Standard Industrial Classification Scheme

Definition

Standard Industrial Classification Scheme. The scheme defining the Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) Code List

Standard Industrial Classifications are four-digit codes that categorize companies by the type of business activities they engage in. These codes were created by the U.S. government in 1937 to facilitate analysis of economic activity across government agencies and within industries.

They were mostly replaced in 1997 by a new system of six-digit codes called the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS). The new codes were adopted in part to standardize industry data collection and analysis in between Canada, the United States and Mexico which had entered into the North American Free Trade Agreement. Note that certain organizations, such as the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) still use SIC codes for some purposes.