Which of the following provides the necessary link between producers and consumers?

Commerce

The correct answer is option 2- commerce.

Commerce includes two types of activities, viz., (i) trade and (ii) auxiliaries to trade. Buying and selling of goods is termed as trade. But there are a lot of activities that are required to facilitate the purchase and sale of goods. These are called services or auxiliaries to trade and include transport, banking, insurance, communication, advertisement, packaging and warehousing. Commerce, therefore, includes both, buying and selling of goods, i.e., trade, as well as, auxiliaries, such as transport, banking, etc. Commerce provides the necessary link between producers and consumers. It embraces all those activities, which are necessary for maintaining a free flow of goods and services. Thus, all activities involving the removal of hindrances in the process of exchange are included in commerce. The hindrances may be in respect of persons, place, time, risk, finance, etc. The hindrance of persons is removed by trade, thereby, making goods available to consumers from the possession or ownership producers.