# Mercantile System ## Definition An economic doctrine that seeks to enrich the nation by promoting exports and restricting imports, based on the belief that national wealth consists of accumulated precious metals and that a favourable balance of trade is essential for prosperity. ## Source Chapter Book IV, Chapter 5 ## Context Smith presents the mercantile system as the intellectual framework that justifies bounties and other trade restrictions. He systematically criticizes its core assumptions about wealth creation and trade balance. ## Economic Domain General Theory ---