1.1.6
The Different Economic Sectors
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The 3 Sectors
There are 3 main sectors in the economy:

Primary sector
- The primary sector produces raw materials. These are natural resources that can be used to make products or provide services.
- Natural resources can be:
- Extracted from the ground like oil, coal and gas
- Collected like trees in the forestry industry
- Grown like crops in the farming/agriculture industry

Secondary sector
- The secondary sector manufactures goods
- This is the next stage of the supply chain.
- Businesses in this sector turn raw materials into finished goods.
- E.g. A paper manufacturer makes paper out of wood collected by the forestry/logging industry.

Tertiary sector
- As discussed previously these services can take a wide variety of forms and can exist to serve customers, businesses or a combination of both.
- A simple example is the healthcare industry, which provides a wide range of healthcare services to people.
- Another example is Facebook, which provides a social media service to customers while also providing an advertising service to businesses.
1Exploring Business
1.1Features of Business Organisations
1.2Organisation of Businesses
1.3Business Environment
1.3.1External Influences1.3.2Political & Legal Change1.3.3Economic Environment1.3.4Social & Technological Environment1.3.5Lifestyle & Technological Environment1.3.6Corporate Social Responsibility1.3.7The Competitive Environment1.3.8Innovation1.3.9Risk & Uncertainty1.3.10Porter's Five Forces1.3.11SWOT Analysis
2Marketing Campaigns
2.1Marketing
3Business Finance
3.1Sources of Finance
3.2Financial Planning
3.3Financial Statements
4International Business
4.1Globalisation
4.2International Business
4.3International Economic Environment
4.4Factors Affecting International Business
5Principles of Management
5.1Management & Leadership
5.2Theories of Motivation
6Business Decision Making
6.1Business Principles & Practices
6.2Quality Management
6.3Human Resources
6.4Documents & Business Decisions
Jump to other topics
1Exploring Business
1.1Features of Business Organisations
1.2Organisation of Businesses
1.3Business Environment
1.3.1External Influences1.3.2Political & Legal Change1.3.3Economic Environment1.3.4Social & Technological Environment1.3.5Lifestyle & Technological Environment1.3.6Corporate Social Responsibility1.3.7The Competitive Environment1.3.8Innovation1.3.9Risk & Uncertainty1.3.10Porter's Five Forces1.3.11SWOT Analysis
2Marketing Campaigns
2.1Marketing
3Business Finance
3.1Sources of Finance
3.2Financial Planning
3.3Financial Statements
4International Business
4.1Globalisation
4.2International Business
4.3International Economic Environment
4.4Factors Affecting International Business
5Principles of Management
5.1Management & Leadership
5.2Theories of Motivation
6Business Decision Making
6.1Business Principles & Practices
6.2Quality Management
6.3Human Resources
6.4Documents & Business Decisions
Practice questions on The Different Economic Sectors
Can you answer these? Test yourself with free interactive practice on Seneca — used by over 10 million students.
- 1
- 2
- 3Which sector is healthcare usually in?Multiple choice
- 4Instagram (owned by Facebook) operates in which sector?Multiple choice
- 5Which sector would forestry be classified as?Multiple choice
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