forgotten.

“Ah, and we’ve completed all the detailed negotiations regarding the acquisition of Dantic Company and the Plaza Hotel.”
“So now we just need to sign the contract.”
“That’s correct. It seems Dantic Company’s situation is worse than expected, and they’re eager to finalize the contract quickly.”
“Since we plan to purchase the hotel with cash on hand without any loans anyway, there’s no need to drag things out. Let’s sign the contract tomorrow.”
“Understood.”

I brought the teacup to my lips again before asking.

“Will Chairman Dantic himself be present when we sign the contract?”
“Given that it’s a three hundred fifty million dollar contract, I imagine so.”
“Then I’ll attend as well. Make sure to prepare accordingly.”

Normally, I wouldn’t attend such contracts directly—Landon Shore would handle them as my proxy—so I found the decision somewhat unusual.
But since there was nothing particularly problematic about it, I didn’t dwell on it.

“Understood.”

After discussing a few more matters, Landon Shore left the Penthouse, and alone once more, I sank into the sofa, lost in thought.
I was pondering how to deepen the fortunate relationship that had developed with David Dantic.
Just then, the sudden ring of a phone broke my reverie, and I reached for the mobile phone resting on the table.

“Yes, this is Park Seok-won.”
[Mr. Park. It’s me.]

At the voice of Rodney, the CIO of Quantum Fund, my expression brightened.

“Ah. This is the first time we’ve spoken since seeing each other at Rodney’s year-end party.”
[First, let me congratulate you on the successful short bet. You’ve hit the jackpot again, and quite spectacularly at that.]

Rodney’s voice carried genuine warmth as he offered his congratulations.
Seok-won felt an odd sensation receiving praise from a man who would become a legendary Wall Street investor, and he responded accordingly.

“Thank you.”
[To be honest, I never expected the S&P 500 to collapse this dramatically in a single day. It’s truly remarkable.]
“My prediction did pan out, but I have to admit—I was incredibly fortunate this time.”
[There’s a saying that luck is a skill too. Ah, and thank you.]
“Pardon?”

Seok-won’s expression turned puzzled as he held the receiver to his ear.
“What do you mean by that?”
[Ha ha. Thanks to you, Park, I also sold S&P 500 futures and made quite a tidy profit. So I’m thanking you.]

At that, Seok-won’s lips curved upward as he threw out a quip.

“Then shouldn’t you be paying me a commission?”
[Whenever you’d like, I’ll buy you dinner at a nice place. Just say the word.]
“I’ll definitely keep that in mind.”

After their lighthearted exchange, Rodney got to the real reason for his call.

[The reason I’m calling today is that Miller sent over the one-million-dollar check he wagered, just as promised.]

He could have sent it directly to Seok-won, but the fact that he chose to send it to Rodney instead suggested that Miller’s pride had taken quite a hit.

[I was thinking of donating it to the NRDC in your name right away. What do you think?]
“I’d be grateful if you did.”
[Then I’ll take care of it. By the way, I’m not just making conversation—I really will take you to dinner. Feel free to call me whenever you have time.]
“Yes, I will.”
[You must be busy, so let’s talk again later.]

With that, Rodney hung up the phone.
As Seok-won set down his mobile, he found himself thoroughly satisfied imagining Miller’s frustration at losing the bet and his obvious irritation.

“He called just to rub salt in the wound, didn’t he? The man’s petty. He should learn to pick his battles more carefully.”

Seok-won chuckled lightly, sipping his lukewarm coffee as he murmured to himself.

“I’ve wrapped up the major work, so I suppose it’s time to head back to Korea.”

Not only had I reaped substantial profits from short selling, but this trip to the United States had also brought an unexpected encounter with David Dantic, who would one day become President of the United States—there was far more to gain from this venture than I had anticipated.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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