Chapter 880： Diplomatic relations that cannot stand the test (1/2)

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The international situation is changing, and Franz has not paid much attention. Now he is staring at the price change list in the first quarter.

According to common sense, the prices of daily necessities such as grains during the war will inevitably rise, especially the first raw grain exporter in Europe was involved in the war.

Because of the war, the total amount of grain exported from the Russian Empire to the outside world has decreased significantly since last year, and the amount of light flowing into Austria has decreased by a quarter.

Undoubtedly, this part of the gap was offset by the increase in grain production in Austria.

Although the potash fertilizer has just begun to be promoted last year, and it has not been widely used by the people, there is a state-owned farm in Austria!

In fact, the number of state-owned farms directly controlled by the government has been declining. Because of management costs, many small and medium-sized farms are leased to individuals.

No matter how much it is reduced, the land area occupied by state-owned farms is still not low. Calculating only the European part, the area occupied by state-owned farms is already less than 5% of the cultivated area, but it is different when other regions are added.

For example: In the Asia Minor Peninsula, apart from the nobles confiscating land and granting military power, the remaining cultivated land basically belongs to state-owned farms.

Not that Franz is willing to engage in so many state-owned farms, mainly because of practical needs. If the government does not arrange for people to take over, the farmland left by Ottoman will be deserted.

It is impossible to sell to the private sector, which will weaken the temptation to award military power to the fields and shake the fundamentals of Austria.

Except for the initial land redemption, and the period when the colony was opened, the best way for ordinary people to obtain land was through military merit.

Do n’t ask why, for who knows that there is a European War waiting, you must also prepare in advance.

Without enough rewards, why should the soldiers sell their lives? If you don't hoard enough land, what reward will you give to the soldiers after the war?

The European continent is now densely populated, and there has been no land for a long time, and loot cannot be expected at all.

In this context, even knowing that the operating costs of state-owned farms are high, Franz can only grind his teeth.

It is really unsustainable and can also be contracted to individuals for business. Anyway, as long as the property of the land is still national, it will not affect the future rewards to individuals.

In fact, the French government's ranch plan was also brought out by Austria.

Seeing a bunch of farms in the hands of the Austrian government, they followed suit. It ’s just that they do n’t know. Austrian farms are also trying to support it.

Because of the support of supporting processing companies behind the surface, on the surface, Austrian farms are in good operating condition and are able to pay profits to the government every year.

In essence, the profits are contributed by the subsidiary companies of the farm. Most farms are only able to protect their capital, and few directly generate profits.

It is not a listed company. The financial statements of state-owned enterprises are also kept secret. The external announcement only publishes the total profit. The specific enterprise structure and asset allocation are completely unknown to the outside world.

In the eyes of Napoleon IV, these are good data.

Someone suggested to follow suit, then follow suit, and there is no reason why the Austrian government can do what France cannot do.

The bureaucracy under the specific circumstances does not report, how could the emperor in the inner courtyard of the deep palace know?

Especially after the trip to Algeria, Napoleon IV directly attributed all problems to bureaucratic malfeasance and corruption.

Although there is a lot of land on state-owned farms, the area of ​​grain cultivation is not large, and the true meaning is still leading.

There is no shortage of smart people in this world. The government is promoting potash fertilizer and state-owned farms are using it on a large scale. Naturally, some people dare to take risks.

In particular, officials in the government first accepted potash fertilizer and used it on their own land.

The final result is naturally a substantial increase in Austria ’s grain production capacity last year.

The final increase in output is not 3% estimated by the Ministry of Agriculture, but 6.7%.

Of course, this also includes an increase in the area of ​​cultivated land, resulting in increased food production capacity.

Don't underestimate this 3.7% error, based on Austria's grain production base, this is the ration for millions of people a year.

Together with the respective agricultural plans of Britain and France, the colony increased grain production and reduced grain imports.

The end result is that Russian grain exports have decreased and prices in the international grain trading market have fallen instead of rising.

If the food price falls, it is acceptable. Then the prices of various commodities such as textiles and steel also fell, which made Franz unable to understand.

In the war years, how could the price of strategic materials fall in the battle between the two great powers of Britain and France?

Holding the document in his hand, Franz asked in disbelief: ”Are you sure you have made the correct price list?”

Economy Minister Reinhardt: ”Your Majesty, we have made several determinations. The above statistics are indeed the average price in the first quarter.

It's not just that domestic prices haven't risen; in fact, it's the same across Europe. Except for a wave of price increases early in the war last year, prices in the first quarter were a return to rationality in the market.