WORLD HISTORY

Detailed explanation-1: -From 1500 to 1800, Bolivia and Mexico produced about 80% of the world’s silver with 30% of it eventually ending up in China. In the late 16th and early 17th century, Japan was also exporting heavily into China and the foreign trade at large. As has been demonstrated, China dominated silver imports.

Detailed explanation-2: -France sold grain and linen cloth to England and Spain, and wine and fruit to England, the Netherlands, and Switzerland. The Netherlands, famous for its cloth products, developed an important banking industry during the late 1500s and 1600s.

Detailed explanation-3: -Up to 1870, the sum of worldwide exports accounted for less than 10% of global output. Today, the value of exported goods around the world is close to 25%. This shows that over the last hundred years of economic growth, there has been more than proportional growth in global trade.

Detailed explanation-4: -The rise of Western Europe after 1500 is due largely to growth in countries with access to the Atlantic Ocean and with substantial trade with the New World, Africa, and Asia via the Atlantic.