The Indus Valley was an agricultural society, but trade was very important. The Indus Valley did not have access to a lot of raw materials. Trade routes connected urban areas to share resources such as stones and metals.

There were urban areas, but there also rural areas. Archaeologists have found tools and beads and such in rural areas, suggesting that even those living by hunting traded for such things.

Indus Valley artifacts have been found as far as Afghanistan, Persia, and Mesopotamia. They can tell where the artifacts are from because they find things like clay seals that have Indus texts on them.

Technology enabled advances in trade. The Indus Valley may have been the first place in the world to use wheels in transportation. They used carts, similar to what is still used around India and Pakistan today.

Boats were also used in trade. Boats carried goods down rivers. They had a large trade network with Mesopotamia along water routes.