What Was the Objective of the Mercantilist System? How Was

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The Answer is Mercantilism was the effort by European empires to monopolize the profits produced in their colonies by controlling trade and accumulating gold and silver. It began in the fifteenth century and involved strong disincentives for trade with foreign merchants, especially in the colonies where any balance of trade deficit would have to be made up for with payments of gold and silver. These policies were enforced by customs authorities, navies, and coast guards. Mercantilism made European goods imported into American colonies more expensive and colonial products cheaper when purchased by European merchants. Chartered companies were an important part of mercantilist capitalism. Mercantilist policies that supported capitalism included chartered companies, tariffs, and trade laws. The largest capitalist overseas investments were in the sugar plantations of the Caribbean. To defend their West Indian plantation colonies from other countries, European states used military actions as well as protective laws.

What Was the Objective of the Mercantilist System? How Was

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