From the excerpt the option that most clearly reflects the role of mercantilism in British colonies was that the colonies lacked the political influence to shape economic policies in Britain to their advantage.
Mercantilism is an economic practice that the British used to control the Colonies. They restricted them on what they could produce, the countries they could trade with.
Using mercantilism they put the colonies in a lot of distress. They lacked the power to control their exports and their imports.
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