Mercantilism is an economic theory and practic ecommon in Europe from the 16th to the 18th century
that promoted governmental regulation of a nation’s
economy for the purpose of augmenting state power at the expense of rival national powers. In particular, it demands a positive balance of trade. It was the economic counterpart of political absolutism.The main goal was to increase a nation's wealth by imposing government regulation concerning all of the nation's commercial interests. It was believed that national strength could be maximized by limiting imports via tariffs and maximizing exports. Mercantilism was a cause of frequent European wars in that time and motivated colonial expansion