The first immigrants came to America looking for gold and for a new passage to the West Indies. The natives were seen as problem and were dealt with very harshly by the first immigrants, the Spaniards.
Exporting economies of primary products of temperate climate:
The first group (export economies of primary products of temperate climate) belong to Argentina and Uruguay, since they have large areas of land suitable for agricultural production.
Basically exports consisted of hides, wool, wheat and frozen meat.
Export economies of primary products of tropical climate:
The second group of exporting countries is made up of those that are dedicated to tropical agricultural products and that, as a whole, represent the majority of the Latin American population. In this group are included: Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, those of Central America, those of the Caribbean, as well as certain areas of Mexico and Venezuela.
Much of the production of two of the basic items of this group, such as sugar and tobacco, had colonial characteristics until the end of the 19th century. However, the appearance of a considerable demand for coffee and cocoa from the mid-nineteenth century allowed Brazil, Colombia, Central America, Venezuela and Ecuador to play a very dynamic role in their integration into international trade.
