National economy and industry

Industry is the backbone branch that produces material goods and determines technical progress: as it develops, new settlements and roads appear and agriculture, construction and trade also grow. Industrial enterprises are plants, mines, power stations and so on; many were once state property and are now being privatized. The branches include electric power, fuel, ferrous and non-ferrous metallurgy, machine building, chemicals, forestry, building materials, light and food industries. Location is affected by raw materials, fuel, energy, water, labour, transport and environmental requirements. Large combines gather in one place (concentration) but intensify social and ecological problems, so attention now goes to medium and small enterprises with narrow specialization. Specialization means an enterprise mostly makes one kind of product; cooperation means several enterprises together make a finished product; combining means joining technologically linked productions into one enterprise. Linked branches form a complex.