ABSTRACT
It is common knowledge by now that the singular product for the origin and development of world trade in the modern era was silver. The huge demand for Indian commodities, especially textiles and raw silk, in the world market attracted buyers from various parts of the world, and almost all these traders had to bring precious metals, mostly silver, to India for the procurement of these commodities. So the influx of silver to India in the seventeenth and the early half of the eighteenth century resulted from India’s favourable balance of trade with the rest of the world. There is no doubt that as the Europeans – mainly the Dutch and the English East India Companies – were important partners of India’s export trade during this period they were responsible for importing large quantities of silver into India.
