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Thomas Mun

1911 Encyclopedia Britannica

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THOMAS MUN (1571-1641), English writer on economics, was the third son of John Mun, mercer, of London. He began by engaging in Mediterranean trade, and afterwards settled down in London, amassing a large fortune. He was a member of the committee of the East India Company and of the standing commission on trade appointed in 1622. In 1621 Mun published A Discourse of Trade from England unto the East Indies. But it is by his England's Treasure by Forraign Trade that he is remembered in his history of economics. Although written possibly about 1630, it was not given to the public until 1664, when it was "published for the Common good by his son John," and dedicated to Thomas, earl of Southampton, lord high treasurer. In it we find for the first time a clear statement of the theory of the balance of trade.