In the mean time, one of the principal effects of those discoveries has been, to raise the mercantile system to a degree of splendour and glory which it could never otherwise have attained to. It is the object of that system to enrich a great nation, rather by trade and manufactures than by the improvement and cultivation of land, rather by the industry of the towns than by that of the country. . . .Two new worlds have been opened to their industry, each of them much greater and more extensive than the old one, and the market of one of them growing still greater and greater every day. –Adam Smith
An Inquiry Into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations

An economic consequence of the material wealth returned to Europe due to colonization and exploration was

increased upward mobility for lower-class citizens.
a greater reliance on industry rather than agriculture.
increased government spending on public works initiatives.
high unemployment, as wealth shifted from goods production to the financial sector.