Which member of a European society stood to gain most from the growth in international trade during the age of exploration?

European traders and merchants stood to gain most from the growth in international trade during the age of exploration.

Explanation:

During the age of exploration, numerous explorers, often funded either by traders or even the royal family, explored the new world looking for new products.

Not only were explorers able to find abundant gold, coffee, corn, chocolate but even new trading routes.

The Spanish and the Portuguese were the pioneers and soon, they had discovered shipping routes all the way down from the cape town to the Indian Subcontinent and beyond.

As international trade grew, European traders became extremely wealthy and so did their patrons in the government.