By the early 1770s, colonists had organized several nonimportation agreements and other boycotts of British goods, including tea. Some Americans also smuggled, or illegally imported, cheaper tea. These actions hurt the business of the British East India C

Based on the description of the Tea Act and its consequences, the groups can be sorted as follows: ### Gained Economically: 1. **British East India Company** - By allowing the company to sell tea directly to American customers and reducing their taxes, the Tea Act helped to improve their sales and profitability. 2. **British Government** - The government benefited from increased revenue from the British East India Company and reinforced their control over trade with the American colonies. ### Lost Economically: 1. **American Merchants** - The Tea Act undercut American merchants who were previously selling tea, as it made legally imported tea cheaper than smuggled tea. 2. **Smugglers** - Those engaged in the illegal importation of cheaper tea would also be negatively impacted, as the lower prices of legally imported tea would reduce their market. This categorization reflects the economic implications of the Tea Act for these different groups.