Includes bibliographical references (p. [195]-203) and index.

Preliminary Material / C. Ebert -- Chapter One. Introduction / C. Ebert -- Chapter Two. Portuguese trade with northwestern Europe / C. Ebert -- Chapter Three. Sugar, institutions and politics / C. Ebert -- Chapter Four. Merchants and merchant networks / C. Ebert -- Chapter Five. The cost of shipping / C. Ebert -- Chapter Six. Transactions and risk management / C. Ebert -- Chapter Seven. Illegal trade / C. Ebert -- Chapter Eight. Supply, demand, prices and profitability / C. Ebert -- Conclusion / C. Ebert -- Appendix A. The transatlantic system: Ports and routes in Brazil, Portugal and the Atlantic Islands / C. Ebert -- Appendix B. Portugal and the Dutch Republic in baltic trade / C. Ebert -- Appendix C. Freight charges / C. Ebert -- Bibliography and sources / C. Ebert -- Index / C. Ebert.

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This study examines the wholesale trade in sugar from Brazil to markets in Europe. The principal market was northwestern Europe, but for much of the time between 1550 and 1630 Portugal was drawn into the conflict between Habsburg Spain and the Dutch Republic. In spite of political obstacles, the trade persisted because it was not subject to monopolies and was relatively lightly regulated and taxed. The investment structure was highly international, as Portugal and northwestern Europe exchanged communities of merchants who were mobile and inter-imperial in both their composition and organization. This conclusion challenges an imperial or mercantilist perspective of the Atlantic economy in its earliest phases.