Anyone who knows anything about economics (or who has read a certain post on the Stellaris subreddit) will know that trade is a vital component of any specialised economy. Unfortunately, it kinda sucks right now.
One of the biggest problems is that the maths in diplomatic trade deals is kinda bad- your startup for monthly trade deals is based on your stockpile rather than your income, and both they and automatic market purchases will break if 'stockpile < trade deal' rather than 'stockpile + income < trade deal' or 'deficit situation in progress'. This means that for many regularly-spent goods such as alloys, trade deals just aren't a viable source of output.
The other major problem is that the AI and the player don't have any motivation to make these trade deals. Occasionally you'll get one, but it's a very rare thing. While this isn't too bad because the aforementioned bugs effectively neuter trade deals for most goods with anyone who gags at the thought of stockpiling, it does mean that it's a very underutilised mechanic within the playerbase.
It also means that it's a big power boost which the AI can't access- manufactured goods such as rare resources, alloys and consumer goods are much more efficient on a per-pop level to produce than basic resources, and even focusing on an inefficient resource like minerals can let you focus your bonuses and research on one output rather than having to spread them around, so you can significantly increase your empire's efficiency through the power of diplomatic trade, in a similar vein to tributaries and specialist vassals.
Alas, I asked in Stellaris modding and it doesn't appear this can be fixed on our end, since it's not too high-priority for as long as it's an underutilised mechanic, and it's likely to be underutilised for as long as it's bugged. Thus, I have started this thread- read the reddit post, try out the playstyle, see if you find it fun, and join in clamouring for the trade deal bug to be fixed! For the Trade Federation(s)!
One of the biggest problems is that the maths in diplomatic trade deals is kinda bad- your startup for monthly trade deals is based on your stockpile rather than your income, and both they and automatic market purchases will break if 'stockpile < trade deal' rather than 'stockpile + income < trade deal' or 'deficit situation in progress'. This means that for many regularly-spent goods such as alloys, trade deals just aren't a viable source of output.
The other major problem is that the AI and the player don't have any motivation to make these trade deals. Occasionally you'll get one, but it's a very rare thing. While this isn't too bad because the aforementioned bugs effectively neuter trade deals for most goods with anyone who gags at the thought of stockpiling, it does mean that it's a very underutilised mechanic within the playerbase.
It also means that it's a big power boost which the AI can't access- manufactured goods such as rare resources, alloys and consumer goods are much more efficient on a per-pop level to produce than basic resources, and even focusing on an inefficient resource like minerals can let you focus your bonuses and research on one output rather than having to spread them around, so you can significantly increase your empire's efficiency through the power of diplomatic trade, in a similar vein to tributaries and specialist vassals.
Alas, I asked in Stellaris modding and it doesn't appear this can be fixed on our end, since it's not too high-priority for as long as it's an underutilised mechanic, and it's likely to be underutilised for as long as it's bugged. Thus, I have started this thread- read the reddit post, try out the playstyle, see if you find it fun, and join in clamouring for the trade deal bug to be fixed! For the Trade Federation(s)!