7: Classification of Businesses 

Primary sector: 

Production involving the extraction of raw materials from the earth

• Agriculture: involves a range of farming activities. Most agriculture is concerned with food production
• Fishing: involves netting, trapping, angling, and trawling for fish. It also includes gathering and catching all types of seafood.
• Forestry: involves managing forests to provide timber for wood products. Modern forestry involves protecting the natural environment, providing access and facilities to the public and managing areas for wildlife.
• Mining and quarrying: is the extraction of raw materials such as coal, iron ore and tin from the ground as well as the extraction of oil and gases.

Secondary sector:

Business activity involves converting raw materials into finished or semi-finished goods. All manufacturing, processing and construction lie within this sector. Some businesses focus on the production of semi-finished goods (producer or intermediate goods). These goods are sold to other businesses and used as inputs for the production of final goods.

Tertiary sector:

Involves the provision of a wide variety of services: Commercial services, financial services, household services, leisure services, professional services and transport.

Interdependence: 

Businesses in each sector are likely to be interdependent. This means that they rely on each other. In modern developed economies, the interdependence is huge. Example: 

Bakers may depend on the tertiary sector advertising agencies to produce adverts.

As countries develop, the public sector grows. Since the public sector mainly provides services this adds to the growth of the tertiary sector.