Britain, as well as other European countries, began the opium trade to solve their persistent trade imbalance with China. There was great interest in Europe for Chinese goods, but limited demand in China for Europe’s manufactured products. This meant that Europeans had to spend their gold or silver. The opium trade generated a constant demand, solving the trade imbalance.
In general, Britain sought to correct its balance of trade with China by decrease its exports and increasing Chinese imports. This angered many merchants in Britain.
