Global Trade: Spices, Sugar, and Coffee

Global Trade: Spices, Sugar, and Coffee

High demands for South Asian products played an important role in boosting the economic growth of the region and in other parts of the world. Global trade is an essential aspect of the continuous economic growth of the Southern Asia region. Besides economic growth and prosperity, international trade also leads to miseries and exploitation. The exploitation and suffering of the African slaves created an essential link in the trading network and formed the foundation of international trade.  The demand for spices, sugar, and coffee played a crucial role in the development of the global business. Many Italian Merchants such as banker and merchant Francesco Pegolotti of Florence journeyed along the Silk Road to China during the fourteenth century (Pegolotti 1). Although the merchants took a long time to reach China, by the 1340s, Italian merchants had acquired sufficient information about the Silk Road. Upon retirement, he decided to write a short treatise advising the merchant with less information about the Silk Road headed for China to acquire Asian products such as spices.

The book shows how the high demand for Asian products lead to the development of global trade with merchants coming from as far as Italy to acquire South Asian products. In the book, Pegolotti states that Cathay province contains many cities and towns. The capital city is an excellent resort for merchants from different parts of the world. The merchants came from different parts of the world to purchase South Asian products, particularly spices. Spices were an essential aspect of ancient trade because merchants came from distant countries to obtain spices from China. Other goods, such as coffee and sugar, were also crucial commodities that merchants traveled to distant lands to get. Traders prefer using camels to move their products overland because Camels can withstand the harsh desert conditions across Asia and North Africa. Camels made the transportation of goods along the Silk road feasible. The traders also used oceans to transport their goods. Sailors needed to understand the wind patterns and storm systems to navigate the seas. For example, in the Indian Ocean, Monsoon winds blew from the Southwest during summer and from Northeast during winter. Therefore, merchants could travel from the Red Sea to India during summer and back to the Red Sea during winter. This information was shared among sailors, and it made moving beyond the Indian Ocean possible.

The global trade networks changed overtime as European slave merchants as Philips emerged.  The European slave merchants signed an agreement with the Royal African company that they would procure a specified number of slaves for the Hannibal and the East Indian Merchant. The best goods used to purchase chase slaves were cowries. The cowries were being measured in terms of weight, and about 100 pounds of cowries could buy a good man slave. The slaves were also being exchanged for brass, basons, or Neptunes. After purchasing the brass, basons, or Neptunes, the African merchants would cut them into pieces to make collars or bracelets for their legs, necks, and arms (Phillips 3). Other goods used to purchase the slaves include iron bars, all types of cloth, and beads. International trade commodified human life, and there was a demand for slaves in different parts of the world. Many merchants turned to the slave trade because they believed that it was a beneficial trade. They bought the slaves at a lower price and sold them expensively to masters who needed slaves. The quantity of the slaves bought always depended on the quality of the slaves. The quality of slaves was being determined by a surgeon who used various procedures and tactics to ensure that they were sound wind and limb. The surgeon made the slaves jump, stretch out their arms, and looking in their mouth to determine their age. The slaves were always beings shaved to ensure that the masters cannot notice any old slaves because old slaves were bought at a lower price.

The global trade leads to competition among many traders from different countries such as Spain and Portugal. The rivalry between the two countries motivated them to colonize quickly and aggressively. The Portuguese’s exploration of Africa and the Atlantic started in the 1400s, and Portuguese sailors navigated to West Africa, where they established a trading base. Portugal then expanded its empire to the Western coast of Africa. Portuguese traders in Western African became aware of the slave trade in the region and funded by sugar production on the newly colonized Atlantic islands. When the merchants discovered the high global demand for sugar, the Portuguese started purchasing the African slaves to work on their sugar plantations. The African slaves were exploited, and slaveowners did not recognize the rights of the slaves. Most of them were being forced to work for long periods. Slaves who tried to resist such unfair treatments were beaten and tortured (Equiano 9). The slaves were being clothed, fed, and housed by their masters to ensure that they survived the harsh treatment and provide labor on the plantations.