The Fruits of El Dorado: The Global Impact of American Precious Metals

Nuno Palma and Leticia Arroyo Abad

No 16067, CEPR Discussion Papers from C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers

Abstract: The quest for precious metals and trade routes during the early modern period fundamentally changed the world. What was the global impact of the large deposits of silver and gold which existed in the Americas? In this chapter, we take a global view. We find that in Europe, England and the Netherlands benefited the most. By contrast, the colonizers par excellence, Spain and Portugal, were unable to profit from their colonial expansion. In Latin America, the exploitation of precious mineral resources enabled the geographic expansion of the empire and shaped labor institutions, the fiscal apparatus, and economic activity. The direct impact on other parts of the world was negligible; but the long-term political consequences of European presence shaped the world as we know it today.

Keywords: Global history; Early modern period; Spanish empire; European little divergence; Counterfactual history (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: F54 N50 O43 Q33 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021-04
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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Working Paper: The Fruits of El Dorado: The Global Impact of American Precious Metals (2021)
Working Paper: The Fruits of El Dorado: The Global Impact of American Precious Metals (2020)
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