Editing Malacca Sultanate (section)

==Trade==
[[File:TinIngotofMalacca001.jpg|thumb|200px|Malacca's [[tin ingot]], photo taken from [[National History Museum (Malaysia)|National History Museum]] of [[Kuala Lumpur]].]]
Malacca developed from a small settlement to a cosmopolitan [[Entrepôt]] within the span of a century. This rapid progression was attributable to several factors, key among which were its strategic location along one of the world's most important shipping lanes, the Strait of Malacca and the increasing demand for commodities from both the East and the West. Ships from the East bearing goods from China, the [[Ryukyu Islands]], [[Java]] and the [[Maluku Islands]] would sail in by the [[northeast monsoon]] from December to January, while ships leaving for ports along Indian coastline, the [[Red Sea]] and [[East Africa]] would sail with the [[southwest monsoon]].<ref name="Ahmad Sarji 2011 114"/>

There were other ports along the [[Strait of Malacca]] such as [[Kedah]] in the peninsula and [[Jambi]] and [[Palembang]] in Sumatra, yet none of them came close to challenging Malacca's success as a centre of international trade. Malacca had an edge over these ports because its rulers created an environment that was safe and conducive for business. Chinese records of the mid-15th century stated that Malacca flourished as a centre for trade on account of its effective security measures. It also had a well-equipped and well-managed port. Among the facilities provided for merchants were [[warehouse]]s, where they could safely house their goods as they awaited favourable trade winds, as well as elephants for transporting goods to the warehouses. To administer the cosmopolitan marketplace, the traders were grouped according to region and placed under one of four [[shahbandar]]s.<ref name="Ahmad Sarji 2011 114"/>

Malacca had few domestic products with which to trade. It produced small amounts of [[tin]] and [[gold]] as well as [[dried fish]], yet even the [[salt]] for preserving the fish had to be sourced from elsewhere in the region. Basic goods, including [[vegetable]]s, [[cattle]] and [[fish]], were supplied by Malacca's trading partners. [[Rice]], mainly for local consumption, was imported. Much of the mercantile activity in Malacca, therefore, relied on the flow of goods from other parts of the region. Among Malacca's most crucial functions was its role as both a collection centre for [[clove]]s, [[nutmeg]] and [[Mace (spice)|mace]] from the Maluku Islands and a redistribution centre for [[cotton]] textiles from ports in [[Gujarat]], the [[Coromandel Coast]], [[Malabar Coast]] and [[Bengal]]. Other goods traded in Malacca included [[porcelain]], [[silk]] and [[iron]] from China and natural products of the Malay Archipelago, such as [[camphor]], [[sandalwood]], [[spices]], fish, [[fish roe]] and [[seaweed]]. From the coastal regions on both sides of Straint of Malacca came forest products; [[rattan]], [[resin]], [[root]]s and [[wax]], and some gold and tin. These goods were then shipped to ports west of Malacca especially [[Gujarat]].<ref name="Ahmad Sarji 2011 114"/>

[[Tin ingot]]s were a trading currency unique to Malacca. Cast in the shape of a peck, each block weighs just over one pound. Ten blocks made up one unit called a "small bundle", and 40 blocks made up one "large bundle". Gold and silver coins were also issued by Malacca as a trading currency within the sultanate.{{Citation needed|date=April 2024}}