Commodities

Supply and demand, margin effects, sector chains, and operating strategy

Contents

1. How the Market Works
2. Pricing Formula
3. Margin Effects
4. What Each Sector Supplies
5. What Each Sector Demands
6. Retail: The Demand Hub
7. Financial Services & Interest Rates
8. Operating Strategies
9. Strategy Reference
10. Operating Tips

1. How the Market Works

The commodity market connects corporations through 22 traded goods. Sectors that produce certain goods add to supply; sectors that consume them add to demand. When supply is short, buyers pay a margin penalty. When supply exceeds demand, buyers get a bonus and sellers are squeezed. Only owned sectors participate - unowned sectors contribute nothing to either side.

Steel

Manufacturing, Construction, Automobiles

Electronics

Technology, Defense, Healthcare, Telecom

Energy (Elec.)

Energy sector

Industrial Chemicals

Chemical Industries

Pharmaceuticals

Chemical Industries (Pharma strategy)

Fertilizers

Chemical Industries (Fertilizer strategy)

Food

Agriculture

Building Materials

Manufacturing

Construction Services

Construction

Healthcare Services

Healthcare

Real Estate Services

Real Estate

Software

Technology, Telecom, Financial (Fintech)

Financial Services

Financial sector

Advertising

Media, Entertainment

Vehicles

Automobiles, Defense

Consumer Goods

Retail

Freight

Logistics

Consulting Services

Logistics

Iron Ore

Extraction

Coal

Extraction

Crude Oil

Extraction

Rare Earth Minerals

Extraction

2. Pricing Formula

Commodity prices update every turn from the global supply/demand balance, blended with local (state-level) conditions:

ratio = demand / supply

Market price:
  If ratio ≥ 1: basePrice × (1 + 0.7 × ln(ratio))
  If ratio < 1: basePrice / (1 + 0.7 × |ln(ratio)|)

Blended price per state = 75% global price + 25% regional (state-level) price

Examples:
  demand/supply = 1.0 (balanced)  → price = basePrice        (no change)
  demand/supply = 1.5 (shortage)  → price = basePrice × 1.28  (+28%)
  demand/supply = 2.0 (severe)    → price = basePrice × 1.49  (+49%)
  demand/supply = 0.5 (oversupply)→ price = basePrice × 0.67  (−33%)

No hard cap - extreme ratios continue to push prices, but with diminishing returns from the logarithm.

The 75/25 blend means global trends dominate, but a state with unusual local production or demand will see a premium or discount relative to the global price. Corporations operating only in states with heavy local supply benefit from lower input costs.

3. Margin Effects

Commodity shortages and surpluses feed directly into your corporation's profit margin through a logarithmic modifier:

Margin modifier = −K × Σ(rate_i × ln(demand_i / supply_i))

K = 40 (scaling constant)
rate_i = how intensively this sector uses commodity i (see tables below)

  Buyers (inputs): shortage → negative modifier (higher costs compress margins)
                   surplus  → positive modifier (cheaper inputs boost margins)
  Sellers (outputs): shortage → positive modifier (your goods are more valuable)
                     surplus  → negative modifier (your goods are worth less)

Reference table for a single commodity at demand rate 0.25 (typical for a heavy input):

D/S ratio	Market condition	Buyer margin impact	Seller margin impact
0.5×	Heavy oversupply	+6.9%	−6.9%
1× (balanced)	Neutral	0%	0%
1.1×	Mild shortage	−1.1%	+1.1%
1.4×	Moderate shortage	−3.4%	+3.4%
2×	Severe shortage	−6.9%	+6.9%
5×	Extreme shortage	−16.1%	+16.1%

Multiple commodities stack. A defense sector facing steel shortage at −3.4% and electronics shortage at −4.3% sees a combined −7.7% margin hit. Sectors with many inputs are more exposed than sectors with few. Each commodity is soft-capped at ±50 percentage points of contribution before stacking.

Retail absorbs only 25% of negative penalties. Retail sectors have built-in resilience to input shortages. A shortage that hits a manufacturing sector for −6.9% only hits a retail sector for −1.7% on the same commodity. Positive bonuses from oversupply are unaffected.

4. What Each Sector Supplies

Supply rates are fractions of sector daily revenue. A sector generating $1M/day at supply rate 0.4 pushes $400k worth of that commodity into the market every day.

Sector	Supplies	Rate
Manufacturing	Steel / Building Materials	0.40 / 0.20
Technology	Electronics / Software	0.35 / 0.35
Energy	Electricity	0.60
Chemical Industries	Industrial Chemicals	0.50
Healthcare	Healthcare Services	0.50
Agriculture	Food	0.50
Automobiles	Vehicles	0.50
Financial	Financial Services	0.50
Media	Advertising	0.50
Defense	Vehicles / Electronics	0.20 / 0.15
Real Estate	Real Estate Services	0.45
Construction	Construction Services	0.45
Telecommunications	Software	0.20
Entertainment	Advertising	0.20
Retail	Consumer Goods	0.50
Logistics	Freight / Consulting Services	0.45 / 0.25
Extraction	Iron Ore / Coal / Crude Oil / Rare Earth	0.25 / 0.20 / 0.20 / 0.10

5. What Each Sector Demands

These are the inputs each sector type consumes. The rates shown are per-unit fractions of daily revenue - higher rates mean the sector is more sensitive to that commodity's price swings.

Sector	Key inputs (highest rate first)
Manufacturing	Energy 0.20, Iron Ore 0.15, Coal 0.10, Electronics 0.10, Freight 0.10
Technology	Energy 0.15, Rare Earth 0.08, Consulting 0.08, Steel 0.05
Energy	Steel 0.15, Coal 0.15, Oil 0.10, Vehicles 0.10, Construction 0.05
Chemical Industries	Energy 0.18, Crude Oil 0.15, Freight 0.08
Healthcare	Pharmaceuticals 0.15, Electronics 0.15, Software 0.12, Energy 0.05
Agriculture	Fertilizers 0.15, Vehicles 0.10, Energy 0.10, Freight 0.08
Automobiles	Steel 0.25, Electronics 0.15, Iron 0.10, Energy 0.10, Freight 0.08
Financial	Software 0.20, Consulting 0.10, Electronics 0.05
Media	Software 0.15, Electronics 0.10, Consulting 0.06
Defense	Steel 0.20, Electronics 0.20, Iron 0.10, Software 0.10, Rare Earth 0.05
Real Estate	Construction Services 0.20, Financial Services 0.15, Building Materials 0.12, Steel 0.08, Energy 0.08
Construction	Building Materials 0.25, Steel 0.15, Energy 0.12, Vehicles 0.10
Telecommunications	Electronics 0.25, Energy 0.10, Construction 0.08, Building Materials 0.06
Entertainment	Software 0.15, Electronics 0.10, Energy 0.06
Logistics	Energy 0.20, Vehicles 0.20, Software 0.10
Extraction	Energy 0.20, Vehicles 0.15, Freight 0.10, Chemicals 0.08

6. Retail: The Demand Hub

Retail is unique. It consumes small amounts of every commodity in the market - it is the primary channel through which end-consumer purchasing pressure flows into the commodity system. Retail also supplies the Consumer Goods commodity, which it then demands back from itself, creating a loop that ties retail sector performance to overall GDP.

Retail demand multiplier = 1 + (blended GDP growth / 100) × 15

Blended GDP = 50% national + 50% regional (state-level)
Clamped to: 0.5× minimum, 2.0× maximum

Examples:
  GDP growth 2%:   multiplier 1.30 → +30% more retail demand across all commodities
  GDP growth 0%:   multiplier 1.00 → neutral
  GDP growth −1%:  multiplier 0.85 → −15% demand, easing shortage pressure globally

This means a booming economy creates commodity shortages even if no new industrial sectors were added - retail simply demands more of everything. Conversely, an economic contraction relieves commodity pressure across the board.

Consumer Goods is a feedback loop. A retail sector supplies Consumer Goods, then retail consumer demand is pegged to a GDP multiplier × that supply. Strong GDP growth amplifies Consumer Goods demand beyond what retail supply can match, driving prices up and benefiting retail sellers. Weak GDP deflates it, compressing retail output margins.

7. Financial Services & Interest Rates

Financial Services commodity demand has a built-in sensitivity to the central bank prime rate. Cheap money means more borrowing, M&A activity, and mortgage refinancing - all of which drive demand for financial sector output.

Rate multiplier = 1 + (2.75 - primeRate) × 0.12

Clamped to: 0.6× minimum, 1.4× maximum

Examples:
  Prime rate 1%:   multiplier ≈ 1.21 → +21% financial services demand
  Prime rate 2.75%: multiplier = 1.00 → neutral
  Prime rate 5%:   multiplier ≈ 0.73 → −27% financial services demand
  Prime rate 8%:   multiplier = 0.60 → −40% demand (floor)

Additionally, government debt issuance drives latent financial services demand - more bond issuance means more underwriting activity, which feeds into Financial Services commodity demand. A country running large deficits and issuing heavy bond supply will sustain elevated Financial Services demand independent of interest rates.

8. Operating Strategies

Each sector can switch between 2–3 operating strategies that change its commodity supply and demand rates. Strategies have no direct margin modifier - all effects come through commodity market prices. Choose a strategy based on which commodities are in shortage (supplies you can profit from) or oversupply (inputs you want to minimize).

Switch cost

25% of the sector's daily revenue, paid upfront.

Transition time

12 turns with a −5% margin penalty during the transition period.

Cooldown

24 turns from initiation before you can switch again.

Time switches to market conditions, not theory. The strategy confirmation panel shows the current market status of every commodity your new strategy would add or remove. Only switch if the market is already aligned - switching to a strategy that produces an oversupplied commodity will immediately compress your margins.

9. Strategy Reference

Each sector's available strategies and how they shift commodity flows:

Energy

Strategy	Supply	Key inputs	When to use
Conventional	Electricity 0.60	Steel, Coal, Oil, Vehicles, Construction	Baseline fossil-fuel output
Renewables Focus	Electricity 0.50	Electronics, Rare Earth, Building Materials, Steel	Lower output; pivots from fossil to electronics-heavy inputs
Nuclear Expansion	Electricity 0.70	Steel, Chemicals, Consulting, Construction	Highest electricity output; demands steel and chemicals heavily

Manufacturing

Strategy	Supply	Key inputs	When to use
Standard	Steel 0.40, Building Materials 0.20	Energy, Iron, Coal, Electronics, Freight	Balanced; two commodities supplied
Heavy Metals	Steel 0.55	Iron 0.25, Coal 0.20, Energy	More steel output; heavier iron and coal draw
Electronics Manufacturing	Electronics 0.30, Steel 0.20	Rare Earth, Iron, Energy, Chemicals	Adds electronics supply; demands rare earth

Technology

Strategy	Supply	Key inputs	When to use
Standard	Electronics 0.35, Software 0.35	Energy, Rare Earth, Steel, Consulting	Balanced split
Hardware Focus	Electronics 0.55, Software 0.15	Energy, Rare Earth, Steel, Chemicals	Higher electronics supply; more raw material demand
Software Focus	Software 0.55, Electronics 0.15	Consulting, Energy	Lowest raw material demand; most consulting-intensive

Chemical Industries

Strategy	Supply	Key inputs	When to use
Industrial Chemicals	Chemicals 0.50	Energy, Oil, Freight	Default; broad industrial chemicals supply
Fertilizer Production	Fertilizers 0.50, Chemicals 0.10	Chemicals, Energy, Oil	Useful when agriculture sector is large and demanding fertilizers
Pharmaceuticals	Pharmaceuticals 0.45, Chemicals 0.10	Chemicals, Electronics, Software, Energy	High-value; useful when healthcare sector is demanding pharma

Agriculture

Strategy	Supply	Key inputs	When to use
Traditional	Food 0.50	Fertilizers, Vehicles, Energy, Freight	Baseline
Industrial	Food 0.60	Fertilizers 0.25, Energy, Oil, Vehicles	Higher output; heavy fertilizer and oil draw
Sustainable	Food 0.40	Fertilizers 0.05, Software, Freight	Lower output; minimal fertilizer dependence; pivot away from shortage

Healthcare

Strategy	Supply	Key inputs	When to use
Standard	Healthcare Services 0.50	Pharmaceuticals, Electronics, Software, Energy	Balanced delivery model
Hospital Networks	Healthcare Services 0.60	Pharmaceuticals 0.18, Electronics 0.20, Software	Higher output; more resource intensive
Outpatient & Preventive	Healthcare Services 0.45	Pharmaceuticals 0.12, Software 0.16, Consulting	Lower output; lighter facilities; software-heavy

Automobiles

Strategy	Supply	Key inputs	When to use
Standard	Vehicles 0.50	Steel 0.25, Electronics 0.15, Iron, Energy, Freight	ICE-focused; steel-intensive
EV Focus	Vehicles 0.45	Electronics 0.30, Rare Earth, Energy, Software	No steel or iron; very electronics and rare earth heavy
Heavy Machinery	Vehicles 0.55	Steel 0.35, Iron, Energy, Freight	Highest vehicle output; most steel-intensive

Financial

Strategy	Supply	Key inputs	When to use
Standard	Financial Services 0.50	Software, Consulting, Electronics	Traditional banking
Fintech	Financial Services 0.45, Software 0.15	Software 0.25, Electronics	Adds software supply alongside financial services
Traditional Banking	Financial Services 0.55	Consulting 0.15, Real Estate	Highest financial services output; consulting and space heavy

Media

Strategy	Supply	Key inputs	When to use
Standard	Advertising 0.50	Software, Electronics, Consulting	Balanced
Digital-First	Advertising 0.40, Software 0.15	Software 0.20, Electronics	Adds software supply; useful when software is in surplus
Legacy Broadcast	Advertising 0.55	Electronics 0.15, Energy	Highest advertising output; no software demand

Defense

Strategy	Supply	Key inputs	When to use
Standard	Vehicles 0.20, Electronics 0.15	Steel 0.20, Electronics 0.20, Iron, Software, Rare Earth	Balanced; net electronics consumer despite small supply
Cyber Warfare	Electronics 0.25, Software 0.20	Software 0.20, Electronics 0.15, Consulting	Switches to software/electronics production; no steel or vehicles
Heavy Armor	Vehicles 0.35	Steel 0.30, Iron, Energy, Freight	Highest vehicle output; extremely steel-intensive; drops rare earth and software

Real Estate

Strategy	Supply	Key inputs	When to use
Standard	Real Estate Services 0.45	Construction Services, Financial Services, Building Materials, Steel, Energy	Balanced residential and commercial
Commercial Development	Real Estate Services 0.50	Construction Services 0.25, Financial Services 0.20, Steel, Consulting	Higher output; heavier financing and construction needs
Green Building	Real Estate Services 0.38	Construction Services, Electronics 0.15, Software, Building Materials	Lower output; technology-heavy inputs for efficient buildings

Construction

Strategy	Supply	Key inputs	When to use
General Contracting	Construction Services 0.45	Building Materials 0.25, Steel 0.15, Energy, Vehicles	Balanced residential, commercial, and civil work
Infrastructure Buildout	Construction Services 0.55	Building Materials 0.30, Steel 0.20, Energy, Vehicles, Consulting	Highest output; very materials-intensive
Modular Construction	Construction Services 0.40	Building Materials 0.18, Electronics 0.12, Steel, Software, Energy	Lower raw-material intensity; more tech inputs

Telecommunications

Strategy	Supply	Key inputs	When to use
Standard	Software 0.20	Electronics 0.25, Energy, Construction Services, Building Materials	Traditional telecom infrastructure
5G/Infrastructure	Software 0.15	Electronics 0.35, Energy, Steel, Construction, Rare Earth	Heavy hardware investment for next-gen networks
Cloud Services	Software 0.35	Energy 0.20, Electronics 0.15	Highest software output; energy-intensive data centers

Entertainment

Strategy	Supply	Key inputs	When to use
Standard	Advertising 0.20	Software 0.15, Electronics 0.10, Energy	Mixed studios, venues, and digital content
Streaming/Digital	Advertising 0.15, Software 0.10	Software 0.20, Energy 0.10	Digital-first; co-produces software
Live/Venue	Advertising 0.25	Construction Services 0.12, Energy, Freight, Building Materials	Highest advertising output; physical infrastructure needs

Retail

Strategy	Supply	Key inputs	When to use
Standard	Consumer Goods 0.50	Food, Electronics, Energy, Vehicles, Freight, Advertising, Software, and others	Mixed online and physical retail
E-Commerce	Consumer Goods 0.35, Software 0.10	Software 0.10, Freight 0.12, Electronics, Advertising	Online-first; co-produces software platforms
Brick & Mortar	Consumer Goods 0.55	Real Estate Services 0.12, Energy 0.12, Advertising, Food, Freight	Highest retail output; physical infrastructure costs

Logistics

Strategy	Supply	Key inputs	When to use
Standard	Freight 0.45, Consulting Services 0.25	Vehicles 0.20, Energy 0.20, Software	Traditional freight and consulting
Automated Logistics	Freight 0.50, Consulting Services 0.15	Software 0.20, Electronics 0.15, Energy	Higher freight throughput; tech-intensive
Full-Service	Freight 0.40, Consulting Services 0.35	Vehicles 0.25, Energy 0.20, Software 0.15	End-to-end supply chain; consulting-heavy

Extraction

Strategy	Supply	Key inputs	When to use
Diversified	Iron Ore 0.25, Coal 0.20, Crude Oil 0.20, Rare Earth 0.10	Energy 0.20, Vehicles 0.15, Freight, Chemicals	Balanced mining; broad but lower per-resource output
Iron & Metals Mining	Iron Ore 0.55	Energy 0.25, Vehicles 0.15, Freight, Steel	Sole output: iron ore at maximum volume
Oil & Gas	Crude Oil 0.55	Energy 0.20, Chemicals 0.15, Steel, Vehicles	Sole output: crude oil at maximum volume
Rare Earth Mining	Rare Earth 0.45	Energy 0.25, Chemicals 0.20, Vehicles, Freight	Sole output: rare earth; chemical-intensive processing
Coal Mining	Coal 0.55	Energy 0.20, Vehicles 0.15, Freight 0.15	Sole output: coal at maximum volume

10. Operating Tips

→Check the commodity page before switching strategy. The strategy confirmation panel shows live market status for every affected commodity. If your new supply commodity is already in surplus, you will sell into a flooded market. If your new input commodity is in shortage, you will pay a premium from day one.
→Extraction is the upstream lever. Iron Ore, Coal, Crude Oil, and Rare Earth Minerals flow into Manufacturing, Energy, Technology, Chemicals, and Automobiles. A global shortage of rare earth minerals hits defense, tech, and EV automobiles simultaneously. An extraction sector benefits from that shortage; everyone else suffers.
→Technology and Defense are in commodity competition. Both consume electronics and software. When Defense scales up (heavy government spending), it competes directly with Technology for electronics, driving up the price for both. Defense also supplies electronics at a lower rate than it consumes - it is a net electronics buyer.
→Agriculture and Chemical Industries are linked. Industrial Agriculture demands fertilizers heavily (0.25 rate). Fertilizer Production in Chemical Industries supplies them. If agriculture is large and all Chemical Industries are on standard Industrial Chemicals strategy, fertilizers will be in shortage. Switch a chemical sector to Fertilizer Production when you see that gap.
→Renewables and EV both demand rare earth. Renewables Focus (Energy) and EV Focus (Automobiles) both depend heavily on rare earth minerals (0.10 and 0.10 rates respectively). If both strategies are widely adopted, rare earth becomes one of the most contested commodities in the game. Extraction is the only supplier.
→Retail smooths out sector imbalances. Retail consumes all 22 commodities at low rates, scaled by GDP. It is a constant baseline demand floor. In a contraction, retail demand shrinks and commodity shortages self-correct. In a boom, retail demand amplifies every existing imbalance.

Convening the chamber...