Pliny the Elder complained about the drain of specie (money in coin) to India:   I've recently enjoyed reading the book by Raoul McLaughlin "The Roman Empire and the Indian Ocean." I was impressed by the amount interaction between Romans and residents living in the India region. "These contacts brought Roman merchant ships into the Bay of Bengal and along trade routes that led to Burma, Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam and ultimately the Han Empire of ancient China." Greek geographer