Economy of Elluenuueq
Elluenuueq, as a subject of the Benacian Union, enjoys the benefits associated with membership of the Raspur Pact. As such, it is part of a zone of free movement of capital, goods and workers with its member states. However, owing to the internal passport and security requirements of the Benacian Union, only meritorious subjects and foreign nationals from Pact member states are permitted the liberty to apply to benefit from the exercise of these rights.
Elwynn was formerly dominated by three main companies – the ESB Group, the Iron Company and the Anzarolexion (the latter one mainly in banking, obligations, investment and insurances). These companies, regarding one another as mortal enemies, create good ground for competition. Furthermore, especially in northern Elwynn, there is a culture of small companies, start-ups, one-person companies in the services, consulting and construction sectors. It is relatively easy for any person to set up a joint-stock company, and most companies in Elwynn are incorporated in this form, though others exist. Such others are mainly in the form of foundations (such as the People's Academy of Elwynn) or cooperative ownership. Cooperative ownerships are most common in the manufacturing and agricultural sectors, where former communist-run were privatized at the end of communism during the reign of Prince Jonathan (1618–1623). Many of these, however, have converted into joint-stock companies as they have a reputation of being more profitable and easier to run. The fall of the Iron Company has however created a new space in the marketplace for independent operators ambitious enough to go up against the Honourable Company and Anzarolexion.
The economy of Elwynn was devastated in the twenty years following the Auspicious Occasion. The civil wars, lasting with little periods of peace 1660–1669, took their toll. However, the Vanic government's insistence of putting its paws everywhere meant that there existed a considerable paper trail for all legal persons, holdings, and deeds of titile. This meant that when reconstruction began in the late 1660s, there was cause for little dispute over such information. The civil wars did, however, cause destruction of infrastructure, agriculture, factories, as well as bombings of large areas of cities. Many people became jobless, homeless or both, with authorities struggling to find quick housing. As such, many suburbs in areas ravished by the civil war have a similar style of simple, cheap architecture.
During the Vanic era, Elwynn's economy was dominated by funds pumped in from Stormark and the Stormark-owned company Sameinaða Erlendur Kaupsýsla Einokun Félagið (SEKEF). SEKEF held a monopoly on trade between Stormark and any other jurisdictions, and with regard to the Froyalanish financial status during this era, SEKEF was the richest company in Elwynn during this time. Its assets in Elwynn, and across Shireroth, were seized during the Auspicious Occasion and set into a fund held by the Imperial Government which was used for reconstruction in Elwynn in 1651–1660 and 1669–1671 (halted by the Elwynnese civil wars). After the independence and reunification of Elwynn in 1672, this fund has been frozen and is under dispute between the Elwynnese and Shirerithian governments. The matter is under negotiation, as Elwynn also seized all imperial-held infrastructure and assets in Elwynn during the struggle for independence.
Guilds and Corporations
The five historic guilds of Elwynn, codified during the era of the Coordinated State were as follows:
- The Guild of Dunporters represents the cleaners, the diggers and the toilers who remove the nightsoil of our Common Weal. They are also responsible for the spreading of the night soil in the fields and for this reason we count the constituency of yeoman-farmers and country folk amongst them.
- The Guild of Artisans comprises the craftsmen responsible for the manufacture of the products necessary for the functioning of our society and trade.
- The Guild of Artificers are those craftsmen of exceeding quality and skill whose hand has turned to the creation of luxury goods, adding value to the products of the artisans for the benefit of the export market.
- The Guild of Factors is the home of all merchants charged with the export of finished goods and the import of raw materials for those finished goods where insufficient quantities are available at home as well as nominal monies for those finished goods.
- The Guild of Aldermen, comprises the fifty most able individuals in each Ward, chosen by competitive examination before the ward’s highest governing office under which the Worshipful Corporation is established.
Of these, the Guild of Factors gained representation on the Chamber of Guilds and Corporations, a legislative body subordinate to the Congress of Chryse that handles matters of an administrative and technical nature beneath the notice of the High Presidium of the Benacian Union or the Congress. Alongside the Guild of Factors in the Chamber sits the Guild of Academicians, the Guild of the Lotus, and the Guild of Magisters-Carnifex.
Any corporate body, or organisation, that wishes to operate in any capacity in the Elwynnese economy must apply for and receive a charter and livery from a guild. For an application to be considered valid, the Guild must have received the submission and rendered tribute of the supplicant entity. Each admission is a bespoke process where the negotiations commence upon the exchange of pleasantries, gifts, and hostages. A liveried company, once it is registered with the Heralds, is thereafter subject to the rule of the Chapter of the Guild to which it is affiliated in the bailiwick where it has its primary headquarters and registered premises. In return for this submission the liveried company receives the protection and patronage of the Guild, as well as assurance against misfortune offered the system of insurance maintained through the payment of annual capitulation fees.
It should be noted that the above obligations do not apply to the corporations founded by the victors in the Second Elwynnese Civil War, or their subsidiaries, that have attained representation on the Chamber of Guilds and Corporations, these being:
- The Benacian Union Defence Force;
- The Honourable Company (Benacian Directorate);
- The Nationalist & Humanist Party;
- The United Ecclesiastical Corporation of Benacia.
Currency
Upon independence, Elwynn quickly began using the natopo as its currency, citing the instability of the Shirerithian erb at that time. This was, and remains, a stable currency. However, being bound to a currency union (which the natopo de facto is) means that Elwynn could not control its own inflation rate, set its own central bank interest rates, and so on. As such, the Nationalist and Humanist government set up the mark in 1686. The natopo and the mark would coexist until 1.1.1688 when the mark became the only legal tender in Elwynn. The value of the mark was set to be based on a complicated formula of a basket of currencies and then divided so that one mark would be roughly the average item in a shopping basket consisting of a litre of cow milk, half a litre of camel milk, a loaf of plain bread, a kilogram of potatoes, a kilogram of rye flour, a kilogram of wheat flour, and a kilogram of white rice. Prices were fixed artificially high in Amokolia and Upper Elwynn so as to discourage excess consumption in the aftermath of the Second Elwynnese Civil War. With prices fluctuating, and supply and demand fluctuating too, average prices for these items across the autonomous countries were on 2.I.1699 as follows (including taxes):
| AAR | Upper Elwynn | SCAR | Amokolia | Mishalacia | Normark | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 L cow milk | 0.95 | 3.00 | 0.99 | 3.00 | 0.75 | 1.09 |
| 0.5 L camel milk | 0.82 | 3.00 | 1.29 | 3.00 | 1.32 | 1.62 |
| loaf of plain bread | 0.85 | 5.00 | 0.88 | 5.00 | 0.79 | 1.11 |
| 1 kg potatoes | 1.12 | 2.00 | 0.75 | 2.00 | 0.66 | 1.08 |
| 1 kg rye flour | 1.05 | 2.00 | 0.92 | 2.00 | 0.71 | 1.01 |
| 1 kg wheat flour | 0.79 | 3.00 | 0.88 | 3.00 | 0.67 | 1.13 |
| 1 kg white rice | 0.86 | 4.00 | 1.21 | 4.00 | 1.04 | 1.43 |
With the formation of the Benacian Union in 1698 AN, the Benacian sovereign, and derivations thereof, is also accepted as legal tender in the continental portions of the country, excluding Normark and Station Kaamiozyr. Beginning in the eleventh month of 1703 AN all holdings in marks were converted to the Benacian sovereign at a rate of 1 mark to 7 chits. The process of transferral was scheduled to be completed by 24.V.1704 AN.
Wage
During the era of the Second Republic each autonomous country set a minimum hourly wage for work. Following the Second Elwynnese Civil War the minimum wage was standardised across the Benacian autonomous states at 8.50 per hour coinciding with the abolition of all social benefit payments and the mobilisation of the populace for reconstruction work. The received minimum wage payment was reduced in Amokolia and Upper Elwynn to 4.00 per hour beginning in 1699 AN as part of a series of reprisals carried out against the bailiwicks of those states for their failure to meet post-war targets for reconstruction work and reparation payments.
In 1701 AN the minimum wage in Alalehzamin, Mishalacia, and the Sovereign Confederation was slashed to 6 marks per hour in an effort to reduce expenditure on imported goods by lowering incomes. As guild pay scales were constructed through a grade/specialism weighted system of multiplication based upon the minimum hourly rate, the effect of this sudden change reverberated through the economy.
With the removal of the mark from circulation in 1704 AN, following the switch over to the Benacian sovereign, all minimum wage provisions were abandoned in favour of industry sector agreements imposed by the Chamber of Guilds and Corporations.
Central Governorate
Alalehzamin and Utasia have long been known as the breadbasket of Elwynn – and this remains true to present day. The River Elwynn provides irrigation across the fertile grounds of West Alalehzamin and Utasia. South-East Alalehzamin, closer to Shirekeep, is more polluted. The Elwynnese Cold Desert is found in this area, too. The desert is not bad for the economy though, as mining is fruitful here. Cheap labour from willing Babkhis helps too, especially since unionization is low in this part of the country.
With mining comes refinery – and note that the refineries of Alalehzamin have different niches from the ones of Upper Elwynn (the Upper Elwynnese import raw metal for refining which is then either exported (at profit) or used in the local economy there), while the refineries of Alalehzamin feed the heavy industry of Alalehzamin.
Furthermore, the Alalehzamini region not only provided food for all Elwynnese, but also energy. Thanks to the West Elwynn Dam, located outside Ardashirshahr, provides 25–40% (depending on years and water flow) of the Elwynnese electrical needs (the rest is covered by other dams along the Elwynn, mainly in Alalehzamin and Utasia, and by nuclear power; some oil, mainly imported from Sanama and natural gas from the North also contribute to the electric grid). Under the Unified Power System of Benacia energy generated via hydroelectricity in the AAR is exported to the metropolis of Shirekeep and to the UGB industrial complexes in Mishagrad and Gloomburg. Negotiations concerning a revenue sharing agreement between the Governorate of Transelwynn (west bank) and the AAR (east bank) are in their preliminary phase, with the AAR being opposed to a significant division on account of the hydroelectric power plants being situated on the east bank above Ardashirshahr.
General Government
Absentien
The Amokolian economy is quite geographically divided. The far east of Amokolia, as well as the Amokolian Islands, is more or less inter-linked with the Upper Elwynnese economy and follows the trends from its eastern neighbour. The former West Amokolia is different – having been outside the Elwynnese entity for decades before its reunification following the downfall of the Frankish regime. Here, the economy is focused on small-scale manufacturing, some agriculture, fishery, but mainly the economy is dependent on the large forests of West Amokolia. Timber is the main produce here, with companies existing for various niches of wood: construction, paper, book-binding, printing, insulation, furniture, carpentry.
The supply situation in Absentien is considered presently, as of XIV.1709 AN, to be quite irregular. The partial dismantling of the rail network in the Alalehzamin region had a series of knock-on effects for the logistics chain extending westwards into the former Amokolian mainland. Combined with this was the most serious crop failure in the northern lattitudes of the realm since the famines immediately following the the Scouring. Indeed, the crop failure was so serious that the realm was obliged to purchase bulk consignments of wheat from Ransenar and Arboria. Owing to the prioritisation of industrial workers in the Central Governorate and Mishalan, the Absentien subjects had to make do with receiving whatever was leftover.
Most varieties of white bread were only obtainable on the Higher Government & Guild Service Ration, available only to Government, Guild, Political, and Corporate management cadres - regimental officers or above, or else purchasable in restaurants maintained for foreign visitors from the Honourable Company or Raspur Pact in the major urban bailiwicks. Ordinary subjects, even meritorious ones in receipt of the Field & Industrial Service Ration or Government & the Guild Service Ration would have a choice between black rye bread or a bread that whilst labelled as "white" was adulterated in colour, texture, and taste on account of the wheat flour being adulterated with a substitute form of flour made from varying mixtures of beans, corn meal, oatmeal and peas. The supply chain situation also affected the availability of other staple foods; barley, buckwheat, pasta, rice, and similar grain products disappeared from guild commissariat stores completely. The availability of meat was also severely reduced, with attempts by officials to substitute bags of powdered mealworm for the specified meat rations meant to be dispensed from the Halls of Allocation and Appropriation resulting in rioting across several bailiwicks. In some remote rural districts, especially in bailiwicks without a BUDF garrison or guild affiliated industrial enterprise, black bread might be all that was available for months at a time, particularly in the lean months when all the local produce which had been hidden away by the more crafty and enterprising of the tenant farmers had been exhausted.
East
Prior to the Second Elwynnese Civil War the Upper Elwynnese economy was largely focused on four sectors: industry, finance, service, and energy. Tourism, fishery, and forestry played a limited, but in certain areas, significant role in the economy.
Industry in Upper Elwynn was for the most part restricted to refining raw metal to fine metal. Elwynnese harbours played an important role in securing transport. The destruction of Eliria and Vijayanagara during the Scouring, an orbital bombardment and limited nuclear exchange which occurred over the course of one day in the final months of the war, was instrumental in the collapse of much of this metallurgical heavy industry. Surviving industrial plant, salvaged from the irradiated dead-zones or else captured intact in other cities following the collapse of the rebel cause, had been for the most part dismantled and shipped to the Unified Governorates of Benacia during 1696 AN–1697 AN as part of repayments made to service the war debts incurred by Elwynn for the rebellion against the Raspur Pact.
In terms of energy, Upper Elwynn once housed nuclear power stations of good quality; however these were heavily damaged during the Pact's strategic bombing campaign against the infrastructure of Upper Elwynn. Following a criticality incident in Araxion following one such raid, it was deemed prudent to hurriedly decommission the remaining nuclear reactors. The nuclear energy infrastructure of Upper Elwynn was subsequently sought and dismantled as part of the reparation payments demanded by Benacia Command from the rebel bailiwicks at the conclusion of the war. This has left Upper Elwynn, formerly a net energy producer, dependent upon the Unified Power System of Benacia for its energy needs, these being strictly rationed to prioritise reconstruction work and those forms of economic activity deemed most useful for advancing the payment of reparations. Where Upper Elwynn (and the Amokolian islands) is still able to make a contribution to the Benacian energy mix, is in the realm of thermal energy (from the hotspots under the ground). This has historically been important for ensuring the habitability of many Upper Elwynnese cities in the inhospitable Boreal regions.
Upper Elwynn, especially the Greater Eliria area, was once the financial centre of Elwynn. Banks, insurance companies, financiers, and so on, had their headquarters in Upper Elwynn – largely thanks to no-nonsense regulations and belief in the rule of law. Thrice, this belief has been placed in doubt, the first two occasions involving Verionist businesses, the Iron Company and the Coldwater Company – with Verionism gone, confidence in the Elwynnese market has recovered, with great yields to shareholders in Upper Elwynn ensuing. The final time however, which saw the Ayreonist inspired effort at secession which gave rise to the second civil war, resulted in an unprecedented capital flight, as it became clear that the rebel government was attempting to detach itself from the economic and political structures of the Raspur Pact and subsequently saw the physical destruction of the infrastructure that has sustained the financial sector, along with the greater part of Eliria itself. As such, it may be said, that the financial services sector for which Upper Elwynn was once so justly famous, has literally been burnt away.
Taxpayer funded health-care, once considered by many in Upper Elwynn to be less a benefit than a right, was abolished as one of the many efficiencies demanded to cover the cost of reparation payments to Alalehzamin and the Sovereign Confederation for damages inflicted during the war.
Mishalan Governorate
In Mishalacia, salaries are lower comparatively speaking to the rest of Elwynn (but higher than in the neighbouring UGB). As such, Mishalacian economy is well suited for manufacturing of various machineries and products, in spite of losing the majority of the heavy armaments industry located along the Blue Elwynn to the Central Governorate after the civil war. However, the Mishalacian economy has also a significant agricultural sector and a large forestry sector.
The cost of doing business in Elwynn
For a foreign (non-Benacian Union) business to operate in Elwynnese territory it is considered a minimum requirement that the entity form a subsidiary domiciled in Elwynn that is under the majority ownership (51%) of a named Elwynnese subject, and which accordingly undertake to submit to an appropriate guild in return for a charter and livery.
Because of its privileged position in the Elwynnese economy, the Honourable Company acts as the protector of Ransenari companies operating in Elwynn, at no cost to those companies, as a gesture of goodwill to the Kingdom for the protection afforded in turn to Honourable Company's cantonment in Teldrin. The ESB writ also safeguards the investments of Constancian and Alexandrian enterprises.
While Elluenuueq remains subject to the Benacian Union, and thereby to the Raspur Pact, and other free trade agreements, foreign companies were strongly encouraged to enter into a favourable protective agreement with an Elwynnese corporation or guild so as to avoid the various bureaucratic and or unofficial barriers to entry.
