Analyze the Economies

Imports, Exports, and Trade

The Ottoman Empire was an agrarian economy, labour scarce, land rich and capital poor. The majority of the population earned their living from small family holdings and this contributed to around 40 percent of taxes for the empire directly as well as indirectly through customs revenues on exports.

What fueled the growth of Safavid economy was Iran's position between the burgeoning civilizations of Europe to its west and India and Islamic Central Asia to its east and north. The Silk Road, which led through northern Iran to India, revived in the sixteenth century. Abbas I also supported direct trade with Europe, particularly England and The Netherlands, which sought Iranian carpets, silk, and textiles. The main imports were specie, textiles (woolens from Europe, cottons from Gujarat), spices, metals, coffee, and sugar.

Economy in Mughal Empire was dependent on agriculture, trade and other industries. According to historians, since time immemorial agriculture has always been the backbone of economy of the country. Thus, in the Mughal era also agriculture was actually the biggest source of income. Moreover, it was also one of the main sources of livelihood of majority of the people in the country. On the other hand, Ajmer was well known for the production of best quality sugarcane. Improved transport and communication facilities also helped the development of economy during the reign of Mughal emperors. There was tremendous demand for cash crops like silk and cotton as because the textile industry was flourishing during the Mughal period. 

In the ottoman empire the early capital at Bursa was an important trade route that brought silk from Persia to supply the Italian Market. Aleppo became an emporium for foreign merchants for spice trade. European merchants sought Safavid raw silk, carpets, ceramics, and high quality craft items. The Mughals did not pay as much attention to foreign trade. The Mughal rulers concentrated on their land and had little interest in maritime affairs. However, the Mughal treasury derived significant income from foreign trade.