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The quality of slave trade investment in eighteenth century France

Author

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  • Guillaume Daudin

    (OFCE)

Abstract

This paper studies the characteristics of investment in slave trade and associated trades in France during the eighteenth century. The study of the accounts of an investor from Nantes, Bertrand de Cœuvre, shows that his investment compared favourably with domestic alternatives. It was more liquid, shorter and more profitable than private notarized credit without being more risky. It was less risky and had a shorter duration than government debt, without being less liquid or less profitable. The study of investments in a total of 238 ventures from Nantes, Marseilles, Rouen, Bordeaux, La Rochelle and Saint-Malo confirms that superiority from the 1710s to the 1780s. The fact that domestic investors and their capital were attracted to the centres of intercontinental trade investment during the period corroborates this conclusion.

Suggested Citation

  • Guillaume Daudin, 2002. "The quality of slave trade investment in eighteenth century France," Documents de Travail de l'OFCE 2002-06, Observatoire Francais des Conjonctures Economiques (OFCE).
    • Handle: RePEc:fce:doctra:0206
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    File URL: http://www.ofce.sciences-po.fr/pdf/dtravail/wp2002-06.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Guillaume Daudin, 2003. "Do Frontiers give of do frontiers take ? The case of intercontinental trade in France at the end of the Ancien Régime," Documents de Travail de l'OFCE 2003-03, Observatoire Francais des Conjonctures Economiques (OFCE).

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    JEL classification:

    • F1 - International Economics - - Trade
    • N7 - Economic History - - Economic History: Transport, International and Domestic Trade, Energy, and Other Services
    • N8 - Economic History - - Micro-Business History

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