I Am the Crown Prince in France

Chapter 296 Franco-Austrian Trade Agreement

Kaunitz's pupils shrank when he heard the word "Silesia".

Silesia is definitely a pain in the heart of every Austrian.

It was after this rich handicraft area was occupied by the Prussians that Austria completely lost its identity as the "communist master" of Germany.

At the same time, Prussia was looked upon with admiration by European countries and officially joined the ranks of the first-class powers, becoming a strong contender for Germany's "communist master".

If any Austrian said that he did not want to regain Silesia, he would be immediately thrown into prison as a traitor.

Kaunitz, however, kept his cool.

Silesia must return to Austria, but not now.

Although the radical reforms initiated by His Majesty the Emperor will make Austria stronger in the future, for now it has only brought chaos and weakness to the country.

He still remembered that during the last Bavarian Succession War, Austria mobilized hundreds of thousands of troops and tried to take advantage of the chaos to recapture Silesia, but they did not even touch the edge of Silesia and were blocked by the Prussian army in Saxony. Saxony is the western gateway to Silesia.

The Austrian army and the Prussians were in a stalemate for more than a year, consuming a huge amount of logistical supplies but failing to make any progress on the battlefield. In the end, they had to armistice with the mediation of France and Russia.

As a result, Austria had to vomit out the Lower Bavarian that had been eaten in its mouth.

You know, that war happened ten years ago. At that time, Austria's reforms had not yet started, and its national power was stronger than it is now. It was unable to conquer Prussia. It is even more impossible to recapture Silesia now.

Kaunitz breathed out, smiled and shook his head: "There is no need for Austria to go to war with Prussia yet. To be honest, General Wilmser's army is ready to go, and the rebellion in Brabant will be quelled soon. By then Prussia People can only withdraw to Potsdam.

"If you can convince Bavaria to send more troops, the process will be faster."

Talleyrand then smiled and raised his glass to signal him: "To General Wilmser and his glorious victory."

But in his heart, he silently recalled His Royal Highness the Crown Prince's firm judgment that the Austrian army would suffer a disastrous defeat in the Southern Netherlands.

He will stay in Vienna during this period, waiting for the news of the Austrian army's failure to come back, and then start the next step - according to His Highness, Austria will not be willing to fail, and will mobilize the country's troops for a decisive battle with Prussia.

His mission is to lead the decisive battle from the Southern Netherlands to Silesia!

At the main seat in the banquet hall, Joseph II did not touch the food in front of him at all - he could only eat porridge and stewed fish this year - but looked at his French nephew with interest: "You mean, If this trade agreement is signed, France will impose tariffs of less than 5% on all Austrian exports of glass, fur products, silverware, and musical instruments?”

With his recent physical condition, he can rarely speak such a long paragraph in one breath.

Joseph smiled and nodded: "You forgot the linen, Your Majesty."

"Oh, textiles." Joseph II waved his hand and said with a smile, "I'm not sick yet. Austrian textiles are far inferior to French products and cannot be sold in France at all."

Joseph thought seriously, then raised his head and said: "Mother asked me to help you as much as possible, and linen is an extremely important commodity in Austria... Well, France can reduce the tariff on this area to zero, including all over North Africa and the Caribbean, and Austria can impose any tariff on French linen."

A look of surprise that he hadn't seen for a long time flashed through Joseph II's muddy eyes: "Oh, my dear sister, she is always so generous!"

According to the "Franco-Austria Trade Agreement" proposed by Joseph just now, Austria's most important commodities such as glass and fur can enter France at very low tariffs in the future. In addition, goods such as minerals, grain, cotton, and wood will be able to enter France at very low tariffs. France can enjoy the benefit of being exempted from paying tolls - this is a benefit that even France's own goods do not have. Currently, when goods are shipped from Lyon to Paris, they have to pay tolls at least ten times in the middle.

If this agreement can be implemented, Austria's commodity exports will usher in historic glory.

Judging from his experience, it can increase export revenue by at least 30% to 40%, thus bringing in large amounts of fiscal revenue!

This will play a huge supporting role in his difficult reforms.

However, as the Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, Joseph II knew that there was no free lunch in the world, and this huge benefit would definitely require Austria to pay a corresponding price.

So he waved the silver fork in his hand to Joseph: "Perhaps, I should give something back to my dear sister, so that I can feel at ease."

Joseph smiled: "You are my closest uncle, so you don't have to be so polite. But if Austria can also reduce some tariffs on French goods, I believe my mother will be very happy."

Joseph II immediately put on a posture of listening carefully: "Tell me more specifically."

"Well, you know, there are a large number of workers in Lyon who depend on textiles for their livelihood, and it would be great if France could get a lower tariff on this than England. Except, of course, on linens."

Joseph glanced at Emperor Shinra and added: "It is best to be more than 5% cheaper than British products."

Although France's textile industry was no match for Britain's, it still had an unparalleled advantage over other European countries. Joseph estimated that with the extensive use of automatic looms and steam engines, as well as the wool supplied by New Zealand, it would take another year to one and a half years for the cost of the French textile industry to be close to that of the United Kingdom.

By then, as long as the tariffs are more favorable than those of Britain, France will be able to significantly occupy the Austrian textile market.

Joseph II pondered for a moment, but did not agree: "I'm afraid this is a bit difficult. Britain has the most favored nation status for Austrian textiles. The most I can do is make France and Britain have the same textile tariffs."

Joseph could accept this, after all, a 5% discount was just an exorbitant asking price. So if you want to gain an advantage in terms of cost, you can only find ways in transportation and the like.

He put on a depressed expression: "How can French textiles compete with British...

"Okay, then you have to give me low tariffs on machinery, steel products, paper, chemicals, etc."

Joseph II thought quickly. Except for paper, among these commodities, he had not heard of how competitive French products were.

Anyway, the cost of French paper is so low that it makes the whole of Europe tremble, and it is impossible to stop it, so agreeing to reduce tariffs on these things seems to have no impact.