Library Guides @ VIU: Management: Industry Research: Industry Codes & Classification

Industry Codes & Classification

What is industry classification? Industry Canada offers a useful overview:

"...classification has been developed as a method of grouping businesses that produce the same or similar product and/or services and uses a hierarchical structure, getting more specific at lower levels."

Examples:

NAICS code	Industry
445	Food and Beverage Stores
4452	Specialty Food Stores
445220	Fish and Seafood Markets

NAICS Canada 2007
North American Industry Classification System
NAICS Canada 2012
To be implemented in 2013 to coincide with the integration of Statistics Canada's business surveys into a generalized operational model. Changes made to account for changing economies of Canada, Mexico and the United States. Various changes are brought into NAICS for 2012, relating to outsourcing of manufacturing production, video game publishers and developers, book publishing exclusive agents, and crafts.
NAICS 2012 - NAICS 2007 Concordance Tables
NAICS (US Bureau of Labor Statistics)
Includes links to the North American Classification System, SIC, and other information
NACE
Statistical Classification of Economic Activities in the European Community
National Classifications (UN)
Table of classification codes used by specific countries
SIC
Standard Industrial Classification System (SIC) has been used largely in the USA to represent business or economic activity. It is gradually being replaced by NAICS.
HS: Harmonized System Nomenclature
Classification system that replaces the SITC for International trade statistics

Using Industry Codes to Search Databases

Many of the Library's specialized market research, financial, and government statistics databases allow you to search by industry code as a means of finding information about your industry.

An industry code search can help to find these kinds of information:

industry statistics
industry profiles and analyses
industry competitors
benchmarks for firms in your industry with ratios
detailed financial data from publicly traded companies
news from industry and trade associations

Some specialized business databases offer searching by industry code. These include:

Business Source Complete: Business Searching Interface This link opens in a new window
Use Business Source Complete to search for literature and analysis in business and management. This version allows searching by discipline-specific content types and fields, which include:
Academic Articles
Business Videos
Company Information
Industry Profiles
Market Research Reports
Company Profiles
Country Reports
SWOT Analyses
Trade Journals
Working Papers
NAICS
Canadian Newsstream This link opens in a new window
Full text of Canadian newspapers, including Pacific, Black Press, and regional and national major dailies.
CBCA This link opens in a new window
Canadian Business & Current Affairs (CBCA) database provides access to Canadian periodicals back to the early 1970s. Coverage includes trade journals, general business publications, academic journals, topical journals, and professional publications.
IBISWorld Industry Reports This link opens in a new window
Industry reports for Canada, United States, and global industries. Reports are about 25-40 pages in length and are updated every 4 months.
MERGENT Online: Company Information and Industry Reports This link opens in a new window
Information about industries and public companies worldwide. Company Info: International public company information including business summaries, corporate history, joint ventures, property/holdings, subsidiaries, capital stock, company financials (plus ratios/analysis), annual reports. 1988 to present. Industry Info: Analysis of industries in North America and Asia/Pacific, including performance & key financials of leading companies per sector and country; overviews of mergers, acquisitions & alliances.