Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v2.c13.s3.t2.120

v2.c13.s3.t2.120

Although its trading links with China were not as extensive as those of Calcutta (Kolkata) and Bombay (Mumbai), Madras was also one of the ports from which trade with China and Southeast Asia was carried on from the seventeenth century. Binny & Co was one of the early firms trading with China from Madras. A letter from the British agency house at Canton, Magniac & Co., to Binny & Co dated December 31, 1830 mentions that “the stock of Madras cotton here now is large”. It further says that “Howqua, the senior Hong merchant, is the only holder and having the market under his command, is realising a profit on his recent purchases from the company, which were made at 8.8 Taels per picul. Good Tinnively cotton would always be safe if purchased on terms that would not exceed nine Taels per picul but should not be bought if the cost and charges exceed 10 Taels.” There is also a reference to the existence of a ‘China Bazar’ along the northern walls of Fort St George in records dating back to 1758. It is presumed that Chinese porcelain was sold in this bazar.