Fri May 10, 2013 7:38 am
not sure who you are playing, so this is a bit generic.
At the start, building up both state and private capital is a slow process. What you need to do is to work between the F4, F11, sell and buy tabs. Look at your stockpiles, esp for agricultural. If they are increasing, or even static, you can shut stuff down for a while (you can use the B screen here as that will tell if you a given product is over-supplied internationally). That will allow you to save PC for production - think of it as the game's model for primitive capital accumulation. Second have a think, for some items you pay less PC to import than to produce. If so shut down your own production and rely on imports.
In this respect a balance of payments deficit (ie import more than you export) is fine if its matched by PC from domestic sales. There's a post in my AAR with a diagram and discussion where I try to set out how this lot interlink.
State cash, as long as population contentment is going up by 0.4 or so every time its reported, then, early game, up your taxes a bit. Try not to overdo the tax on shipping (that will harm both your ability to buy and sales) or tariffs (hit to international relations).
In general, its a good idea not to over-build early. The game tends to see global shortages of things like coal, sometimes wood, into the late 1850s. Then it tends to be things like manufactured goods.
edit - remember to put trade fleets around the globe. They not only help you to buy but it means that states can buy from you, if you have a trade fleet off their coast. Sometimes, early on, there can be gaps in the flow of goods rather than simple demand and supply
AJE The Hero, The Traitor and The Barbarian
PoN Manufacturing Italy; A clear bright sun
RoP The Mightiest Empires Fall
WIA Burning down the Houses; Wars in America; The Tea Wars