Global silver trade from the 16th to 18th centuries 1500 to 1800, Mexico and Peru produced about 80% of the world's silver with 30% of it eventually ending up in China (largely because of British merchants who used it to purchase exotic Chinese commodities). In the late 16th and early 17th century, Japan was also exporting heavily into China and the foreign trade at large. As has been demonstrated, China dominated silver imports. The market value of silver in the Ming territory was double its value elsewhere, which provided great arbitrage profit for the Europeans and Japanese. The abundance of silver in China made it easy for the country
The empire on which the sun never sets The empire on which the sun never sets The phrase "the empire on which the sun never sets" has been used with variations to describe certain global empires that were so extensive that there was always at least one part of their territory that was in daylight. It was originally coined for the Spanish Empire, mainly in the 16th and 17th centuries. In more recent times, it was used for the British Empire, mainly in the 19th and early 20th centuries. During this period, the British Empire reached a territorial size larger than that of any other empire in history.