[citation needed] The town is situated in an agricultural area; farmers produce maize, cotton, sunflower, groundnut, soya beans and many other crops.

Industries include two cotton ginneries, one roofing industry, a number of small scale maize millers and cooking-oil refiners, three breweries, and small scale saw-mills.

[citation needed] The region around Petauke contains copper, amethyst, and gold.

In the early 17th century, gold was mined and that contributed to high rate of slave trade.

[2] The Great East Road (T4) passes to the south of Petauke, connecting to Lusaka in the west (400 kilometres away) and to Katete and Chipata in the east (170 kilometres away).