Subject and Research Guides: Company, Industry &amp; Country Information: Industry

Doing industry research

1. Search the industry databases on this page.

2. Search for newspaper, journal and trade publication articles about the company.

3. Look for industry associations for the industry as they usually have useful reports, data and analysis

4. Try looking at some of the web resources listed on this page such as government industry websites, consultancy firms etc.

5. You will also be able to find detailed industry analysis and case studies in the academic journal databases e.g. Business Source Premier, Emerald Management, Science Direct or Sage Journals.

It is important to realise that the more specialised an industry the harder it will be to get information on it.

Industry Research Databases

The following Databases are subscribed to by Macquarie University Library and contain industry analysis, commentary, data, overviews or data on Australian or global industries. All of these databases have a link to help/guide pages to help you make the most of them.

IBISWorld This link opens in a new window
IBISWorld is Australia's largest provider of industry-based research. It also contains Chinese industry reports. Search for an Industry name or subject and look at the Industry reports.
Coverage
* Australia * China
Passport This link opens in a new window
Passport provides web-based access to Euromonitor's reference and source data covering industries and consumer markets. It provides in depth analysis and a substantial set of data. The focus is on consumer goods. Hover over the industries tab at the top of the page and select the relevant industry. In the "analysis finder" box select the type of analysis you are after e.g. country report and then the country you are interested in.
Coverage
* Australia * Global
FitchConnect This link opens in a new window
This database provides access to daily macroeconomic, financial and company news and analysis on emerging and key global markets. Fitch reports (country updates and forecasts and industry surveys), data and forecasts (select and export, risk rating, market consensus); alerts and analysis (fixed income, equities, currencies, politics, economics, company and industry).
Marketline Advantage This link opens in a new window
MarketLine Advantage contains profiles of major industries worldwide, both at a national and regional level as well as market data analysis and case studies. On the search page select "industry profiles" from the drop down menu and type in a keyword to find the relevant report/s. It also contains substantial industry data in the "Market Data Analytics" section which can be found under the "Databases" link.
Coverage
* Australia * Global
Frost & Sullivan This link opens in a new window
In-depth market research and strategy reports with global coverage. Includes the following key industry sectors: healthcare, chemicals, IT, telecoms, electronics, transportation, energy, aerospace defence amongst others.
Coverage
* Australia * Global
D&B Hoovers This link opens in a new window
D&B Hoovers provides access to in-depth business information on the industries, companies (both public and private), executives and corporate family structures operating in the global market. It also includes access to the Dun & Bradstreet dataset. Click on the "Research Industries" link on the homepage. You can then either enter a search term or browse the D&B Hoovers Industries (this is the better option). Select view results and click on the industry to see the individual page for that industry.
Coverage
* Australia * Global
WARC This link opens in a new window
WARC (World Advertising Research Center) is a marketing database includes case studies, best practice guides, marketing intelligence, consumer insight, industry trends and news. Select "topics" then "Industry Sectors".
Coverage
* Australia * Global
Business Source Premier This link opens in a new window
This database contains industry profiles covering a diverse range of areas. On the search page enter the name of the industry you are interested in and a country/geographic area if you wish to. In the Publication Type box select "Industry profile" and execute your search.
Coverage
* Australia * Global
Factiva This link opens in a new window
Factiva provides full text access to news items from a wide range of international sources and key websites.
Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) This link opens in a new window
The ABS is Australia’s national statistical agency, providing trusted official statistics on a wide range of economic, social, population and environmental matters of importance to Australia. This database contains current and historical social & economic data for Australia, Census figures and access to all ABS publications from 1998 onwards.

Industry Classification Codes

Industry classification systems are used by government and business for classifying industries by numerical code.

Many databases listed on this page allow searching by industry codes to create lists of companies by industry. Many use their own industry classification system as well as the ones listed below.

Use the links below to find the codes for industries you are researching

NAICS The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) was adopted in 1997 to replace the Standard Industrial Classification system (SIC). Many databases in this guide allow searching by NAICS codes.
SIC The Standard Industrial Classification System (SIC) was replaced by the NAICS, which was released in 1997. Because SIC is still used by by some government bodies and in some markets, a number of databases allow searching by SIC code.
GICS Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS). GICS is a joint Standard and Poor’s/Morgan Stanley Capital International product aimed at standardising industry definitions.
ANZSIC Australian and New Zealand Standard Industrial Classification (ANZSIC) was produced by the Australian Bureau of Statistics and Statistics New Zealand.

Other useful sources

Government Websites

Government websites which provide links to statistics and commentary for businesses:

Consultancy Firms

Consultancy firms conduct and publish industry research. You will locate market research reports at these company websites. You can access global industry information by switching between the national sites for each firm:

Market Research Companies

Market research companies provide up to date market insights: