Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v1.c5.s3.t10.1

v1.c5.s3.t10.1

Jamsetjee Jejeebhoy (1783-1859) dominated Bombay's trade with China in the first half of the 19^th century CE. An orphan from the small town of Navsari in Gujarat, he came to Bombay (Mumbai) as a youth to assist in his uncle's bottle-selling business. Sensing the boom in the export trade in raw cotton to China, Jamsetjee was quick to seize the opportunity. He made several trips to China in quick succession in the first decade of the 19^th century CE and thereby established the foundations of a flourishing business. It was in the course of one of his voyages that he became acquainted with William Jardine who later co-founded the well-known China coast firm Jardine Matheson & Co.