History of Trade and Commerce in India

The importance of trade and commerce in the development of a nation is second to none. It can also be emphasised that the evolution of a business in a country largely depends upon its geography and the surroundings.

India is blessed to have the Himalayas in the north and bordered by sea on the south. The presence of sea has helped in the spreading of business across the continents.

During the ancient times, India was the leading exporter of silk, cotton, sugar, precious stones. India was also the exporter of spices to the west and this was done through the spice route.

All these items were exported in exchange for gold and silver from other nations. The prosperity of Indian trade took a backseat with the starting of the Industrial Revolution in the west.

Trade and commerce played a significant role in the evolution of the economy of India. It was shown from the archaeological evidence that trade and commerce through land and sea played a very important role in the growth of the Indian economy.

India was the leading business center of the world and commercial towns like Harappa and Mohenjodaro were established. In ancient times, India had built strong business relations with other countries like Mesopotamia and trade took place between the two nations involving gold, silver, terracotta pots, precious stones, pearls, etc.

The following are some of the factors that helped India become the most favoured nation for trade and commerce:

1. The Hindu mercantile community was known for their entrepreneurship, enterprising nature, resilience and trustworthiness.

2. Goods manufactured in India were known for their excellence as the goods produced in India were unique and were not available in any other part of the world.

3.The Hindus were very skilled at the art of building ships along with excellent knowledge of the sea routes, winds and other aspects of navigation. This enabled them to travel distant lands to perform trade.

This concludes the topic of History of Trade and Commerce in India, which is an important topic for Commerce students. For more such interesting articles, stay tuned to BYJU’S.