Entrepôt trade refers to the practice of re-exporting goods with or without processing or re-packaging them again. This type of trade occurs at duty-free ports, where these goods do not have additional import or export duties, or taxes, placed upon them. These ports were particularly important during the period of mercantilism in the Middle Ages and shortly afterward, when they were used to ship goods between Europe and its colonies and outposts in Asia and the Middle East. In mercantilism, a country's government was still the main regulator of the economy, and certain cities were designated as staple ports (which required merchants to unload their goods from ships at that port and trade them within a few days). Traders often did not want to travel along the entire trade route to sell their goods, so they deposited them in entrepôts. Important entrepôt ports included Amsterdam, Venice, Hong Kong, Macao, and Dubai.
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