What was the economic advantage to direct rule over colonies?

the effect of the ming leaders banning ships with more than two masts was that there was no further construction of ships masts, because there was a surplus. ming emperors disallowed foreign exploration

no options provided, here,but the answer to this question is often: a historian cites a japanese newspaper article published a year after the end of world war ii in order to draw conclusions about the effect of the war on the japanese economy.

clearly from the answer, the historian alludes to historical sources,and records to aid in analyzing and drawing conclusion on the effect of the war on the economy of japan.