Merchants from China, India, and Southeast Asia could trade with those from Arabia and East Africa via the Indian Ocean Europe accessed goods from Asia and the Muslim world via the Mediterranean Sea Thanks to these expanded networks, foreign merchants set up communities in cities along trade routes, thereby facilitating greater cultural exchange Sec3 - Trade Networks of Asia and Africa (NTG) Trade brought prosperity to a number of cities along the east coast of Africa ! _____, the chief trading center, attracted merchant ships from as far away as China ! They exchanged cloth, pottery, and manufactured goods, as well as gold, ivory, and furs. ! An active slave trade also developed between East Africa and Asia across the