Commercial change also depended on ships built for the North Atlantic. Portuguese and Spanish vessels belong to this Atlantic tradition because they were designed for the ocean, in contrast with Mediterranean-built ships. Their range made direct voyages possible where relay systems had moved goods from port A to B, B to C, and C to D through different traders. A ship sailing from source to final market could buy near the source price and sell near the destination price. Bypassing several stages concentrated profit in the hands of the direct carrier.
Notable Point · 14:41-16:08
Atlantic ships and direct long-distance trade
Atlantic-capable ships could connect distant markets directly and capture margins that relay trading distributed among several merchants.