Page 15 - All About History - Issue 33-15

Trade

Opening of the
Fuelled with coal, the Watt
steam engine became Panama Canal
a stalwart during the PANAMA 15 AUGUST 1914
Industrial Revolution
Before the Panama Canal was
built, ships sailing between
the ports of New York and San
Francisco had to undertake a
12,000-mile journey, which
would take them about 67 days
to complete. Once the canal
was opened after 33 years of
construction, roughly 8,000
miles were eliminated from
the trip. This helped increase
THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION WORLDWIDE 1760 the number of ships making
Although its exact date is still hotly contested, the Industrial Revolution the journey to San Francisco
isknowntohavebroughtabouthugeimprovementsinagriculture, exponentially, massively
transport, communications and (of course) industry. It was spearheaded boosting trade in the area by
by various scientific breakthroughs and technological innovations that saving time and money. Today,
changed society forever. This helped rapidly increase iron and coal more than 280 million tons
production, which fuelled economic growth in more ways than one. of cargo passes through the
Factorieswereabletoboosttheirproduction,whilenewtraderoutes canal each year, which is set
Enormous ships are able to pass
werequicklyputinplaceasroads,railwaysandcanalsgrewinnumber. through the canal, benefitting from a to increase once the current
ThiswashugelysignificantintheUK,helpingitamassaworldwide much shorter journey than without it renovations are complete.
trading empire covering a fifth of the globe by 1914.

O Income Tax is O First British O Bretton Woods O Shipping
introduced in the UK train runs system introduced containers
At the suggestion of Thefirsttrainruns Planned since 1944, invented
DrBeeke,theDeanof between London this system provides An American named
Bristol, Prime Minister and Birmingham an international Malcolm McLean
William Pitt the on the railway economic structure to invents the shipping
Younger introduces designed by Robert help prevent further container, drastically
IncomeTaxtopayfor Stephenson, wars and depressions, reducingthecostof
weapons and other After only three years, helping to transport andalsoaimstostop transporting goods Today, the average container
equipment for the Pitt’s Income Tax was goodsfromthe national trade barriers. internationally. ship carries about 3,500
French Revolutionary abolished by his successor, capital. 1837 Many of the early trains were 1946 1956 containers on each voyage
War. 1799 Henry Addington builtinamanufacturing
plantinCamden
1600 1800 1850 1900 1950 2000 2015

O Gold found in O Jefferson embargoes O The Cobden-Chevalier O US introduces paper money O The Euro becomes available
Brazil US exports Treaty is finalised After discontinuing Demand On this day, the Euro becomes
As soon as gold is Thomas Jefferson This represents the first Notes, which had been used to the sole legal tender in 12 EU
discovered in this decidestoembargoall international trade agreement, finance the civil war, Congress member countries, leaving
large South American USexportsinanattempt andissignedbetweenFrance issues Legal Tender Notes, currencies that had been
country, the first great to damage the economy and the United Kingdom. It which are the first notes to be established for hundreds of
American gold rush is of France and Britain. sparks a number of similar used nationally as legal tender. years worthless.
launched. 1807 agreements between other 25 February 1862 These notes were known as 1 January 2002
1693 European countries. 1860 ‘greenbacks’, a name they inherited
from the earlier green Demand Notes

Wall Street Crash World Trade Organisation
USA 24 OCTOBER 1929 is created SWITZERLAND 1 JANUARY 1995
On this day in 1929, the United States Although the World Trade Organisation (WTO)
suffered the most devastating stock wasn’t established until 1995, its trading system
market crash in its history. It plunged the has existed since the 1940s. Put simply, the WTO
world’s economy into the Great Depression, monitors the rules of trade between nations
heavily affecting all Western industrialised at a global level. It aims to liberalise trade and
countries. It brought a period of economic help governments negotiate an agreement that
wealth known as the roaring twenties is fair for both countries. Another role of the
to an abrupt end. The United States had WTO is to maintain trade barriers, which can be
essentially manufactured more goods important when there is risk of disease spreading
than they required, and there was too or illegal items being smuggled across borders.
much being risked on the stock market by By ensuring that trade flows as freely as possible,
When Wall Street crashed, the middle class. It left 13 million people Pictured here in the Palace of the WTO helps small economies to grow and
hundreds of workers poured unemployed, many of whom went hungry. Nations in Geneva, the WTO now established economies to remain healthy. © Thinkstock
out onto the street in protest has over 160 member states
15