Final answer:
The cause of European interest in Asian goods was due to a desire for luxury goods, the high cost of overland trade routes, economic competition which included the need for new markets and resources, and geopolitical motivations like the spread of Christianity.
Step-by-step explanation:
The European interest in goods from Asia was primarily driven by a combination of factors: the desire for luxury goods, the need for alternative routes due to economic competition among European nations, and the expensive overland routes through the Middle East that were subject to taxes by the Ottoman Empire.
Europeans sought exotic items like silk, tea, and spices which could only be acquired through trade with Eastern civilizations. However, these luxury goods were outrageously expensive due to the long and costly overland routes. European nations also competed economically, fostering a necessity to find shorter, more profitable trade routes. The competition for trade dominance and new trade routes was intensified by imperial expansions and the industrial revolution, which created excess production that European markets alone could not absorb, driving the need to find new markets and sources of raw materials.
Another motivation driving exploration was the geopolitical and ideological goal of spreading Christianity, often pitted against the influence of Islam, as observed during the periods of Crusades and later during periods of imperialism. Additionally, a significant motive behind nineteenth-century imperialism, which saw European powers expanding into Africa and Asia, was the acquisition of natural resources to fuel European industries and satisfy the appetites of the upper classes for luxury materials like gold and diamonds.