Sectors in the US Economy

The industrial sectors include manufacturing and other businesses that provide commercial and industrial supplies, transportation, and other related services. In addition to this, the industries also comprise other businesses such as farming and construction machinery, airlines, pipelines, and waste management. The industries have a wide array of key customers and target markets, which differ according to geography and industry. For example, in the United States, there are several main customers including automobile companies, aerospace and defense companies, medical and health care companies, personal and cosmetics companies, food and beverage companies, and small and mid-sized manufacturing companies. However, depending on the laws and regulations within a state, certain industries may also need to seek additional licensing or certification in order to sell or service in that particular state. In some cases, these extra sales and services may be required by state and local governments in order to stay in business.

Manufacturing, as indicated above, is one of the largest and most significant of the industrial sectors. Although many people think of this sector solely as being focused upon the manufacture of goods, with products such as cars and trucks being the primary goods manufactured, this is certainly not the case. Manufacturing involves the production of both goods and services; however, the production of goods relies largely upon the utilization of machines and other technology. The services, meanwhile, are performed on a large scale through various types of labor, including engineers, technicians, laborers, mechanics, warehouse workers, and others. As indicated earlier, agriculture is another large sector within the industrials, which includes food processing, foods, and agriculture itself, but can also include fruit and vegetable production.

Another large and important industry within the industrial sectors is the materials sector. Materials are those substances and elements that can be used to manufacture products and that can be obtained from natural resources. Most of the materials stocks in the US are produced by companies such as fertilizer companies, oil refineries, power companies, cement companies, pharmaceuticals, and others. As was previously stated, this is a very diverse sector in that it not only produces the materials that go into making the goods and services that we use every day, but it also produces the materials and elements used to make these goods and services. As was previously mentioned, this makes the materials stocks a very diverse and important sector within the US economy. With the numerous stocks of materials that these industries produce, there are many opportunities for investors in this sector, both long term and short term.