panels
The economic policy of mercantilism. Mercantilism

The economic policy of mercantilism. Mercantilism

Period: XV - XVI centuries. - early, 17th century — late, analysis of trade and balance of payments.

Names: T. Man (1571-1641) "The wealth of England is in foreign trade."

Essential features:

True wealth is money (gold, silver); they stimulate the development of trade and production.
General approach: every export is beneficial; every import is a loss.
Buy less, export more. To develop our own handicraft and manufactory production.

The subject and essence of mercantilism

The period of mercantilism was characterized by the displacement of natural economy by market economic relations. Karl Marx defined mercantilism as a period of "primitive capital accumulation". In his opinion, mercantilism was an inevitable moment that followed the great geographical discoveries in the process of transition from feudalism to capitalism.

Modern economists believe that mercantilism marked a transitional period in the emergence of economics as an independent branch of human knowledge.

Representatives of the mercantilists identified the wealth of the nation and state with money and treasures.. They believed that the increase of wealth requires the regulation of trade (restraint and encouragement and national industry). According to the mercantilist concept, achieving an active trade balance is possible only with the help of state intervention measures, and the source of wealth is considered to be unequal commodity exchange between states.

Mercantilists for three centuries adhered to the following general principles scientific outlook:

Gold and treasures are expressions of wealth
Support for industry by importing cheap raw materials
Protectionist tariffs on imported goods
Export promotion
Population growth to keep wages low (supply maintenance)
Ensuring the flow of gold and silver into the country
Non-admission to the national economy of foreign

Features of mercantilism:

The subject of the study of mercantilism is the consideration of the problems of the sphere of circulation, in isolation from the problems of the sphere of production.
The method of studying mercantilism is (a direction in the theory of knowledge that recognizes sensory experience as the only source of reliable knowledge).
Increasing labor supply is linked to the need for lower, not higher wages
are considered as a consequence of the increase in the country's monetary wealth due to state regulation of foreign trade and the achievement of a positive trade balance

Increasing wealth multiplies economic power and military power.

The politics of mercantilism.

Stages of mercantilism

In connection with different ways to achieve a positive trade balance, mercantilism is usually divided into early mercantilism and late mercantilism.

Early mercantilism

Early mercantilism (until the middle of the 16th century) was based on money balance system, and the increase in monetary wealth occurred purely by legislative means (the need for strict protective measures in relation to imports is due to the fact that production and trade were well developed, and, accordingly, exports were insignificant). Thus, in order to achieve a positive balance in foreign trade, the early mercantilists considered it expedient: to establish the highest possible prices on exported goods, completely restrict the import of goods And prevent the export of gold and silver from the country.

Late mercantilism

The monetary wealth of late mercantilism (the second half of the 16th century - the second half of the 17th century) was based on the system active trade balance(trade relations between countries have become more developed and regular), that is, sell more and buy less.

Late mercantilism suggested:

Conquest of foreign markets thanks to cheap goods (low prices).
Allowed imports of goods (except luxury items) within the trade surplus
Export of gold and silver in the event of profitable trade transactions

Thus, the later mercantilists opposed the system of the monetary balance to the system of an active trade balance. If the early mercantilists considered the function of accumulation to be the defining function of money, then the later ones considered the function of a medium of circulation. According to the late mercantilists, the value of money is inversely related to its quantity, and the level of prices for goods is directly proportional to the quantity of money. Mercantilists believed that an increase in the supply of money, by increasing the demand for it, stimulates trade.

Representatives of mercantilism

Thomas Man (1571-1641)

Thomas Man considered the main type of capital trading capital. According to the opinion, the wealth of the country is money, the source of enrichment is trade, in which the export of goods prevails over the import.

Antoine de Montchretien (1575-1621)

Antoine de Montchretien coined the term " political Economy", saw the difference between money and wealth, well-being. in 1615, Antoine Montchretien published a treatise on political economy. According to Montchretien, the source of profit is state intervention in foreign trade.

Mercantilism enriched the history of economic doctrines with the concept of universal commercialization of economic life, marked the beginnings of the science of "Political Economy".

The wealth concept of early and late mercantilism

In the economic literature, two stages are usually distinguished in the development of mercantilism - early and late. The main criterion for such a division is the "justification" of ways (means) to achieve an active trade balance, i.e. positive balance in foreign trade.

Early mercantilism

Early mercantilism arose even before the great geographical discoveries and was valid until the middle of the XV! V. At this stage, trade relations between the countries were poorly developed and had an episodic character. To achieve a positive balance in foreign trade, the early mercantilists considered it expedient:

install the highest possible prices for exported goods;
limit the import of goods in every possible way;
not to allow the export of gold and silver from the country (monetary wealth was identified with them).

Therefore, the theory of monetarism of the early mercantilists can be regarded as theory of "monetary balance".

Early mercantilism was characterized by an understanding of the fallacy of the concept of the nominalistic theory of money, dating back to ancient times, including the works of the ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle (4th century BC). Arguing in this way, nominalists denied not only the commodity nature of money, but also their connection with precious metals.

However, during early mercantilism, as in the Middle Ages, the government defaced the national coin, reducing its value and weight in the hope of stimulating foreign merchants to exchange their money for native ones and buy more goods. The transformation of money into a conventional sign, a fixed ratio of gold and silver money in circulation (the system of bimetallism) was justified both by the facts of the circulation of defective money, and by the erroneous statement that gold and silver are money by virtue of their natural properties, acting as a measure of value, treasures and world money.

Late mercantilism

Late mercantilism covers the period from the second half of the 16th century. to the second half of the 17th century, although some of its elements continued to manifest themselves in the XVIII century. At this stage, trade relations between countries become developed and regular, which was largely due to the encouragement of the development of national industry and trade by the state. To achieve an active trade balance, recommendations were put forward:

conquer foreign markets thanks to relatively cheap goods (i.e. low prices) as well as the resale of goods of some countries in other countries;
allow import of goods(except for luxury goods) while maintaining an active trade balance in the country;
export gold and silver for the implementation of profitable trade transactions, mediation, i.e. to increase their mass in the country and maintain an active trade balance.

Late mercantilists shifted the focus of monetarist theory by opposing the early mercantilists' idea of a "balance of money" with the idea of a "balance of trade".

Recognizing the commodity essence of money, the later mercantilists still saw their value in the natural properties of gold and silver. However, it was they who led to the transition from the metallic to the quantitative theory of money and the system of monometallism. And if the early mercantilists considered the function of accumulation to be the defining function of money, then the later ones considered the function of a medium of circulation.

The emergence of the quantity theory of money was, as it were, a natural reaction to "price revolution" XVI century, caused by a huge influx of gold and silver from the New World to Europe and showing a causal relationship between changes in the amount of money and the prices of goods. According to the late mercantilists, the value of money is inversely related to its quantity, and the level of prices for goods is directly proportional to the quantity of money. They tendentiously believed that an increase in the supply of money, increase the demand for them, stimulates trade.

So, the apogee of early mercantilism corresponds approximately to the middle of the 16th century, and the late mercantilism covers almost the entire 17th century. The features of these stages can be briefly described as follows.

Early mercantilism	Late mercantilism
Foreign trade level
Trade relations between the countries are poorly developed and sporadic.	Trade between the countries is quite developed and is regular.
Recommended Ways to Achieve an Active Trade Balance
Setting the highest possible prices for the export of goods; all-round restriction of import of goods; a ban on the export of gold and silver from the country as monetary wealth.	Relatively low export prices are allowed, including when reselling goods from other countries abroad; import of goods (except luxury items) is allowed, subject to a positive balance in foreign trade; the export of money is allowed for the purpose of profitable trade transactions and mediation and maintaining an active trade balance.
Positions in the field of money theory
The nominalistic perception of money prevails; the government, as a rule, is engaged in damage to the national coin, reducing its value and weight; a fixed ratio of gold and silver money in circulation is established (the system of bimetallism); a statement of the monetary essence of gold and silver due to their natural properties; such as the measure of value, the formation of treasures and world money are recognized as functions of money.	"Price Revolution" of the 16th century. led to the transition to the quantity theory of money (the value of money is inversely proportional to their quantity; the price level is directly proportional to the quantity of money; an increase in the supply of money, increasing the demand for them, stimulates trade); a system of monometallism is established; a statement of the commodity essence of money, but still due to the supposedly natural properties of gold and silver; Of the well-known functions of money, the determining one is no longer the function of accumulation, but the function of the means of circulation.
Monetarist positions
The idea of "monetary balance" dominates	The position of the "balance of trade" prevails.

Judging by the principles of the mercantilists, both early and late, it is easy to detect their superficial and untenable essence. For example, no less famous than the above-mentioned T. Man, the mercantilists J. Locke and R. Cantillon were completely convinced of the expediency of more gold and silver in a given country in comparison with others, and it was in this that the level of "wealth" that it had achieved was considered. The arguments in this regard were not unfounded, as evidenced, in particular, by the following assurance of T. Mena: if you sell cheaper, you will not lose sales, and if a country imports goods for cash, then only in the interests of the subsequent export of these goods abroad and turning them into "importing a much larger amount of money."

The influence of the ideas of the paper-money mercantilist John Low was also peculiar. And only the approbation of the ideas of this, as he is often called, adventurer made it possible to be convinced of the erroneous expectations of a significant increase in production with an increase in the amount of money in circulation.

Introduction 3

1.1. Definition of mercantilism 4

1.2. Early and late mercantilism 6

Chapter 2. Features of mercantilism in England and France.

2.1. Features of mercantilism in England 8

2.1. Features of mercantilism in France 10

Conclusion 13

References 15

Introduction

Before the era of capitalism, economic research was fragmentary, concerned with the analysis of practical economic activity, occasionally illuminated by brilliant conjectures regarding the underlying laws of the course of economic processes. The situation changes dramatically with the beginning of the development of capitalist economic relations. This is characterized in Europe in the 15th-16th centuries. n. e., in the era of great geographical discoveries, in the era of the primitive accumulation of capital.

K. Marx characterized this period as one of the moments in the process of transition from feudalism to capitalism, which followed the great geographical discoveries, and called it the period of "primitive accumulation of capital."

Mercantilism- (from the Italian mercate - merchant, merchant) one of the earliest holistic economic theories, dating back to the 15th - 17th centuries, that is, the period of early capitalism. The mercantilists proceeded from the position that the sphere of circulation plays the leading role in the economy, in the creation of profit, and the nation's wealth lies in money.

The relevance of the work. Economic science, as a system of knowledge about its subject and functions, about economic relations, categories and laws, was first formed in the 16th-17th centuries. in the teachings of the mercantilists.

Object of study is a system of economic views on the study of patterns in the sphere of trade and money circulation, and subject- Mercantilist views of economists in England and France.

Goal of the work- to consider the features of mercantilism in England and France.

Such research methods as generalization, analysis, synthesis of the studied literature were used.

In this paper, in the first chapter, the essence of mercantilism is considered, in the second - its features in England and France.

Chapter 1. The essence of mercantilism.

1.1. Definition of mercantilism.

The replacement of subsistence economic relations by market economic relations covers the historical period of the "transitional time" from about the 16th to the 18th centuries. This period in the economic literature is usually called the period of mercantilism or the mercantilist system.

The concept of "mercantilism" comes from the Latin word tercari (to trade). In English and French, mercantile means "commercial" and the Italian mercante means "trader" or "merchant". However, the mercantilist system is a much more complex concept, the emergence of which is closely related to the consequences of the great geographical discoveries, which led to the acceleration of the "initial accumulation of capital", the emergence of new types of economic entities - entrepreneurial owners and employees.

Before the renaissance in European culture, the idea of a conquering hero as the embodiment of all virtues, an ideal to follow, was widespread. A successful raid on someone else's, and sometimes even one's own territory, robbery and ruin, according to the morality of that time, was considered as a completely acceptable and legitimate way of enrichment. This tradition, which emerged from antiquity, successfully functioned in the Middle Ages.

The Renaissance gave rise to new approaches to many social and cultural processes, including the idea of wealth and the sources of its origin. Social ideals have changed; the hero of that time is no longer a conquering warrior, but a successful merchant, artisan, artist. Mercantilism became the theoretical concept, which later substantiated such a shift in public consciousness.

The external part of the concept of mercantilism is that this theoretical school considered wealth in the form of a monetary metal with a source of growth in the sphere of foreign trade. Mercantilism as a specialized part of the public consciousness of that era reflected new stereotypes of thinking that fixed money as the main, and sometimes the only component of material well-being and wealth. But at the same time, the concept of mercantilism was not so primitive, it reflected the essence of not only monetary, but also economic, economic relations of that time.

Mercantilism was a significant breakthrough in the cultural tradition of feudal fragmented Europe and was the economic and theoretical justification for the process of creating and functioning of nation states on the principles of political absolutism. In accordance with these processes, people living on the territory of a particular state began to be regarded as a single social organism (nation, people). Peoples compete with each other, entering into economic relations. The most common form of economic relations between the states of that time was foreign trade. One nation sold to another nation those commodities that it had in abundance, acquiring those commodities that it lacked. The money of that time is primarily noble metals, and it was in them that the value of goods was assessed and settlements were made on trade transactions. Therefore, it is natural that the positive result of foreign trade was associated with the excess of exports over imports and was fixed by the concept of an active trade balance.

In addition, mercantilism for the first time determined the managerial functions of the sovereign, the ruler. If in the ancient tradition, which continued to be preserved in the period of the early Middle Ages, the sovereign was considered as the ruler, the conqueror of his subjects, who had all the rights to their property and even to life, then mercantilism considered the ruler as the supreme manager, the father of the nation, who was obliged to pursue an economic policy leading to the enrichment of the nation as a whole. The economic policy of the state, which, according to the mercantilists, led to the growth national wealth, there was protectionism, the meaning of which consisted in the full support of the domestic merchants in foreign markets and in the restrictions imposed on foreign merchants in the domestic market. Thanks to such a policy, the competitiveness of the nation and the production of export-oriented products should have increased. The indicator of efficiency public policy, the wisdom of the government was becoming a trade surplus and the influx of gold into the country.

1.2. Early and late mercantilism.

There are early and late mercantilism.

Early mercantilism arose before the Age of Discovery and its central idea was the idea of a "balance of money". During this period, there was a process of creating centralized states, eliminating feudal fragmentation in Europe. Frequent wars required the creation of regular armies and led to the need for constant replenishment of the state treasury. Therefore, the economic policy of the government during this period was of a pronounced fiscal nature. Successful collection of taxes could only be ensured through the creation of a system in which private individuals were prohibited from exporting precious metals outside the state. Foreign merchants were obliged to spend all the proceeds received from the sale of their goods on the purchase of local goods, the issue of money was declared a state monopoly. In order to attract money from abroad, governments resorted to "spoiling" coins by reducing their weight or fineness while maintaining the face value, which led to the depreciation of money. It was believed that, as a result of the depreciation, foreigners would be able to purchase more local goods with their money and therefore would be interested in recoining their money into the depreciated money of another country.

As a result of the Great geographical discoveries, cheap silver and gold poured into Europe, primarily through Spain. It would seem that an economic ideal has been achieved. But the more money metal entered the European markets, the faster the process of their depreciation went. A constant rise in prices for goods began, which gradually strengthened the economic positions of the productive strata of society (artisans, peasants) and weakened the positions of the nobility, the military class, who received a salary in the form of depreciating money.

Late mercantilism puts the idea of a trade balance at the forefront, the fiscal orientation of economic policy is replaced by a policy based on economic considerations. It was believed that the state becomes richer, the greater the difference between the value of exported and imported goods. This position could be secured in two ways. First, the export of finished products was encouraged and the export of raw materials and the import of luxury goods were limited. Secondly, the development of intermediary trade was stimulated, for which the export of money abroad was allowed. At the same time, it was considered necessary to buy as cheaply as possible in some countries and sell as expensive as possible in others. As part of this approach, high import duties were set, export premiums were paid, governments sought to ensure the security of foreign trade communications, provided various privileges to trading companies, and issued state subsidies for the development of export-oriented and import-substituting industries.

Chapter 2. Features of mercantilism in England and France.

2.1. Features of mercantilism in England.

In England, mercantilism turned out to be much more "fruitful" than in France. The main successes of the protectionist policy of this country in the field of trade and industry in the 17th century. usually associated with the name of Thomas Man - one of the leaders of the East India Company. The essence of mercantilism is most accurately and concisely stated in his book “The Wealth of England in Foreign Trade, or the Balance of Our Foreign Trade, as the Principle of Our Wealth” (1664). The author sees wealth in monetary terms - in gold and silver. The country must enrich itself through trade, ensuring that the export of goods exceeds their import. They considered the development of production as a way to expand trade.

W. Petty (1 had a doctorate in physics, was a professor of music and anatomy and, at the same time, the first professional economist. The wealth of the ruler, in his opinion, consists of three main parts: 1) the wealth of all his subjects; 2) the part of this wealth that goes to the common good; 3) parts of this part, which the ruler disposes of at his own discretion. Therefore, the wealth of all subjects is the most important wealth. The more significant it is, the more funds can be collected in the form of taxes, the stronger the state and the ruler himself.

At the same time, money should not lie idle, but should contribute to the development of production. Therefore, it cannot be said that a country is the poorer, the less money it has in the form of reserves. It can be like a successful person who keeps little free money with him, but constantly turns it into various commodities with great benefit to himself. So, the wealth of England is not only money, but also land, iron, timber, grain, etc. According to his calculations, the amount of money in England does not exceed 3% of the total wealth of the country.

The central economic concept, according to Petty, is the "natural price" - the cost determined by the time spent on the production of goods.

One of the main questions for economists of that time was the following: what is the price of land? Since, Petty said, land is not a product of labor, it is a special commodity, the price of which depends on the income from the land.

Natural price of land = annuity i x 21 years.

Land rent is understood by him as the surplus received after deducting the cost of seeds and the maintenance of workers.

Money rent is equal to interest. The amount of interest depends on the demand for money and the supply of money and should not be regulated by law. There should not be too much money in circulation. They are like fat: every body needs fat, but excess fat is a disease.

The name of Petty is also associated with the creation of economic statistics (political arithmetic), methods for calculating national income.

John Locke (1 In his opinion, a country that does not have mines can enrich itself in only two ways: conquest and trade. He made an attempt to separate "the natural value of money, expressed in their ability to bring an annual income in the form of interest", and the exchange value (purchasing power of money), which "depends only on the abundance or lack of money in relation to the abundance or lack of goods, and not on the amount of interest." This difference turned out to be very important for the subsequent development of the theory of money.

The ratio of the amount of money to goods is determined by commodity prices, and not only the nominal amount of money is important, but also the speed of their circulation (the greater the speed of circulation of money, the less money is required for buying and selling the same mass of goods). The increase in the amount of money (the increase in the amount of gold and silver after the discovery of America) led not only to an increase in prices, but also to a decrease in the lending rate.

Considering foreign trade the main means of increasing wealth, Locke believed that the main source of wealth is labor. Nature provides only raw materials, and it is processed to turn into a useful thing, by labor. Therefore, commodities that are incomparable in their properties can be compared by difference in value, most of which is "obtained through human labor."

2.2. Features of mercantilism in France.

The concept of late mercantilism was entirely focused on the practice of economic life - mainly on the sphere of circulation. The influence of the mercantilists on other areas of the economy was not always adequate. An example is France, where the most active conductor of the policy of protectionism in the 17th century. , is Finance Minister Jean-Baptiste Colbert. Under him, a powerful network of manufactories was created in industry, which provided funds for the royal court. At the same time, by banning the import of grain and its uncontrolled export, the development of farming is hindered. Ultimately, this circumstance explains the “narrowness” of the domestic market of France at that time compared to its longtime rival, England. Subsequently, French mercantilism for this reason began to be called Calbertism, and the so-called teaching of the Physiocrats became a kind of French school within the framework of classical political economy.

The theoretical foundations of mercantilism in France were laid down in the Treatise of Political Economy (1615), authored by Antoine Montchretien. He introduced the term "political economy" into the socio-economic literature. The author of the "Treatise ..." considered merchants to be the most useful state, and characterized trade as the goal of the craft. He considered active state intervention in the economy as the most important factor in the accumulation, strengthening and development of the country's economy.

The scientist recommended the development of manufactory, the creation of craft schools, the improvement of product quality, and the expansion of trade in goods. national production, while ousting foreign merchants, whom he compared to a pump that pumps wealth out of the country.

But political economy was presented by him as a set of rules for economic activity. Montchretien argued that:

1) "The happiness of people is in wealth, and wealth is in work." But wealth is expressed in gold and silver.

2) Luxury is justified only when local products are consumed, when its producers get jobs and "the profit remains within the country."

3) Competition is harmful and should be avoided and prevented.

4) Merchants are "more than helpful." Trade is "the main purpose of various crafts"; trading profit is legitimate, it compensates for the risk; "Gold proved to be more powerful than iron."

5) State power must ensure the monopolies of domestic merchants within the country and in foreign markets.

For the effectiveness of foreign trade, according to Montchretien, large trading companies (East India, West India, etc.) should be created. The charter of such a company cannot allow internal competition, and the privilege granted to it by the state did not allow other merchants from this country to enter the relevant market. In the competitive struggle with similar companies in other countries, such means as wars and privateering are possible.
At the same time, although Montchretien proposed to promote the expansion of foreign trade, he had no justification for the idea of a "balance of trade". Traces of monetarism were preserved in his work (in an extremely broad interpretation of the prerogatives of the state, in a rough solution to the issue of combating foreigners).

The problem of capital accumulation at Montchretien was replaced by the problem of the rise of France. But contrary to mercantilism, paramount importance was attached to "natural wealth" (bread, salt, wine, etc.), since it is not the amount of gold and silver that makes the state rich, but "the availability of items necessary for life and clothing." The state should take care of the peasants. Such recommendations were impossible for English mercantilism.

Consistent mercantilist policy in France during the period of Richelieu and Colbert led to a deterioration in the situation in the field of agriculture and handicrafts, focused on local needs, gave rise to a constant increase in tax pressure on most of French society. To ensure ever-increasing government spending, sooner or later the government was forced to switch to the use of paper money circulation, which led to the rapid depreciation of paper money and the breakdown of the economic system.

John Lowe (1, Quantity Theorist of Money, best known as the organizer of the issue of paper money in France in 1719, when they forced metallic money out of circulation.
According to Lowe, silver, like any other commodity, has its "natural price". However, when a coin is minted from silver, it is given additional (artificial) value. In this sense, issuing money generates profit. This profit will only increase if silver coins are replaced by paper money, which has no natural value. And the profit from their introduction, as early as the value of the paper money itself, will be fully preserved if their issue is strictly regulated in accordance with the needs of circulation and trade.

Unfortunately, Lowe's criterion for issuing a "necessary" amount of paper money remained vague. They began to be produced in excess quantities, which led to the collapse of the country's monetary circulation.

Conclusion

The general assessment of the significance of the mercantilists in the history of economic views is highly controversial.

1. Mercantilists formulated the doctrine of active trade balance. Like the individual, the state must spend less than it receives. Then wealth (gold and silver) will accumulate in the country.

2. The contradiction of the views of the mercantilists was expressed in an increase economic activity as a zero-sum game (one wins, another loses), the tacit assumption of limited consumption, the weakness of monetary incentives – these concepts were inherent in pre-industrial economies, accustomed to a slight increase in production and population. In a time when profits from foreign trade were accidental - such is the era of pirate imperialism, when domestic trade was limited to a few localities and was carried out spontaneously, regular employment and factory discipline were practically unknown - it may be natural from the thought that the policy of "beggar-thy-neighbor" will enrich the nation, that the trade surplus accommodates a net premium to the volume of sales on the limited domestic market and that high wages will reduce the supply of labor. These kinds of ideas about economic activity are so firmly ingrained in the real world that hardly any statements are needed, and they alone explain why smart people could adhere to the theory put forward at that time. The explanation for this, according to scientists, lies in the protectionist mood, combined with an erroneous opinion about wealth and money.

3. The error of the mercantilists was only in the assumption that it is possible to maintain a trade surplus for a long time without harmful effects For national economy generally.

4. The concern of the mercantilists about the influx of gold into the country can be understood as a not quite clear understanding of the connection between the increase in the money supply and the decrease in interest rates. When an economy suffers from a lack of demand and falling prices, a trade surplus (the excess of exports over imports) props up prices, and an influx of gold lowers interest rates and thus stimulates investment and employment.

5. In the situation of the pre-industrial economy, the mercantilists did not have to face the problems of regular employment of the labor force, the organization of the then unknown factory production. Their main demands invariably remained the excess of exports over imports, stimulation of the export of capital from the country and the import of gold and luxury into it from abroad, and the prevention of foreign investment in the national economy.

6. Theoretical attitudes based on protectionist sentiments in the field of state regulation of foreign trade, the naive identification of money and wealth, the full approval of public works and other postulates of mercantilists actually lead to conclusions that are ridiculous from the standpoint of today's economic science about the "duty" of the state to provide the population with jobs, adhere to the policy of "beggar your neighbor" for the sake of enriching your own people, etc.

7. Mercantilism enriched the history of economic doctrines not only with the concept of universal commercialization of economic life and large-scale participation of state structures in it. We are talking, of course, about the science of economics, which, after the publication in 1615 of the French mercantilist Antoine Montchretien's "Treatise of Political Economy," for almost four centuries was worthily called nothing more than POLITICAL ECONOMY.

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Course work

Topic: The policy of protectionism and mercantilism in Russia in 1895-1917

Plan

Introduction ................................................................................................................3

Chapter 1 The concept of mercantilism and protectionism .............................................. 5

Chapter 2 The policy of protectionism and mercantilism in Russia in 1895 1917 ...............................................................................................................................11

1 The essence of the Russian policy of mercantilism and protectionism in the 19th century..............................................................................................................................................11

2 Witte's reforms....................................................................................................15

Conclusion....................................................................................................22

References .............................................................................................24

Introduction

Economic policy of any state is aimed at improving the welfare and level of development of their country. It is impossible to achieve this without developing our own production. Industry and agriculture, services and transport of various countries develop in their own conditions, which either stimulate or hinder development. Countries are not isolated from each other, there is interaction at the level of production and consumption, and hence mutual influence, trade relations are being built. For active growth of the economy, it is necessary to increase production in the country, it is necessary to ensure that domestic goods are widely consumed, they are not interfered with by imports. That is, the task of the state is to increase its own production through consumption, both within the country and at the external level. And this is the task of mercantilism and protectionism: to protect their producer and increase sales of their own goods. The essence of the teachings of the mercantilists is to determine the sources of the origin of wealth (and this is their merit, they first spoke about them), but they interpreted this issue one-sidedly, since they removed the source of wealth from the sphere of circulation, and the wealth itself was identified with money, hence the name "mercantile" - monetary.

Ideologically close to mercantilism is the policy of protectionism, aimed at protecting, protecting the national economy from competition from other states by introducing customs barriers, restricting the entry of goods and capital into the country.

Both political theories were applied in life various countries starting from the 15th century. In Russia, mercantilism and protectionism as a state policy can be traced back to the 17th century. Especially Peter the Great, Nikolai Pavlovich and Nikolai Alexandrovich used protectionism and mercantilism as the main state policy.

It is in their reign that one can trace measures to protect the Russian manufacturer, an increase in customs duties, and an increase in exports abroad.

The purpose of this work is to consider the concepts of mercantilism and protectionism, as well as the policy of their application in the reign of Nicholas 2.

To achieve this goal, it is necessary to perform a number of tasks:

consider the concept of mercantilism and protectionism in economic theory;
to study the essence of the policy of protectionism and mercantilism pursued in Russia in the late 19th and early 20th centuries;
consider the reforms carried out by Witte.

The object of research is the concept of mercantilism and protectionism.

The subject of the research is the policy of protectionism and mercantilism carried out in Russia in 1895 - 1917.

Chapter 1 The concept of mercantilism and protectionism

With the strengthening of national statehood in Europe and the development of world trade, which led to an increased demand for gold and silver, a big number treatises on money and its role in economic life. Big businessmen, statesmen and people of science began to turn to them to the authorities with their proposals and demands on economic issues. Thus, the first school of economic thought gradually arises - the school of mercantilists (mercante - merchant), which in fact meant the appearance of the first systematized economic views.

Mercantilism - the first school of bourgeois economy, the economic policy of the period of early capitalism, is expressed in the active intervention of the state in economic life and is carried out in the interests of merchants. Early mercantilism (the last third of the 15th - the middle of the 16th century) was characterized by the theory of monetary balance, which substantiated a policy aimed at increasing monetary wealth through purely legislative means. The main element of late mercantilism, which flourished in the 17th century, is the system of an active trade balance. Here the basic principle was put forward: "Buy - cheaper, sell - more expensive." The policy of mercantilism was to encourage the expansion of commercial capital, to encourage the development of domestic industry, especially manufacturing.

Mercantilism, as the first holistic economic doctrine, immediately revealed a number of theoretical and methodological features. Their gist was as follows:

The sphere of circulation (primarily foreign trade) should be the subject of close attention, initially even without linking it with the sphere of production;
The aim of the research is economic growth, which is understood as an increase in the monetary wealth of the country. It is achieved through state regulation of foreign trade, the achievement of a positive trade balance, etc.;
Wealth is embodied in money, which was artificially invented by people;
The value of money is related to the "natural nature" of gold and silver coins, as well as the amount of money in the country;
It is necessary to stimulate the growth of the working population in the country to reduce wages;
Economic research should be based on an empirical method for describing the external manifestations of economic processes. This excludes the possibility of a systematic analysis of all spheres of the economy.

Thus, according to the mercantilists, wealth is money, and money is gold and silver. A commodity has a value because it is bought with money. The main source of wealth is foreign trade. The task of mercantilism is to develop foreign trade and bring it to a level where sales exceed purchases.

The main provisions of this doctrine boiled down to the fact that the mercantilist policy of the state improves the country's trade balance, promotes the development of its industry and the rapid growth of its population. As C. Wilson wrote, the very improvement of the trade balance was considered by the mercantilist doctrine as a sign of an increase in national welfare, which, according to its supporters, reflected not only an increase in income, but also an increase in employment.

Over the course of historical time, mercantilism has changed slightly.

If early mercantilism was characterized by the concept of "monetary balance" or a monetary approach, expressed in a simple identification of wealth with money, and allowed any, including non-economic methods to keep money in the country, then late mercantilism already operates with the concept of an active trade balance - an increase in the inflow of money was assumed by exceeding exports over imports. It was no longer the "accumulation" but the "movement" of money that came to the fore as a guarantee of success in trade. Administrative measures are gradually being replaced by recommendations of an economic nature.

Mercantilism is inseparable from the policy of protectionism. Yadgarov connects these two concepts into a single whole. The increase of wealth requires protectionist measures to regulate foreign trade, so that exports are encouraged and imports are restrained, and thereby the national industry is supported.

The main types of protectionism:

Selective protectionism - protection from a particular product, or against a particular state;

Industry protectionism - protection of a particular industry;

Collective protectionism is the mutual protection of several countries united in an alliance;

Hidden protectionism - protectionism with the help of non-customs methods;

Local protectionism - protectionism of products and services of local companies;

Green protectionism - protectionism with the help of environmental law;

Corrupt protectionism - when politicians act in the interests not of the mass voter, but of organized bureaucratic and financial groups.

To a greater extent, the task of protectionism is to protect its own producer. This is a system of measures aimed at protecting the national industry from foreign rivalry. Imported goods are heavily taxed, provided that the country produces a similar product and vice versa. The most successful goals are:

1) the imposition of customs duties on foreign products, in order to reduce their importation, raise the price, and thereby raise the profits of the owners of native factories producing the same products, and the earnings of workers employed in these factories;

2) the imposition of duties on the export of raw materials;

3) payment of premiums for the export of products, so that the local industry can lower their prices and withstand competition in international markets;

4) restriction or direct prohibition of the export of improved machines and tools unknown abroad, in order to deprive foreigners of the opportunity to enjoy the benefits of new inventions;

5) the prohibition of the departure of skilled craftsmen, so that they do not spread improved techniques and methods of this or that production in foreign countries;

6) exploitation of the colonies, in the form of obtaining cheap raw materials from them and for the profitable sale of products of the metropolises;

7) the publication of navigational laws, encouraging domestic shipbuilding and the transportation of domestic and foreign goods on native-built ships with special benefits;

8) the issuance of monetary subsidies and monopolies to the initiators of this or that production useful for the country.

Protectionism is the policy of protecting the domestic market from foreign competition through a system of certain restrictions: import and export duties, subsidies and other measures. Such a policy contributes to the development of national production.

Protectionism is seen as a policy that stimulates economic growth in general, as well as industrial growth and the growth of the welfare of the country pursuing such a policy. The theory of protectionism claims that the greatest effect is achieved:

1) with the uniform application of import and export duties, subsidies and taxes in relation to all subjects, without any exceptions;

2) with an increase in the size of duties and subsidies as the depth of processing increases and with the complete abolition of duties on imported raw materials;

3) with the continuous imposition of import duties (in the amount of at least 25-30%) of all goods and products, either already produced in the country, or those whose production, in principle, makes sense to develop;

4) in case of refusal from customs taxation of imports of goods, the production of which is impossible or impractical (for example, bananas in the north of Europe).

Supporters of protectionism argue that the countries of Europe and North America were able to carry out their industrialization in the XVIII-XIX centuries. and make a new industrial breakthrough in the middle of the 20th century. (creation of a "new industrial society") mainly due to protectionist policies. In particular, they point out, with reference to economic historians, that all periods of rapid industrial growth in these countries coincided with periods of protectionism. IN modern world The policy of protectionism is carried out by countries taking into account modern circumstances: globalization, world trade, specialization of the regions of the world.

Russia has been developing over the centuries as a classic independent "world of the economy", which is due to a complex of natural, demographic, historical, political, socio-cultural factors. Therefore, in a strategic sense, the orientation towards an "open economy", in our opinion, is erroneous for Russia.

Today, the protectionist policy of the state in Russia should have the following features:

Combination of methods of purely trade protectionism with a wide range of means of financial and organizational support for industry;

Encouragement by the state of the creation of large corporations and powerful financial and industrial groups (FIGs). This is due to the fact that FIGs are not only competitive in foreign market, but also provide protection of property rights (through a block of shares), solve financing problems, are stable during a crisis, reduce the threat of bankruptcy;

Carrying out a protectionist policy by the state in relation to the stock market and its protection from foreign capital, from foreign investors (it is necessary to prevent foreign capital from buying up enterprises for next to nothing);

Implementation of agrarian protectionism by the state in connection with the wide expansion of imported food into the Russian market.

Chapter 2 The policy of protectionism and mercantilism in Russia in 1895 1917

2.1 The essence of the Russian policy of mercantilism and protectionism.

In Russia, active supporters of protectionism were Yegor Frantsevich Kankrin, Ivan Alekseevich Vyshnegradsky and Sergei Yulievich Witte - finance ministers in the governments of Nicholas I and Alexander III, who pursued the corresponding policy. In the 19th century, the policy of protectionism and mercantilism that had “calmed down” for a while in Russia began to gain momentum again. This merit belongs to the finance ministers Kankrin and Witte. Speaking about the policy of mercantilism and protectionism in Russia, one should note the contribution of D. I. Mendeleev in the development and new understanding of these ideas. The fundamental difference was his idea that the task of protectionism is not prohibitive duties, but the creation of economic conditions for the development of domestic industry. It was a new look at the policy of protectionism. In this understanding, today the states act, creating conditions for the development of their own production.

Russia at the beginning of the 19th century was just entering the world economic space, the country was in the process of capitalization and the formation of a capitalist society. Serfdom hindered these processes. After the reform of 1861, the barriers were removed, and capitalism in Russia began to develop faster. At the end of the 19th century, the country entered the group of actively developing capitalist countries in Europe. But Russian industry needed the protection and support of the state, which made the policy of protectionism and mercantilism the most acceptable state policy.

The goal of the state policy of protectionism and mercantilism: Russia at the turn of the century had to sharply accelerate capitalist modernization and, in order to survive in a rapidly changing world, eliminate its backlog from the advanced countries.

The backlog of the Russian Empire from the advanced states of the West became threatening, therefore, in the 1880s. a course was set for the industrialization of the country. The main force in organizing the process of industrialization in Russia was the state. His intervention in economic life was manifested in the priority and preferential financing of certain industries, in the implementation of a protectionist customs and tax policy, in attracting foreign capital to Russian industry. Internal sources of accumulation for industrialization were formed mainly through the export of grain and raw materials.

Alexander III pursued a policy of pronounced patronage of Russian industry. He increased import duties in 1881, 1882, 1884, 1885, 1886. In 1889, his finance minister, Vyshnegradsky, carried out a reform of railway tariffs, which led to an even greater rise in the cost of imports. Transportation of cargo from borders and ports to the center Russian Federation now cost significantly more than transporting goods in the opposite direction. The 1891 Customs Tariff was the crowning achievement of the Protectionist policy of domestic industry. He set ultra-high import duties: from 33 to 100% of the price of the product. And for some products even more.

The result was not long in coming. In the 1890s, Russian industry experienced a powerful upsurge. Here is what was specifically done to support the Russian economy.

Within 15 years, duties were raised indiscriminately several times, and in 1891 a strictly protective tariff was issued. Data are provided on the customs taxation of some imported goods in Russia, Germany, France and the North American United States.

Russia imposed customs duties not only on products, but also on raw materials, with much higher customs duties than any of the states compared with it here. Under the influence of more or less high tariff rates, the prices of the products of protected branches of industry also rise. Thus, in St. Petersburg a pood of cast iron costs, on average, 90 kopecks, while in London it costs 35 kopecks, and high-quality iron in St. Petersburg. 2 rub. 10 kopecks, in London - 1 rub. 05 kopecks, a pood of cotton yarn sold in Manchester for 10 rubles. 50 kopecks, bought in Moscow for 16 rubles. The widespread success of protectionism is due to the power attributed to it to create new industries, to maintain and expand long-standing ones, but suffering only temporarily from external competition. There is no doubt that, with the help of high customs duties on foreign goods, any industry can be created, but not always - to the enrichment of the country. Ready-made capital is needed for new production, and if they break away from industries that have already grown stronger in the country and do not need patronage, then replacement is directly unprofitable. It is also impossible not to take into account the severity of protective customs duties, which raise the price not only of foreign goods, but also of domestically prepared goods similar to them. Thus, for example, the taxation of imported pig iron, iron and steel increases the price not only of the metal that comes to us from abroad, but also of everything consumed in Russia. And since more than 125,000,000 poods of pig iron, iron, and steel are consumed annually, the Russian consumer pays to the actual value of these commodities not only 19 1/2 million rubles collected at customs, but not less than 98 million rubles. per year, i.e. 5 times more. Consumers of all products of protected industries are in the same position. True, in the course of time, competition lowers the prices of domestically produced goods; but this decline is extremely slow, especially for goods for which the demand is faster than the supply from domestic production: for example, in Russia - for coal, cast iron, iron, machinery. An illustration of this is the constant increase in the import of many goods, despite high duties, which could not be the case if the difference between foreign and domestic prices were much less than the customs duty.

An analysis of the foreign trade of that time shows that Russia remained an agrarian country, exporting agricultural products and importing manufactured goods. The first place in the composition of exports was still occupied by bread. The second place was taken by the forest, the third was occupied by flax, the fourth - by oilseeds. Manufactured goods accounted for only 3-4% of exports, and most of them were exported to the border countries of Asia.

The first places among the exported goods were occupied by oil and sugar. Oil - because Russia provided half of the world's production, sugar - because a syndicate of sugar refiners operated in Russia. The landlord syndicate, because the sugar industry was in the hands of the landlords, who specialized in the production of sugar beets. The syndicate set prices and determined what share of their production each of them could sell in Russia. Sugar in excess of this norm, the breeders had to export abroad. However, they did not lose in this case either: the government set high premiums for the export of sugar. As a result, Russian sugar in London was three times cheaper than in Russia.

The first place in the composition of imports was now occupied by cars. Cotton moved to second place; Russian industry began to focus on its own, Central Asian cotton. The third place belonged to metal imports. Thus, Russia mainly imported industrial consumption goods, which means that the demand for consumer goods was provided by domestic industry.

2.2 Witte's reforms

In 1892, Witte took over as Minister of Finance. Witte's most important task was to encourage the development of domestic industry. In 1899, Witte argued: "The creation of one's own industry is that fundamental, not only economic, but also political task, which constitutes the cornerstone of our protection system." He considered the industry a locomotive National economy. In his activities, he relied on the concept of Friedrich List - the "theory of national economy", the essence of which was that "poor countries" needed to achieve a balance of imports and exports with the help of customs protection for the purpose of economic modernization.

The goal of the reforms is to catch up with the leading countries of the world in industrial development

Ways to implement them:

1 State protectionism of industry.

2 Construction of railways, creation of transport infrastructure.

3 Giving Russian money a gold parity.

4 Attraction of foreign capital.

5 Finding internal sources of financing for industry.

6 The desire to attract entrepreneurs to cooperate with the government.

And here is how another historian understands the essence of Witte's activity. The components of the economic system of S. Yu. Witte were: protectionism in relation to domestic producers, which restrained competition in commodity market; attracting foreign capital in the form of government loans and investments in various industries; mobilization of capital within the country through: a) taxation; b) a state monopoly on the sale of alcoholic beverages. S. Yu. Witte assumed that with the help of such mechanisms, despite their apparent divergence from the postulates of a market economy, Russian industry would reach the Western European level in ten years, and its products would successfully compete in the markets of the East with the goods of developed countries. To do this, it was necessary to build a developed industry, to increase the investment attractiveness of the country. Witte had to cope with these tasks.

Industrialization required significant capital investments from the budget, which was supposed to ensure the implementation of the developed policy. One of the directions of the reform he carried out was the introduction in 1894 of the state wine monopoly, which became the main revenue item of the budget (365 million rubles a year). Taxes were increased, primarily indirect taxes (in the 1990s they increased by 42.7%). The gold standard was introduced, i.e. free exchange of the ruble for gold.

The latter made it possible to attract foreign capital into the Russian economy, since foreign investors could now take gold rubles out of Russia. The customs tariff protected the domestic industry from foreign competition, the government encouraged private enterprise. During the years of the economic crisis of 1900-1903. the government generously subsidized both public and private enterprises. The concession system is gaining ground, issuing government orders to entrepreneurs for a long period at inflated prices. All this was a good stimulus for domestic industry.

By the beginning of the XX century. Witte's economic platform took on a completely finished shape: within about ten years to catch up with the more industrially developed countries of Europe, to take a strong position in the markets of the East, to ensure the accelerated industrial development of Russia by attracting foreign capital, accumulating domestic resources, customs protection of industry from competitors and encouraging exports. A special role in Witte's program was given to foreign capital; the Minister of Finance advocated their unlimited involvement in Russian industry and the railway business, calling it a cure for poverty. He considered the second most important mechanism to be unlimited government intervention.

And it was not a simple declaration. In 1894-1895. S.Yu. Witte achieved the stabilization of the ruble, and in 1897 did what his predecessors had failed to do: he introduced gold money circulation, providing the country with a hard currency and an influx of foreign capital until the First World War. In addition, Witte sharply increased taxation, especially indirect taxation, introduced a wine monopoly, which soon became one of the main sources of the government budget. Another major event carried out by Witte at the beginning of his activity was the conclusion of a customs agreement with Germany (1894), after which even O. Bismarck himself became interested in S. Yu. Witte. This was extremely flattering to the vanity of the young minister. "... Bismarck... drew special attention to me," he later wrote, "and several times, through acquaintances, expressed the highest opinion of my personality."

The whole policy of S. Yu. Witte was subordinated to the only goal: to carry out industrialization, to achieve the successful development of the Russian economy, without affecting the political system, without changing anything in public administration. Witte was an ardent supporter of autocracy. He considered an unlimited monarchy "the best form of government" for Russia, and everything he did was done in order to strengthen and "preserve the autocracy.

For the same purpose, Witte begins to develop the peasant question, trying to achieve a revision of agrarian policy. Russia, with its multi-million peasantry, could become the first in Europe in food production. The peasantry could significantly expand the domestic market by increasing its purchasing power. He realized that it was possible to expand the purchasing power of the domestic market only through the capitalization of the peasant economy, through the transition from communal to private land ownership. S. Yu. Witte was a staunch supporter of private peasant ownership of land and strenuously sought the transition of the government to a bourgeois agrarian policy. In 1899, with his participation, the government developed and adopted laws on the abolition of mutual responsibility in the peasant community. In 1902, Witte achieved the creation of a special commission on the peasant question "Special Conference on the Needs of the Agricultural Industry", which aimed to "establish personal property in the countryside." These measures could help to squeeze out superfluous and unnecessary workers from the countryside, enable those who remained in the countryside to produce goods for the market, and partially reduce the tension in questions of peasant land shortages.

The results of Witte's reforms: in 1899, the amount of gold in circulation amounted to 451.40 million rubles. The amount of paper money fell to the level of 661.80 million. The amount of gold in circulation increased three times in comparison with 1898, and 12.5 times in comparison with 1897. In 1900, the amount of gold in circulation increased by another 1.42 times. Then this growth stabilized. In general, over four years, the amount of gold in circulation has increased almost 18 times. The amount of paper cash decreased by 2.175 times.

However, not everything was so good. Contemporaries generally negatively assessed the changes in the functioning of the financial system caused by the rejection of bimetallic circulation. As a result of the transfer of the state debt to the gold ruble, the government voluntarily increased its debt by 1.5 million poods of silver (by 1.6 billion now gold rubles, or %53 of the previous volume). In 1897, the government had 3 billion rubles of debt, to pay for which with silver at the exchange rate for gold that existed since 1810, 4 spools of 21 shares, an ingot of silver weighing 4.394.531 pounds (71.984.533.75 kg) would be needed. By transferring 3 billion rubles to the new gold ruble at the new rate of silver to gold of 7 spools, the government voluntarily increased the "silver bar" to 5,976,000 poods (97,889,757.44 kg). The decrease in paper cash resulted in an acute shortage money supply in circulation among the population. In 1899, the number of banknotes per inhabitant Russian Empire was 10 rubles. (25 francs), while in Austria - 50 francs, in Germany - 112 francs, in the USA - 115 francs, in England - 136 francs, in France - 218 francs. For comparison, figures are given in 1857, when the transition from natural to monetary economy had not yet been made in Russia, the ratio was 25 rubles (62.5 francs).

And here is how the historian Tolmacheva R.P. assesses the results of the reforms. The last 25-30 years of the XIX century. characterized by the rapid development of the world economy, with a number of small cyclical crises characteristic of a new stage in the formation of the world economy - the transition to a market economy of monopolistic competition. In connection with the huge growth in commodity circulation, most countries, especially the leading ones, have switched to a gold exchange system. Gold monometallism facilitated the development of monetary relations. Therefore, if Russia planned to integrate into the world economy, it also had to move into money circulation to gold monometallism. The collapse of this system in 1914-1918. occurred on a global scale, including in Russia. The situation in the country favored the completion of the reform. The country's economy was on the rise: great successes were observed in the development of industry and in railway construction; increased capitalization of agriculture; trade balance was positive. The gold reserve increased to 645.7 million rubles. For the final formation of the national economic complex, it was necessary to strengthen the monetary system, turning it into the framework of a single national market. Even two years before the final stage of the reform, the government made efforts to weaken foreign exchange intervention, reduce the volume of speculative transactions, including those outside the country. On June 13, 1893, banks were prohibited from any assistance in playing on the ruble exchange rate. A "statistical" duty was introduced (1 kopeck per 100 rubles) on the import and export of credit notes. For their secret import and export, a fine of 25% was imposed on the smuggled amount. Especially in large volumes, speculation with Russian rubles took place on the Berlin Stock Exchange. There, in 1894, a massive (for 30 million rubles) purchase of credit notes at a low rate was carried out. In settlements, they had to be repaid at a higher rate, which was beneficial to Russia. Among the preparatory measures can be attributed to the conclusion of a customs agreement with Germany. In response to high duties on Russian grain exports, S. Yu. Witte passed a law through the State Council, according to which tariff rates were recognized as minimal only for those countries that adhered to the most favored nation treatment in relations with Russia. Germany did not adhere to such a regime, and its exports to Russia were subject to a duty at an increased rate. Germany was forced to make concessions. In 1884, a new trade agreement was concluded, i.e., Russia won the customs "war" and strengthened the ruble exchange rate. Here is the opinion of another historian.

Protectionism was inextricably linked with mercantilism. It looked as if in 1890 protectionism in foreign trade intensified especially. Customs policy remained an integral part of the system of economic measures to protect domestic entrepreneurs and create favorable conditions for them in foreign trade. In 1891, a customs duty was established on all foreign goods in the amount of 33% of their value, and some of them were subject to almost prohibitive duties. Compared with 1868, import duties on cast iron increased 10 times, on rails 4.5 times, and so on. At the same time, export duties were very low. These measures made it possible to shift the external trade balance in favor of exports. But these Russian measures were not approved by our trading partners.

From the 80s of the XIX century. Germans began to protect themselves from Russian bread by raising import duties: from 1880 to 1890. they have increased fivefold. In response, Russia imposed almost prohibitive duties on manufactured goods imported from Germany. In the first half of the 1990s, the customs war between these countries became especially tense.

In general, in the structure of Russian exports, the share of agricultural products and industrial raw materials accounted for 95% of the value of all Russian exports, and finished goods - about 5%. The degree of Russia's participation in world trade throughout the XIX century. remained virtually unchanged: the country provided 4% of world trade.

Conclusion

In the course of writing the work, it was found out that mercantilism and protectionism, in fact, were a natural product of their time, a kind of economic response to the lack of precious metals in Europe, which underlay the entire monetary system of that time. The shortage of metal led to a shortage of money, and this, in turn, hampered the development of a market economy that was gaining strength. States, in order to survive in tough competition, were ready to do anything to increase the amount of money in the country. Another way to accumulate capital in the country was the establishment of high customs duties to protect the domestic market from foreign competition.

State protectionism is a system of relations in which the state enters as the most important spokesman for the interests of the national economy. The state builds its relations with domestic economic entities, on the one hand, and external agents, on the other hand, regarding the creation and maintenance of the best conditions for national reproduction in general, ensuring the sovereignty of economic development, maintaining and improving the country's position in the world economic system.

Today, protectionism is interpreted in the broadest sense of the term: a permanently branched and differentiated system of state measures aimed at protecting long-term national economic interests.
Modern state protectionism is dictated by the objective conditions for the development of the national economy. On the one hand, for developed countries, the factor of increasing economic efficiency due to specialization within the framework of the international division of labor is the model of an open economy. On the other hand, a consequence of the open economy model may be a greater dependence on external conditions and the country's vulnerability. Therefore, the high efficiency and dynamism of the economy of a safe and stable country require a combination of integration processes in the world economy with the stability and independence of the country in international competition.

The main disadvantage of the mercantilist policy of the Russian state is that the consciousness of the Russian entrepreneur turned out to be deformed for centuries. Being under the constant guardianship of the state, fully included in the state economy, based on serf relations, merchants and industrialists could not realize their social status and their class identity. They did not have a class corporate consciousness. If in the states of Europe the bourgeoisie not only realized its place in the system of social relations, but also openly declared its claims to the nobility and the royal court, then in Russia this was impossible. The cherished dream of a Russian merchant and industrialist was to accumulate funds and buy for any money title of nobility, thus joining the upper Russian class. The most successful of them managed to realize their dream and after one or two generations turned into hereditary nobles, completely dissolving in the "noble" class and trying to forget about their "low" origin.

Summing up, we can say that the policy of protectionism and mercantilism in the history of Russia turned out to be quite effective. Despite the harsh measures of forced labor, the inconsistency of the actions of the rulers, the implementation of this policy in all periods of history brought the desired result, namely the accumulation of capital within the country.

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Mercantilism is the first independent direction of economic thought, which during the XV-XVII centuries. became dominant in economics And practice European countries. Term mercantilism comes from the Italian "mercante" - merchant, merchant and means that the main the object of attention of mercantilism is trade and its role in creating the wealth of the country. The emergence and content of the concept of mercantilism was associated with significant changes that took place in this era in the economic, political, and scientific life of the countries of Western Europe.

Characteristics of the era. The economy of European states of the XV-XVII centuries. characterized as a period primitive capital formation. This term was introduced into scientific circulation by A. Smith and understood by it the creation of the prerequisites for the capitalist mode of production. First of all, we are talking about the formation of the labor market and capital. In England, the process of enclosing and ousting peasants from the agrarian sector is developing, who, having lost their land plots, went to the city, creating cheap labor market necessary for the development of capitalist entrepreneurship. The urban economy, manufacturing, trade developed rapidly, which required a significant amount of money.

Opportunities for capitalist entrepreneurship are constrained by scarcity Money(precious metals). Main source of capital increase in this era becomes international trade. The great geographical discoveries, the development of new territories and the formation of colonies led to the rapid development of trade, increased trade turnover and trade profits, which created unusually favorable opportunities for accumulation of money capital in European countries and later its productive use. The richest in the XVI-XVII centuries. became those countries that led an active colonial policy and foreign trade: Portugal, Spain, then France, Holland, England.

Exactly sphere of circulation during this period became the predominant activity of capital, And trade was the main source of increasing wealth, therefore, it has become the main object of study and generalization of the phenomena of economic life.

The political system is changing - in the 15th century, centralized states with absolute monarchies are established in almost all European countries. State in need of significant funds begins to play an active role in the economy, speaking first on the side of commercial and then industrial capital.

Important changes are also taking place in scientific life. The struggle for the liberation of science from the influence of theology begins. Developing experimental the science. It gives the first practical results, which give rise to great optimism regarding ability of the human mind to control the world. Formed empirical method analysis based not on abstract reasoning, but on experience. In particular, the English philosopher Francis Bacon (1561-1626) made a great contribution to the development of the new method. In general, science and thinking acquire pragmatic(practical) character, they abandon the study of abstract categories and turn to everyday problems.

Thus, the accumulation of capital through the development of foreign trade, the implementation economic functions government, the practical direction in science are becoming characteristic features of this era and are reflected in mercantilism belief system .

Mercantilism becomes theoretical concept this time. An extensive economic literature arose that dealt with the problem of wealth and its increase through foreign trade and, in accordance with the successes of experimental science, set as its goal determination of the nature and objectives of the economic policy of the state under these conditions.

The main representatives of mercantilism were: in Italy - Gabriel Scarufi (1519-1584), Antonio Serra (late 16th-n. 17th centuries), Bernardo Davanzati (1529-1606); in England - William Stafford (1554-1612), Thomas Maine (1571-1641), Dudley North (1641-1691); in France - Jean Bodin (1530-1596), Antoine de Montchretien (1575-1621), Jean Baptiste Colbert (1619-1683).

1) the ideologists of mercantilism are convinced that it is money- gold, silver, treasures of any kind are economic form of public wealth ; at the same time, they identify the wealth of the nation with the wealth of the state treasury; they saw the way of enrichment as the accumulation in the country of precious metals - gold and silver;

2) main source of wealth , according to the mercantilists, is foreign trade, which contributes to the flow of gold and silver into the country (and into the state treasury); they recommend buying cheaper and selling more expensive and are in favor of the country's participation in foreign trade;

3) mercantilists justify the need to regulate foreign trade, conduct a state protectionist policies , on the effectiveness of which the country's success in foreign trade and the growth of the country's monetary wealth depend.

Subject and method in the theory of mercantilism. Object of study mercantilism is common good(identified with the wealth of the state treasury), and not the good of the individual. It was the mercantilists who introduced the concept of " national wealth ". The individualization of the concept of "wealth" will occur during the period of the emergence of classical economic theory. The main task, which the representatives of mercantilism set themselves, is the search for means of enriching the nation. realizing wealth as the presence of money in the country, mercantilists considered its growth as a result of exchange, not production. Profit is a product of exchange and is explained by the sale of goods above its value. Mercantilists believed that within the country profit (increase in wealth) does not arise, it appears in the commodity exchange between countries.

Since foreign trade was considered the main source of enrichment, it was sphere of circulation is the main subject analysis. The main areas of research concerned public policy on the organization of foreign and domestic trade, the regulation of exchange rates and cash flows, the organization of credit. The sphere of production was also given attention, but only due to the fact that this sphere is the basis for the development of effective trade.

Research method. Since the object of study is universal, national wealth, mercantilism is characterized by macroeconomic approach to the analysis of economic phenomena, that is, all problems are considered on macro level, at the level of the national economy, and not an individual private economy.

The most important feature of the mercantilism method is empirical direction of research. This is manifested, on the one hand, in the rejection of the analysis of abstract concepts (such as, for example, “fair price”), on the other hand, in the formulation and solution of purely practical issues closely related to current economic policy. In this regard, the nature of the conclusions changes: they lose their normative character, characteristic of the teachings of the canonists, and acquire a purely pragmatic direction associated with solving the problem of enriching the nation.

This feature of mercantilism is reflected in its duality . Mercantilism is direction of economic science and at the same time it direction of economic policy. Theoretical concept mercantilism comes from the premise that the welfare of the country depends on the economic policy of the government, elaborated in accordance with the existing problems. Therefore, the recommendations of the mercantilists contain many specific measures, instructions, and instructions. Economic policy mercantilism includes protectionist government measures aimed at increase the country's wealth: export promotion, import restriction, development of domestic industrial production through the import of cheap raw materials, state financing of production, etc.

Protectionist policy. Mercantilists assign to the state active role in economics and consider protectionist policy government an important condition for the growth of the nation's wealth. They first identified managerial functions of the state, which was obliged by means of protectionist measures increase the competitiveness of their country in foreign trade. Methods of protectionism changed: from purely administrative aimed at keeping money in the country, at the first stage of mercantilism to support export industry and the creation of state-owned manufactories at the second stage.

This approach follows logically from the general views of the mercantilists. Firstly, he is a consequence of the macroeconomic method inherent in mercantilism. Mercantilists explore the issues of "national wealth", which cannot be the result of the actions of individual individuals, but is the result of a targeted policy of the state.

Secondly, mercantilism not typical well-defined idea of objectivity of economic laws. Based on the achievements of experimental science, mercantilism great importance attaches strong-willed purposeful actions of people and recognizes the possibility of changing the world around under the influence of the active intervention of the state. In particular, it has been argued that the mere availability of natural resources and precious metals does not ensure the prosperity of a nation. The main thing is the ruler's ability to profit from this. Only on late stage the first ideas about the self-regulation of the economic system begin to form. Understanding arises economic law, irremovable by any human will. This idea is most clearly reflected in the work of D. North "On the Coin", as well as in the treatises of T. Maine, where he points out the detrimental effect of state regulation of exchange rates.

In accordance with the characteristics of the subject and method of mercantilism, economics receives a new name - " political Economy ". It appeared with the publication of A. de Montchretien's book "Treatise on Political Economy" in 1615. The term "political economy" (polis - state, oikos - economy, nomos - law) - means that this is the science of the laws of development public,state economy. The very name of science emphasizes the fact that the economy is not an independent field of activity, its development is connected with the policy of the state, and the state acts as the most important subject of the economy.

Mercantilists made an attempt to explore causal links between individual economic phenomena. However, in the analysis of certain categories of economic science, they stopped at external visibility of phenomena . This was explained by the fact that they investigated only the process of circulation of commercial capital, lying on the surface, without turning to the analysis of the production process. Therefore, mercantilism did not become a real science due to its historical limitations: this theory contained only an analysis of the sphere of exchange, circulation. Whereas real science investigates the essence of phenomena and therefore passes from the analysis of the circulation of capital to the analysis of production. Mercantilist views form the prehistory of classical political economy.

Activated in the plan international relations, international economic organizations develop, the first large organizations appear, like the East India Trading Company. All this prompted the economists of that era to create a system of rules and doctrines, expressed in the policy of mercantilism, the main idea of which was the active participation in the economic activities of the country and its inhabitants in order to accumulate money, gold and silver.

The concept of mercantilism is closely related to the concept of protectionism, a political doctrine according to which economic ties with other countries are limited, capital flight and the consumption of foreign goods are prohibited.

Principles of the policy of mercantilism

In such Europe as England, France, Germany and Austria, in the XV-XVI centuries. the policy of mercantilism was reduced to the accumulation of funds in the country by any means. These goals were served by restrictions on the import of foreign goods, prohibitions on the export of gold and silver from the country, a ban on the purchase of foreign products at the expense of income received from the sale of goods abroad, etc. Over time, these settings were modified and changed, and from the end of the 16th century to the middle of the 19th century, the policy of mercantilism gradually moved away from severe restrictions on the export of valuable metals.

Late mercantilism

TO late XIX century, mercantilism has already been accepted as the main economic doctrine by all the strongest European powers. The artificial intervention of the authorities in economic life led not only to positive economic consequences (an increase in the trade balance, GDP growth, an improvement in the welfare of the population), but also to the development of technological support for production, an increase in the birth rate, a decrease in social tension and an improvement in the quality of life of the population. According to economic historians such as Immanuel Wallerstein and Charles Wilson, the technological revolution in England in the 19th century would not have occurred without the practical application of the principles of mercantilism.

Pursuing a policy of mercantilism will be difficult if the country lacks natural resources. This means the lack of developed production, in connection with which the accumulation of capital becomes problematic.

Criticism of mercantilism

Evaluation of the country's economic well-being only from the point of view of the availability of funds in it is not entirely correct. Adam Smith, one of the greatest economists of the era, wrote that a country's large gold and money reserves do not economic development due influence without a developed supply and demand in the market of goods and services, as well as without a developed fixed capital. In other words, it is not the very presence of money and precious metals in the state treasury that is important, but their competent use for the benefit of the development of the market, production, demand and consumption.