Recent studies of global trade have pointed toward a more balanced understanding of the early modern world.18 European merchants avidly sought opportunities to trade in valuable Asian commodities, but they had little to offer that their Asian counterparts found appealing. The earliest European merchants to visit Asian markets sold small quantities of textiles, firearms, and manufactured items, but only with bullion and profits from intra-Asian trade were they able to purchase enough goods to satisfy European demands for silk, porcelain, pepper, and spices. By the mid-sixteenth century, large supplies of American silver were flowing into Europe. Since demand for silver was extraordinarily strong in China, where authorities were seeking to base the imperial economy on silver, European merchants were able to exchange American treasure for Asian goods. By this account, it was not only European demand for Asian commodities that drove the early-modern world economy, but also Asian and especially Chinese demand for silver and other precious metals. Thus while recognizing the prominent role of Europe in the larger world, recent scholarship does not portray European peoples as the only or principal agents of historical development in early modern times. By considering European experience in global context, it moves beyond Eurocentric visions of the past and yields richer understanding of both Europe and the larger world.