Our daily lives depend on it, yet commodity trading is an opaque business. This video explains how Switzerland came to play such an important role in this fundamental industry.

Céline Stegmüller

Our clothes, our food and the energy that keeps us going all reached us thanks to commodity trading. However, most discussions about the sector focus on the controversies that surround it, like corruption, deforestation and human rights violations.

Who is involved in commodity trading, and what exactly do they do? How is it that tiny landlocked Switzerland accounts for 22% of global commodities shipping? And what is the Alpine nation doing to regulate this essential yet controversial sector?