Ann Coenen, Ph.D. (2013, University of Antwerp), is a lecturer at Utrecht University. Her previous and ongoing research focuses on trade, growth and the development of markets.

• Preface ... ixList of Map, Charts and Tables ... xiList of Abbreviations ... xvGlossary ... xviIntroduction ... 1Part 1 Theoretical Background1 International Trade and Economic Development ... 112 The Austrian Netherlands in the Second Half of the Eighteenth Century: A Cautious Recovery ... 173 International Trade by a Commercially ‘Passive’ Participant ... 224 Sources for the History of Eighteenth-Century International Trade ... 271 The Habsburg Customs Statistics: Magnum Opus of the Customs Administration ... 272 The Tariff Books: A Look Behind the Curtain of the Trade Policy ... 333 The Large Legacy of the Bureau de la régie ... 36Part 2 International Trade in the Austrian Netherlands: An Assessment of Its Value5 The Balance of Trade ... 411 State of the Art ... 422 Approach ... 443 Results ... 464 What Did It Mean? ... 575 The Pitfalls of the Balance of Trade ... 606 Revealed Comparative Advantages Through International Trade Contributions ... 617 Conclusion ... 65Part 3 International Trade in the Austrian Netherlands, a Study of Five Key Sectors6 The Salt Trade: The Flavour of Progress ... 691 “The salt of life” ... 692 The Salt Sector in the Austrian Netherlands ... 703 The Salt Flows ... 824 Contradicting Histories? ... 905 Conclusion ... 937 The Textile Trade: A Tradition in Decay? ... 951 The Eighteenth-Century Textile Sector ... 952 The Economic Weight of the Textile Branches ... 973 A Textile Landscape in Evolution ... 1064 Explaining the Shifts Within the Textile Sector ... 1535 The Impact of Trade on Different Stakeholders ... 1636 Conclusion ... 1698 The Trade in Colonial Commodities: Introducing the Exotic ... 1731 The Irresistible Lure of Exotic Produce ... 1752 Incorporating the New ... 1853 Market Capacity or Smart Policy? ...1954 Conclusion ... 1989 The Coal Trade: A Motor for Development? ... 1991 “The Basis, as Always, was Coal” ... 1992 The Coal Sector: In Britain’s Shadow? ... 2023 International Trade: Source de prospérité or Paralysing Influence? ... 2044 The Coal Flows ... 2145 Effects of the Coal Trade on the Habsburg Economy ... 2236 Parallels Between the Salt and the Coal Sector ... 2287 Conclusion ... 23010 To Trade or Not to Trade? The Grain Trade ... 2321 Grains in the Eighteenth-Century Austrian Netherlands ... 2342 Changing Policies: Fickleness or Decisiveness? ... 2363 The International Grain Trade: Capricious Flows ... 2454 Conclusion ... 251Part 4 The Development of Transit Trade as theTrade Policy’s Litmus Test11 Transit Trade ... 255Conclusion ... 271Appendices ... 277Bibliography ... 298Index ... 316