Guide to really be good on trade - no novice guide!

[TenshiN]

Steer everything into a single node where you collect, thats basically everything there is for it. Trade Companies give bonus merchants if they are dominant in their TC region. Colonial nations grant merchants when they hit 10 provinces. Protecting trade with light ships is good when you have a large competitor you cannot yet annihilate "sharing" a trade node (Example: You are Korea and competitor is Ming).
There are different-quality tradenondes, but you can easily see their value through the trade screen.

Also, whatever gives bonuses to +Goods Produced directly affects your trade income, since it means there are more goods to be traded.

 

[Ukkel]

This is a good way to put it. In my trade FAQ video (link in signature) I go over the 3 most common times it's superior to collect instead of transferring:

• Less than 50% of trade power in home node
• A "hole" exists in your trade chain
• You control more than one end node

If you completely dominate a second end node, it could still be more efficient to only transfer. In one of my games I fully controlled Venice while I controlled 90% of Genoa, my home node. When no one is collecting from an end node, like in Venice in my game, sending a single privateer there will net you half of the node's value as spoils of war every month with no downsides, aside from the occasional event. If I sent a merchant instead, I would lose dominance in the way richer Genoa node, so this was the best solution in that situation.

 

[Humphrey]

Step 1. Take explorations and merchant ideas.
Step 2. Push trade from your colonies to t
Your home trade.
Step 3 . Profit

But seriously all that has been said are good tips. But quick side note always for for the Caribbean. It is the "gate way to the new world". The aim locked to push all its colonie's trade to it and it allows you to push to any end trade node in Europe.