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THE STRUCTURE OF COMMERCE

Commerce is a process that is connected with the production and distribution of goods and the providing of services. The process can be summarized by the Chain of Commerce:

raw materials – manufacturer – wholesaler – retailer – consumer.

The production of goods starts at the raw material stage. Most of British raw materials come from overseas countries. Examples are: oil from Middle East, metals from South Africa, rubber latex from Malaysia and wood from Canada. These raw materials are made into finished goods by the factories. This process is called manufacturing. There are three kinds of manufacturing: unit production, batch production and mass production.

The next stage in the cycle is the wholesaler, whose principal task is to store the goods, usually in large quantities and in many varieties. The wholesaler sells the goods to the retailers, who display the goods and sell them to consumers. Retail shops may be large, such as a supermarket or departmental store, or small, as in the case of a corner shop.

If the goods and the raw materials are to be distributed and sold efficiently the services of banking, transport, insurance and advertising will be needed by every link in the Chain of Commerce, from the raw material stage to the consumer stage. These services are called the Aids to Trade.

British banking is controlled by the Bank of England, which has its headquarters in London, but manufacturers, wholesalers, retailers and consumers deal mostly with the commercial banks. There are three main kinds of transport: land, sea and air. Insurance is a financial protection against an event which may happen. Advertising also plays a very important part in commerce.

British main industries may be classified as manufacturing, extractive, construction, agriculture and forestry, fisheries, tourism.

Words:

chain цепь

raw materials сырье

wholesaler оптовый торговец

retailer торговец в розницу

batch партия

insurance страхование

advertising реклама

aids вспомогательные средства

headquarters штаб-квартира

extractive добывающий

2 Выберите правильный вариант ответа на каждый вопрос:

1. How is the process of transformation of raw materials into finished goods called?

a) distribution; b) consumption; c) manufacturing

2. Which of the following services does the retailer offer?

a) selling goods to the consumer; b) storing goods in the warehouse;

c) manufacturing goods

3. What banks are wholesalers mostly connected with?

a) saving banks; b) commercial banks; c) Bank of England

4. Which of the following is an extractive industry?

a) construction; b) tourism; c) fishing