The term Market Sector is used in economics and finance to describe a set of businesses that are buying and selling such similar goods and services that they are in direct competition with each other. Analysts divide the stock market itself into market sectors so that shares of companies that are in direct competition are listed alongside each other. Economics (deriving from the Greek words οίκω [okos], house, and νέμω [nemo], rules hence household management) is the social science that studies the allocation of scarce resources to satisfy unlimited wants. ... Finance studies and addresses the ways in which individuals, businesses and organizations raise, allocate and use monetary resources over time, taking into account the risks entailed in their projects. ... A stock market is a market for the trading of publicly held company stock and associated financial instruments (including stock options, convertibles and stock index futures). ...

In the bond market it refers to the division of the market by the type of issuer. E.g. government, state, corporate, or utility. Dutch East India Company bond, issued in 1623. ...

The term is also used in marketing to describe sections of the mass market that can be specifically targeted in advertising campaigns. In this context it is correctly called Market segment. Traditionally, marketing has been a term applied to the craft of linking the producers (or potential producers) of a product or service with customers, both existing and potential. ... Market segmentation is the process of grouping a market into smaller subgroups. ...