Arabia's geographical location is amidst the land trade routes coming from Europe, Africa and Asia. Furthermore, the southern part of Arabia facing the Indian Sea is midway the Asian-African maritime trade routes. As Arabian towns and seaports served as a stage point along these highly important trade routes, Arabian authorities charged in-transit merchants tariffs (taxes on trade) and Arab local merchants dealt in goods from European, Asian and African goods, and sometimes they served as middleman for merchants who wished to cut their trips short.