This is incorrect. Portuguese and Lisbon based traders more generally linked Mediterranean and North Sea ports. The transit between Ghent/Antwerp, Lisbon and Ba

This is incorrect. Portuguese and Lisbon based traders more generally linked Mediterranean and North Sea ports. The transit between Ghent/Antwerp, Lisbon and Barcelona, Pisa, Genoa and Venice was a mainstay of late middle ages European trade. The run around Africa was massively more risky than this status quo and average profits did not increase significantly. The main change thereafter was the market capture.