The history of international trade chronicles notable events that have affected the trade between various countries.

In the era before the rise of the nation state, the term 'international' trade cannot be literally applied, but simply means trade over long distances; the sort of movement in goods which would represent international trade in the modern world.

Ancient[edit]

• Records from the 19th century BC attest to the existence of an Assyrian merchant colony at Kanesh in Cappadocia.^[1]

• The domestication of camel allows Arabian nomads to control long distance trade in spices and silk from the Far East.^[2]

• The Egyptians trade in the Red sea, importing spices from the "Land of Punt" and from Arabia.^[3]

• Indian goods are brought in Arabian vessels to Aden.^[3]

• The "ships of Tarshish", a Tyrian fleet equipped at Ezion Geber, make several trading voyages to the East bringing back gold, silver, ivory and precious stones.^[3]

• Tiglath-Pileser III attacks Gaza in order to control trade along the Incense Route.^[4]

• The Greek Ptolemaic dynasty exploits trading opportunities with India prior to the Roman involvement.^[5]

• The cargo from the India and Egypt trade is shipped to Aden.^[5]

Roman trade with India according to the Periplus Maris Erythraei, 1st century CE.

• The Silk Road is established after the diplomatic travels of the Han Dynasty Chinese envoy Zhang Qian to Central Asia, with Chinese goods making their way to India, Persia, and the Roman Empire, and vice versa.

• With the establishment of Roman Egypt, the Romans initiate trade with India.^[6]

• The goods from the East African trade are landed at one of the three main Roman ports, Arsinoe, Berenice or Myos Hormos.^[7]

• Myos Hormos and Berencie (rose to prominence during the 1st century BCE) appear to have been important ancient trading ports.^[6]

• Gerrha controls the Incense trade routes across Arabia to theMediterranean and exercises control over the trading of aromatics toBabylon in the 1st century BC.^[8] Additionally, it served as a port of entry for goods shipped from India to the East.^[8]

• Due to its prominent position in the incense trade, Yemen attracts settlers from the fertile crescent.^[9]

The economy of the Kingdom of Qataban (light blue) was based on the cultivation and trade of spices and aromatics including frankincense and myrrh. These were exported to the Mediterranean, India and Abyssiniawhere they were greatly prized by many cultures, using camels on routes through Arabia, and to India by sea.

• Pre-Islamic Meccans use the old Incense Route to benefit from the heavy Roman demand for luxury goods.^[10]

• In Java and Borneo, the introduction of Indian culture creates a demand for aromatics. These trading outposts later serve the Chinese and Arab markets.^[11]

• Following the demise of the incense trade Yemen takes to the export of coffee via the Red Sea port of al-Mocha.^[12]

Middle Ages[edit]

• The Abbasids use Alexandria, Damietta, Aden and Siraf as entry ports to India and China.^[13]

• At the eastern terminus of the Silk Road, the Tang Dynasty Chinese capital atChang'an becomes a major metropolitan center for foreign trade, travel, and residence. This role would be assumed by Kaifeng and Hangzhou during the Song Dynasty.

• Guangzhou was China's greatest international seaport during the Tang Dynasty(618–907), but its importance was eclipsed by the international seaport of Quanzhouduring the Song Dynasty (960–1279).

• Merchants arriving from India in the port city of Aden pay tribute in form of musk,camphor, ambergris and sandalwood to Ibn Ziyad, the sultan of Yemen.^[13]

• Indian exports of spices find mention in the works of Ibn Khurdadhbeh (850), al-Ghafiqi (1150), Ishak bin Imaran (907) and Al Kalkashandi (14th century).^[14]

• The Hanseatic League secures trading privileges and market rights in England for goods from the League's trading cities in 1157.

Modern[edit]

Early modern[edit]

This figure illustrates the path ofVasco da Gama heading for the first time to India (black) as well as the trips of Pêro da Covilhã(orange) and Afonso de Paiva(blue). The path common to both is the green line.

• Due to the Turkish hold on the Levant during the second half of the 15th century the traditional Spice Route shifts from the Persian Gulf to the Red Sea.^[15]

• Portuguese diplomat Pero da Covilha (1460 – after 1526) undertakes a mission to explore the trade routes of the Near East and the adjoining regions of Asia and Africa. The exploration commenced from Santarém (1487) to Barcelona, Naples,Alexandria, Cairo and ultimately to India.

• Portuguese explorer and adventurer Vasco da Gama is credited with establishing another sea route from Europe to India.

• In the 1530s, the Portuguese ship spices to Hormuz.^[16]

• Japan introduced a system of foreign trade licenses to prevent smuggling and piracyin 1592.

• The first Dutch expedition left from Amsterdam (April 1595) for South East Asia.^[17]

• A Dutch convoy sailed in 1598 and returned one year later with 600,000 pounds of spices and other East Indian products.^[17]

• The Dutch East India Company is formed in 1602.

• The first English outpost in the East Indies is established in Sumatra in 1685.

• Japan introduces the closed door policy regarding trade(Japan was sealed off to foreigners and only very selective trading to the Dutch and Chinese was allowed) 1639.

• The 17th century saw military disturbances around the Ottawa river trade route.^[18] During the late 18th century, the French built military forts at strategic locations along the main trade routes of Canada.^[19] These forts checked the British advances, served as trading posts which included the Native Americans in fur trade and acted as communications posts.^[19]

• In 1799, The Dutch East India company, formerly the world's largest company goes bankrupt, partly due to the rise of competitive free trade.

Later modern[edit]

Monopolistic activity by the company triggered the Boston Tea Party.

• Japan is served by the Portuguese from Macao and later by the Dutch.^[16]

• By 1815, the fifth shipment of nutmegs from Sumatra had arrived in Europe.^[20]

• Grenada becomes involved in Spice Trade.^[20]

• Opium War (1840)- Britain invades China to overturn the Chinese ban on opium imports.

• Despite the late entry of America in the spice trade merchants fromSalem, Massachusetts trade profitably with Sumatra during the early half of the 19th century.^[21] Siamese-American Treaty of 1833 calls for free trade, except for export of rice and import of munitions of war.

• Free trade agreement (1860) finalized between Britain and France under the presidency of Napoleon III, prepared byMichel Chevalier and Richard Cobden, sparks off successive agreements between other countries in Europe.

• The Japanese Meiji Restoration (1868) leads the way to Japan opening its borders and quickly industrializing through free trade. Under bilateral treaties restraint of trade imports to Japan were forbidden.

• In 1873, the Wiener Börse slump signals the start of the continental Long Depression, during which support for protectionism grows.

Post war[edit]

• In 1946. the Bretton Woods system goes into effect; it had been planned since 1944 as an international economic structure to prevent further depressions and wars. It included institutions and rules intended to prevent national trade barriers being erected, as the lack of free trade was considered by many to have been a principal cause of war.

• In 1947, 23 countries agree to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade to rationalize trade among the nations.

A world map of WTO participation:

  Members

  Members, dually represented with the European Union

  Observer, ongoing accession

  Observer

  Non-member, negotiations pending

  Non-member

• European Economic Community is established with a common commercial policyin 1958.

• European Free Trade Association is established in 1960.

• Four important ISO (International Organization for Standardization) recommendations standardized containerization globally:^[22]

• • January 1968: R-668 defined the terminology, dimensions and ratings
  • July 1968: R-790 defined the identification markings
  • January 1970: R-1161 made recommendations about corner fittings
  • October 1970: R-1897 set out the minimum internal dimensions of general purpose freight containers

• The Zangger Committee is formed in 1971 to advise on the interpretation of nuclear goods in relation to international trade and the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

• 16 October 1973: OPEC raises the Saudi light crude export price, and mandate an export cut the next day, plus an Embargo on oil exports to nations allied with Israel in the course of the Yom Kippur War. (also see Oil crisis)

• The Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) was created in 1974 to moderate international trade in nuclear related goods, after the explosion of a nuclear device by a non-nuclear weapon State.

• 1 January 1994: the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) takes effect.

• 1 January 1995: World Trade Organization is created to facilitate free trade, by mandating mutual most favored nationtrading status between all signatories.

• 1 January 2002: Twelve countries of the European Union launch the Euro zone (euro in cash), which instantly becomes the second most used currency in the world.