The economy of the Viajaynagar empire was essentially unchanged from that of the Chola period. Blacksmiths and carpenters were now in great demand and hence occupied a higher social scale. Meanwhile the guilds continued to have a considerable influence on the economy. The guilds themselves were hierarchical with artists guilds working under merchant guilds, who were now powerful distributors who could influence the functioning of the artists guilds considerably. The economic power of the merchant guilds was considerable and they began commanding political influence as well. Any taxation policy would first have to be cleared with the guild leaders, who were also to some extent representatives of public opinion. The system of credit was controlled by temples who lent money to those who required it and often invested in various development project. Those who could not pay back their dues would have their land taken over by the temple. The temple was often the single largest land owner and consumer of a village, the hub of village economic activity, providing various employment opportunities. Their economic influence forged a closer link between them and the monarchy.
Trade continued to remain an important part of the economy, with both foreign and domestic trade doing extremely well. In fact so important was trade to the economy, and consequently to the stability of the empire, that one of the major concerns of all kings was to control as much of the trade as possible. The constant competition amongst the kingdoms led to many incentives given to early European traders who began establishing themselves in the country. They were charged lower duties and provided various facilities. The general prevailing customs duties at that time were around 2.5% to about 5%. Certain import goods were subjected to higher duties to discourage their import so as to boost the local industries in these sectors. The main imports were gold, silver, elephants, horses, spices and certain types of textiles. The main exports were rice, sugar, coconut, millet, dyes, sandalwood, teak, pepper, cloves and cotton textiles. However the south was no longer the facilitator of Asian-European trade, with the Portuguese and Arabs controlling most of this trade. Sea trade was active with ships visiting Indian ports regularly. The Indian shipping industry did not command as much of a influence in trade as it once did, with countries like China now leading with some of the finest and most reliable vessels.
The economy of the Viajaynagar empire was essentially unchanged from that of the Chola period. Blacksmiths and carpenters were now in great demand and hence occupied a higher social scale. Meanwhile the guilds continued to have a considerable influence on the economy. The guilds themselves were hierarchical with artists guilds working under merchant guilds, who were now powerful distributors who could influence the functioning of the artists guilds considerably. The economic power of the merchant guilds was considerable and they began commanding political influence as well. Any taxation policy would first have to be cleared with the guild leaders, who were also to some extent representatives of public opinion. The system of credit was controlled by temples who lent money to those who required it and often invested in various development project. Those who could not pay back their dues would have their land taken over by the temple. The temple was often the single largest land owner and consumer of a village, the hub of village economic activity, providing various employment opportunities. Their economic influence forged a closer link between them and the monarchy.
Trade continued to remain an important part of the economy, with both foreign and domestic trade doing extremely well. In fact so important was trade to the economy, and consequently to the stability of the empire, that one of the major concerns of all kings was to control as much of the trade as possible. The constant competition amongst the kingdoms led to many incentives given to early European traders who began establishing themselves in the country. They were charged lower duties and provided various facilities. The general prevailing customs duties at that time were around 2.5% to about 5%. Certain import goods were subjected to higher duties to discourage their import so as to boost the local industries in these sectors. The main imports were gold, silver, elephants, horses, spices and certain types of textiles. The main exports were rice, sugar, coconut, millet, dyes, sandalwood, teak, pepper, cloves and cotton textiles. However the south was no longer the facilitator of Asian-European trade, with the Portuguese and Arabs controlling most of this trade. Sea trade was active with ships visiting Indian ports regularly. The Indian shipping industry did not command as much of a influence in trade as it once did, with countries like China now leading with some of the finest and most reliable vessels.
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