Glossary:Commodity (2024)

A commodity, also called primary product or primary good, is a good sold for production or consumption just as it was found in nature. Commodities include crude oil, coal, copper or iron ore, rough diamonds, and agricultural products such as wheat, coffee beans or cotton; they are often traded on commodity exchanges.

The Standard international trade classification distinguishes five main categories (sections) of commodities or primary goods:

• Food and live animals (SITC 0 );
• Beverages and tobacco (SITC 1);
• Crude materials, excluding fuels (SITC 2);
• Mineral fuels (SITC 3);
• Animal and vegetable oils, fats and waxes (SITC 4).

Sections 0 and 1 can be grouped together as 'Food and drink', 2 and 4 as 'Raw materials'.

Related concepts

• Standard international trade classification

Statistical data

• International trade in goods

Source

• European Commission - Trade - Glossary