The table above shows the top 5 industries in a nation for each year between 2003 and 2007.
Summarize the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
Write at least 150 words.
The table shown gives details of the top five industries in each year from 2003 to 2007. Seven different sectors appear within the table, with two appearing every year (energy and finance), whilst the auto-industry makes just a singular appearance – fifth, in 2003.
At the top of the lists, the energy industry was a dominant figure, present in the number one position in four of the five rankings; only in 2005, when it fell to third, was there a disparity. Also in the higher brackets are heavy industry and the technology sector which have, essentially, followed opposite paths: the former’s positions in the first half of the studied period (2nd, 2nd, 1st) were strong, before a fall to 5th in 2006 and then out of the top five completely in 2007; the latter only first appeared on the index in 2004 (in 4th spot), but was the second ranked industry in every subsequent year across the sample.
Further down the lists, the financial industry has been fairly consistent, ranking third every year bar a brief slip to 4th in 2005. The utilities sector has also been steady – albeit less so – with positions of 4th, 5th, 5th, not listed, and 4th. Meanwhile, two other sectors have been more temporary: the aforementioned auto industry and its one appearance in 2003, and retail, which first arrived on the table in 4th position in 2006 before slipping to 5th in 2007. This is evidently better than its unlisted ranking at the start of the sample, but still some way behind the heavyweight industries which consistently hold the highest positions.