The boom that Amsterdam enjoyed around the mid-sixteenth century was rooted to a large extent in the favourable economic development of the Low Countries in general and the commercial vitality of Antwerp in particular. Antwerp was by far the most important trading centre in the Low Countries at that time. In the period between February and September 1545, the city accounted for almost 75 per cent of registered exports from the Habsburg Netherlands. Amsterdam, the second trading city, trailed far behind with little more than 6 per cent of total exports. This did not mean that Amsterdam's trade was insignificant, though—far from it. The various port and trading cities played specific roles within the larger whole of the Low Countries, and Amsterdam was the place that maintained the most intensive contact with northern and northeastern Europe. These regions were the source of imports of wood, hemp, tar and many other raw materials for industry as well as much of the grain that, when made into bread and beer, was essential for sustaining the population. High-quality industrial products from the Low Countries, large quantities of salt and herring, and spices that were brought to the Low Countries via Portugal and Italy were shipped in the opposite direction.

With the outbreak of the Dutch Revolt against Spanish rule, the Dutch economy was disrupted for a long period, and this also had negative consequences for Amsterdam.