Trade; the key to a flourishing economy in Civ II.
Trade are proven to be lucrative (yes, my Finnish
civ earned tons of gold with trade routes).
They strengthen your economy and they can
be useful for completing WoW's.
IMO their impact on the science production
is perhaps not underestimated, if I say significant.
In my Finland game, those cities that were the
best science didn't necessarily have science WoW's,
but lots of trade routes; and many of them old
ones, that produce more trade than new ones
(it's a fact).
It perhaps makes it more easily understandable,
if I say that their's mostly at least one caravan/freight
unit included in my civ's exploration or military convoys.
Often I send some ships packed with caravans/freights,
without including any other units. They don't always
have military escort, due to cut backs in the army (
it's economical
(well, not in the game, but in real world).
My final advice - if you're new to economy in Civ II,
follow the trade advisors hints.
