One Industry Per Sector: A Tour of the Global Economy

The petroleum industry spans the global exploration, extraction, refining, transportation and marketing of oil, and this atlas records it as the world's largest industry by dollar value, the natural place to start a tour of the sectors.

Steel manufacturing supplies construction, infrastructure, transportation and machinery, and stands as one of the largest and most energy-intensive manufacturing industries in the world, anchoring the Materials sector.

The aerospace industry designs, builds and maintains aircraft, missiles, rockets and spacecraft, and its own page notes it draws on advanced engineering and materials science while spanning both commercial manufacturers and defense contractors.

The automotive industry designs, manufactures, markets, sells, repairs and modifies motor vehicles, and this atlas records it as one of the largest industries in the world by revenue.

The food and beverage industry is described here as a complex, diversified global network ranging from small family-run operations to large mechanized processes, covering the full chain from agriculture and processing to packaging, distribution and retail.

The pharmaceutical industry is devoted to discovering, developing, producing and marketing medications administered to cure or prevent disease, or to alleviate the symptoms of illness or injury.

The financial services industry delivers economic services tied to finance through institutions such as commercial banks, investment banks and asset managers, and its own page names insurance, credit cards, mortgage loans and pension funds among its products.

The technology industry spans computing, telecommunications, consumer electronics, software and internet-based services, and its own page names rapid innovation cycles and heavy research and development investment as defining traits.

The telecommunications industry sits within the broader information and communication technology sector, and this atlas credits it with a central role in the evolution of mobile communications and the development of the information society.

The utilities industry operates the infrastructure behind electricity generation and distribution, natural gas delivery and water supply, and its own page notes it is typically subject to public regulation ranging from local oversight to statewide monopoly control.

The real estate industry is built on land and the buildings on it, along with the natural resources attached to it such as growing crops, minerals, water or wild animals, closing the tour on the sector that every other one sits on.