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Peak of Portuguese Malacca Trade

Type Event Region Southeast Asia Time 1551–1560

In the 1550s Portuguese Malacca was the core hub of spice and goods trade between the Indian Ocean and South China Sea, collecting tariffs and linkin…

Timeline

  1. 1551–1555Port of Malacca · MalaccaThe Portuguese authorities in Malacca perfected cargo registration, tariff collection, and ship quarantine systems, making the port the administrative and fiscal center of the Estado da Índia in Southeast Asia. Chinese, Javanese, and Arab merchants paid transit taxes and exchanged goods here.
  2. 1553–1558Strait of Malacca · Strait of MalaccaIn the mid-1550s, cloves and nutmeg from the Moluccas were transshipped via Makassar, Bantam, and other places to Malacca, then redistributed to Goa, South China, and the Persian Gulf. Controlling the strait's shipping lanes, Malacca became a key entrepôt linking the Indian Ocean and Pacific trade spheres.
  3. 1556–1560Mouth of the Johor River · JohorBy the late 1550s the Sultanate of Johor rose on the southern shore of the Strait of Malacca, challenging Portugal's trade monopoly. Portuguese Malacca retained its entrepôt advantage, but regional competition intensified, laying the groundwork for later Dutch and British involvement in Southeast Asian trade.

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