According to mercantilists what was the purpose of colonies?

A) do you export manufactured goods to parent countries

B) to import luxuries from parent countries at discounted prices

C) to provide inexpensive resources and raw materials to parent countries

D) to reduce competition and tariffs

Question: according to mercantilists what was the purpose of colonies?

Options:

A) do you export manufactured goods to parent countries.

B) to import luxuries from parent countries at discounted prices.

C) to provide inexpensive resources and raw materials to parent countries.

D) to reduce competition and tariffs.

Answer: The correct answer is option C: to provide inexpensive resources and raw materials to parent countries.

Explanation: Their purpose was to enrich and provide their mother country with raw materials for the profit and growth of that country's industries. They also believed in obtaining prosperity for their nation with large supply of gold and silver.

The best answer is C) to provide inexpensive resources and raw materials to parent countries.

Mercantilism was based on the following principles:

Metalism: wealth is achieved by the accumulation of precious metals. Favorable trade balance: exports must be higher than imports. Increase in production: in order to have consumer goods for the population and to be able to export surpluses in exchange for precious metals, production should be maximized. State direction: the State must regulate, intervene and manage most of the economy in order to guarantee efficiency and coordination. Populationism: the larger the population, the more it can be produced. The workers must charge low salaries (in order to produce cheaper goods) and work all the time so as not to be tempted by reluctance.

The colonial expansion provided several of these requirements, because it allowed to have a large amount of cheap labor and inexpensive natural resources to increase production and in cases like Spain, increase the acquisition of precious metals to accumulate and/or buy foreign goods at a lower price.