Ok, I was mixing up Free-trade Territory and the Free Trade Alliance (or whatever it's called).
Another tip: Don't spend more time trading at the beginning that it takes to upgrade your ship hull. Trading at each larger size is 50% more efficient = saves turns. You could upgrade hull and engines at the same time, also, to make real-space trading plausible.
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The Unpronounceable Krsqk
"Well, sir, at the moment my left processor doesn't know what my right is doing." -
Freefall