Dubbed the age of High Imperialism, the era represented the last major effort by world powers to acquire territories:

Britain extending its holdings in Burma, Malaysia, and Africa, France consolidating its Indo-Chinese Empire and its foothold in Madagascar, and Germany carving out an empire in Africa. The Age of High Imperialism also included the United States, which had acquired the Philippines and Hawaii after its war with Spain.

The researchers, Kris Mitchener of Santa Clara University and Marc Weidenmier of Claremont McKenna College, find that belonging to an empire more than doubled trade flows thanks to the benefits of lower transaction costs, trading agreements, currency unions, and sharing a common language.

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