The Outlook for Investment

Henry quickly denied it, saying, "How could that be? My relationship with that young master isn't good enough for him to tell me about the company's business direction and recent changes."

"Besides, what kind of news do you all think we can get from that young master? Could it be that the head of Stark Industries isn't another Obadiah Stane?"

Tony Stark's position at Stark Industries is Chairman, Obadiah Stane is CEO.

So, in the eyes of outsiders, the one doing the work was the middle-aged, balding old man. The young master was only responsible for counting the money.

Henry certainly had no intention of clearing Tony Stark's name. In fact, it was he who had advised Tony to tarnish his reputation and disappear.

It's best to avoid promoting his wisdom and prowess now, as it would be embarrassing for him to do something like that.

"Is that so?" they said regretfully, their tone tinged with disbelief.

"Although I don't have any insider information, I do have some opinions about the market. I can share them with you all, just for your reference. See if you're interested in hearing them."

A group of people nodded vigorously, their eyes shining. That's the madness of the financial market: you don't need to prove your track record. A young person can speak earnestly and be regarded as an expert, and people will believe them without question.

"First of all, avoid internet stocks. If you have any, sell them all."

Someone said, "No way. Although there are many theories about the dot-com bubble, it seems more like a reverse narrative by big investors trying to trick retail investors into leaving the market and not competing with them for profits."

Henry shook his head and said, "That's precisely what makes it even more terrifying, because there's so much true and false information circulating that it's impossible to distinguish between them. But in reality, the real reason for the dot-com bubble was that internet companies failed to find a reasonable way to monetize their products."

"Early investors are slow to realize the profits they expect, and internet companies have to keep investing large sums of money to survive, which is a bottomless pit of money."

"Therefore, these people can only rely on the false prosperity of the open market to sell their stocks at a good price."

They made a profit, but the people who take over will face the same problems.

"Furthermore, if you were to examine the financial reports and public information of internet companies, you would find that their business growth rate has slowed down. Even with increased investment, there have been no significant results."

Some astute observers exclaimed in surprise, "This indicates that market pressure has emerged!"

"Yes." Although some internet companies survived and thrived after the bubble burst, this wasn't a good time to enter the market, so Henry simply didn't mention it.

Are there any worthwhile investment targets?

Without hesitation, Henry replied, "Apple, of course. Although in the early 1990s, Apple showed clear signs of decline and performed poorly in the stock market."

"But after founder Steve Jobs returned in the first three years, the stock price stabilized. The company is adjusting its business strategy and developing new products. For long-term investors, Apple stock is quite a worthwhile investment."

Starting in 2001, Apple launched a variety of new products and showed remarkable growth. When the iPhone was launched in 2007, its success Rocket and became unstoppable.

At this point in time, the most worthwhile entry point, without engaging in short-term speculation, is Apple stock; Henry can't think of a second option.

Another person asked, "Are there any suitable short- to medium-term investment targets? Three to five years in the horizon?"

Upon hearing this, Henry thought about it seriously—and there really was one! It was a special stock that didn't exist before he transmigrated.

"Rather than a target suitable for short- to medium-term investment, it's more like a person. Any stock related to him is worth investing in for the next three to five years."

Everyone quickly asked, "Who?"

"Viktor von Doctor Doom."

This name is not unfamiliar these days. Someone immediately said, "Isn't that the young man who graduated from university not long ago and claimed he wanted to build a space station?"

"Yes, it's him." Henry explained, "To advance his space station plan, he actually created many companies, and they all generated considerable profits."

"It was precisely because of the profitability of these companies that a consortium of banks was formed to support his construction of the space station. I heard that the launch will be announced soon, and the timeline will be made public."

"While the company building the space station is still in the Angel investment stage, Victor von Doctor Doom's other companies are all publicly traded. Those companies are qualified short- to medium-term investment targets."

Viktor von Doctor Doom's rise to power is very similar to that of another genius before Henry's time travel, Elon Musk.

They created a bunch of profitable companies, all with the ultimate goal of funding their space dreams. For example, Elon Musk created Tesla to fund SpaceX; Von Doom Enterprises's space station project also relied on the support of a bunch of companies and banks.

Everyone knows that Elon Musk seems to be realizing his dreams step by step. But Victor von Doctor Doom encountered Marvel concept-level disaster, Mister Fantastic, who turned him into Doctor Doom —alas, may he rest in peace.

Some people worriedly said, "But the construction of the latest International Space Station was officially launched last year, and the first component was launched into space."

"This is a space program spearheaded by two major superpowers, the United States and Russia. This young man wants to build his own space station. Can he do it? And how will he profit from it?"

Henry said, "Many achievements in modern technology originated from NASA's space race with the Red Empire. However, not many of these technologies have actually been used by the general public because NASA has a strong official presence."

"What If...? private technology companies mastered space technology, would they be as stingy as the government, reluctant to transfer the technology to civilian use for profit?"

"Furthermore, the International Space Station is restricted to academic use, which is completely contrary to market principles. Private companies do not have such restrictions, so how much profit can they generate?"

Henry's words were very persuasive. The others, however, lacked the same confidence, asking, "Is this really possible?"

With a chuckle, Henry said, "Legally speaking, there aren't any very strict restrictions or controls. Because before today, everyone believed that a space program couldn't be implemented without national-level funding, so there was no need for additional restrictions."

"National-level funds are essentially taxes, which are subject to oversight by the government and parliament. This is why NASA, from its past to today's International Space Station, has been able to do so much, because it involves power struggles at the national level."

"But if someone can break out of this framework, he has almost no restrictions and can do whatever he wants. To put it bluntly, the line of humanity becomes blurred even in outer space."

"At this point, the market mechanism is what can regulate him. Whether he can profit from the space program will determine whether subsequent funding will continue to support him. One failure could very well mean total loss."