Mercantilism

Mercantilism was a policy for a nation to increase its wealth based on exporting more goods to other nations and territories than importing from them. An excess of exports over imports increased the balance of trade and the acquisition of gold by the nation. Also, acquiring and using colonies to supply raw materials and provide foreign markets was a key aspect of mercantilism. Mercantilism was the British policy at the time of the American Revolution. For this reason, the United States has always rejected mercantilism, especially since the United States has historically been a net exporter, although since the 1970's enormous trade deficits have been run.