1. Exploration led to the Columbian Exchange where crops, animals and diseases were shared between the Americas and Afro-Eurasia, changing global agriculture and devastating American indigenous populations.
2. Europeans developed the economic policy of mercantilism in the 1500s to build wealth through favorable trade balances and by establishing colonies to control trade.
3. Growing global trade between Europe and its colonies in the 1500s-1600s expanded capitalism as merchants profited and joint-stock companies financed riskier ventures, fueling increased business activity in Europe.