Difference Between Industry and Commerce

Business is an economic activity, concerned with the provision of goods and services with an aim of earning a profit. There is two major classification of business activities, i.e. industry and commerce. The industry is all about the production of goods, whereas commerce focuses on their distribution of goods and services.

Industry implies all the activities that are concerned with the conversion of raw materials into finished goods. Conversely, commerce aims at providing goods at the right place, in proper quantity, in the right condition and at right time. In this article excerpt, we have compiled the basic difference between industry and commerce, have a look.

Content: Industry Vs Commerce

1. Comparison Chart
2. Definition
3. Key Differences
4. Classification of Business Activities
5. Conclusion

Comparison Chart

Basis for Comparison	Industry	Commerce
Meaning	Industry is an economic activity, concerned with the procurement and processing of raw materials into finished products, that reaches the customer.	Commerce is a business activity, wherein exchange for goods and services for value, is done on a large scale.
Capital Required	High	Comparatively low
Involves	Conversion of resources into useful goods.	Activities essential for facilitating the buying and selling of goods.
Represent	Production part of business activities.	Distribution part of business activities.
Risk	High	Comparatively low

Definition of Industry

Economic activities associated with the procurement or extraction of raw materials and converting them into finished products which reach the final customer is known as an industry. The term ‘industry’ is used to denote those activities which involve the use of mechanical appliances and technical skills, i.e. activities with the manufacturing, production, and processing of products. It indicates the supply side of the market. The activities covered under industry are as under:

• Extraction of materials such as coal, petroleum etc.
• Conversion of raw materials into useful goods like soaps, fans, cement, etc.
• Construction of buildings, dams, roads etc.

The industry represents a group of factories, specialized in a specific product line. The different types of industries are as under:

1. Primary Industry: Industry concerned with obtaining and providing natural raw materials like mining, agriculture or forestry.
2. Secondary Industry: Industry engaged in conversion activities, i.e. converting raw material provided by primary industry, into finished products.
3. Tertiary Industry: Industry that provides support services to the primary and secondary industry.

Definition of Commerce

The term ‘commerce’ means a business activity that involves buying and selling of goods or services for value (cash or kind) and that too, on a large scale, between businesses or entities, from one place to another. When there is a purchase or sale of a particular item, it is known as a transaction, but commerce refers to all the transactions associated with the buying and selling of that item in an economy.

All the economic activities which are in some way or the other related to exchange comes under commerce. It covers the distribution aspect of business, i.e. it facilitates consumption process by providing proper distribution channel. Therefore, it ensures the availability of goods and services to the customers, at the right time and place. It is broadly classified into two activities:

1. Trade: The process of buying and selling of goods and services for money.
2. Auxiliaries to trade: All the activities which assist trade directly or indirectly are auxiliaries to trade. It includes transportation, warehousing, banking & finance, advertising, insurance and so on.

Classification of Business Activities

Conclusion

Industry and Commerce cover all the aspects of business. Industry looks after production, procurement, fabrication, extraction, construction activities of business. On the other hand, commerce looks after the movement of product from the source location through distribution channels (such as wholesalers, retailers, distributors, etc.), to the final consumer.