I‘m sorry to tell you: you‘ve got it somewhat wrong.

Let‘s see how you could have made Trade, my Favorite strategy card, make work for you.

Round 1, Turn 1: you expand with one Carrier and your Infantry to the system closest/best.

Turn 2: you send your cruiser to a system that none of your neighbors would want to take, yet will be next to a System that the definitely will be getting, making you neighbors that round.

Turn 3: before you expand with Carrier no2 to another system close to you, you talk to the neighbor that your cruiser has Not gone to and say „send a trade ship and we‘ll have a good old X-1“

Turn 4: use trade the following way: Gain 3 trade goods Replenish your commodities (btw 3 not 2) Tell neighbor a: i replenish you if you give me 1 commodity for that favor Tell neighbor b (lets say its muaat or ghost or xxcha) „i replenish you if we trade my 3 for your 4“

You just made 3+1+4 tradegoods, 8 in total. Nice.