Import/export HS code 2805: Alkali and rare-earth metals
Includes metals like sodium, calcium, and rare-earth metals used in batteries, alloys, and electronics
Why this is important if you are looking for potential customers in the UK:
- It helps you understand the market size for your product in the UK.
- It provides you with a list of potential leads who have bought similar products.
* UK only, last 24 months analysed
Imports by country
What this shows: Import market volume by exporter country into the UK.
Top 5 values
| Country | £ |
|---|---|
| United States | 26,896,266 |
| France | 3,012,374 |
| China | 2,891,955 |
| Ireland | 1,274,130 |
| Netherlands | 675,454 |
Countries rank shift: first 12 months vs second 12 months
What this shows: Countries are on both sides of the Sankey. Left side is sorted by first 12-month volume, right side by second 12-month volume, so rank changes are visible from line crossings.
Top 10 values
| Country | First 12m £ | Second 12m £ | Delta £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States | 14,342,595 | 12,553,671 | -1,788,924 |
| France | 1,737,878 | 1,274,496 | -463,382 |
| China | 1,028,297 | 1,863,658 | +835,361 |
| Ireland | 676,470 | 597,660 | -78,810 |
| Netherlands | 327,611 | 347,843 | +20,232 |
| Germany | 147,491 | 408,032 | +260,541 |
| Austria | 299,408 | 207,305 | -92,103 |
| Japan | 4,758 | 191,337 | +186,579 |
| India | 70,638 | 96,964 | +26,326 |
| Thailand | 60,678 | 58,157 | -2,521 |
Imports by country of origin
What this shows: Import volume by production origin country. Differences from exporter-country data can indicate re-export routes.
Top 5 values
| Origin | £ |
|---|---|
| United States | 24,884,001 |
| China | 6,569,366 |
| France | 2,770,262 |
| Germany | 213,541 |
| Japan | 196,095 |
Country of origin rank shift: first 12 months vs second 12 months
What this shows: Origin countries are on both sides of the Sankey. Left side is sorted by first 12-month import value, right side by second 12-month import value, so rank changes are visible from line crossings.
Top 10 values
| Origin | First 12m £ | Second 12m £ | Delta £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States | 14,197,224 | 10,686,777 | -3,510,447 |
| China | 2,039,576 | 4,529,790 | +2,490,214 |
| France | 1,541,409 | 1,228,853 | -312,556 |
| Germany | 122,039 | 91,502 | -30,537 |
| Japan | 4,758 | 191,337 | +186,579 |
| India | 70,638 | 96,964 | +26,326 |
| Thailand | 60,678 | 58,157 | -2,521 |
| Austria | 21,058 | 68,512 | +47,454 |
| Taiwan | 11,894 | 47,884 | +35,990 |
| Hungary | 21,858 | 9,646 | -12,212 |
Importers across UK regions
What this shows: Number of importing companies by UK ITL2 region.
Top 5 values
| UK region | Companies |
|---|---|
| Shropshire and Staffordshire | 3 |
| Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire | 2 |
| Cheshire | 2 |
| Inner London - West | 2 |
| Cambridgeshire and Peterborough | 1 |
UK regions rank shift: first 12 months vs second 12 months
What this shows: UK regions are on both sides of the Sankey. Left side is sorted by first 12-month importer count, right side by second 12-month importer count, so rank changes are visible from line crossings.
Top 10 values
| UK region | First 12m | Second 12m | Delta |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shropshire and Staffordshire | 1 | 3 | +2 |
| Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire | 2 | 1 | -1 |
| Cheshire | 2 | 2 | +0 |
| Inner London - West | 1 | 1 | +0 |
| Cambridgeshire and Peterborough | 1 | 1 | +0 |
| Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire | 1 | 1 | +0 |
| Essex | 1 | 1 | +0 |
| Greater Manchester | 1 | 1 | +0 |
| Inner London - East | 0 | 1 | +1 |
| Leicestershire, Rutland and Northamptonshire | 1 | 1 | +0 |
Import volume by transport
What this shows: Import value by transport mode used to bring goods into the UK.
Top 5 values
| Transport | £ |
|---|---|
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 28,590,225 |
| Air transport | 3,409,841 |
| Other | 2,289,592 |
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 2,205,827 |
| Road transport | 2,233 |
Transport rank shift: first 12 months vs second 12 months
What this shows: Transport modes are on both sides of the Sankey. Left side is sorted by first 12-month import value, right side by second 12-month import value, so rank changes are visible from line crossings.
Top 10 values
| Transport | First 12m £ | Second 12m £ | Delta £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 16,027,733 | 12,562,492 | -3,465,241 |
| Air transport | 873,170 | 2,536,671 | +1,663,501 |
| Other | 823,392 | 1,466,200 | +642,808 |
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 1,080,197 | 1,125,630 | +45,433 |
| Road transport | 2,233 | 0 | -2,233 |
Import volume by port
What this shows: Import value handled by each UK port.
Top 5 values
| Port | £ |
|---|---|
| Southampton | 21,553,868 |
| London Gateway Port | 2,756,040 |
| 000 | 2,289,592 |
| Felixstowe | 2,176,896 |
| Manchester Airport | 1,759,126 |
Port rank shift: first 12 months vs second 12 months
What this shows: Ports are on both sides of the Sankey. Left side is sorted by first 12-month import value, right side by second 12-month import value, so rank changes are visible from line crossings.
Top 10 values
| Port | First 12m £ | Second 12m £ | Delta £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Southampton | 12,248,589 | 9,305,279 | -2,943,310 |
| London Gateway Port | 1,830,438 | 925,602 | -904,836 |
| 000 | 823,392 | 1,466,200 | +642,808 |
| Felixstowe | 665,624 | 1,511,272 | +845,648 |
| Manchester Airport | 346,753 | 1,412,373 | +1,065,620 |
| Hull | 881,907 | 721,191 | -160,716 |
| Dover | 269,914 | 355,673 | +85,759 |
| Portsmouth | 376,942 | 213,186 | -163,756 |
| London Stansted Airport | 183,364 | 343,632 | +160,268 |
| London Heathrow Airport | 172,578 | 345,240 | +172,662 |
Importer companies by SIC division
What this shows: Industry breakdown (SIC divisions) of importing companies.
Top 5 values
| SIC | Companies |
|---|---|
| Manufacture of basic metals | 6 |
| Manufacture of chemicals and chemical products | 5 |
| Wholesale trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles | 5 |
| Manufacture of other non-metallic mineral products | 3 |
| Manufacture of electrical equipment | 2 |
Importer companies over time
What this shows: Monthly count of unique importing companies.
Latest 5
| Month | Companies |
|---|---|
| 2025-11 | 10 |
| 2025-10 | 6 |
| 2025-09 | 2 |
| 2025-08 | 2 |
| 2025-07 | 4 |
Top importers
What this shows: Companies with the highest number of months traded for this HS code.
Importer company size by revenue band
What this shows: Distribution of importers across company revenue bands.
Top 5 values
| Revenue | Companies |
|---|---|
| 54m+ | 10 |
| 1m-15m | 6 |
| 15m-54m | 5 |
| 0-1m | 1 |
| Other | 1 |
Import seasonality
What this shows: Average monthly import pattern from historical data.
Exports by country
What this shows: Export market volume by destination country from the UK.
Top 5 values
| Country | £ |
|---|---|
| United States | 1,724,977 |
| Germany | 942,469 |
| France | 348,172 |
| South Africa | 247,935 |
| Australia | 238,446 |
Export countries rank shift: first 12 months vs second 12 months
What this shows: Destination countries are on both sides of the Sankey. Left side is sorted by first 12-month export volume, right side by second 12-month export volume, so rank changes are visible from line crossings.
Top 10 values
| Country | First 12m £ | Second 12m £ | Delta £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States | 1,028,999 | 695,978 | -333,021 |
| Germany | 400,131 | 542,338 | +142,207 |
| France | 186,508 | 161,664 | -24,844 |
| South Africa | 98,403 | 149,532 | +51,129 |
| Australia | 192,635 | 45,811 | -146,824 |
| Saudi Arabia | 80,856 | 106,666 | +25,810 |
| Switzerland | 70,382 | 46,531 | -23,851 |
| Italy | 61,949 | 53,188 | -8,761 |
| Japan | 26,392 | 49,120 | +22,728 |
| India | 44,708 | 22,701 | -22,007 |
Exports by country of origin
What this shows: Export volume by production origin country. For re-exports, indicates where goods originated before UK export.
Top 5 values
| Origin | £ |
|---|---|
| XI | 6,817 |
| Ireland | 4,152 |
| United States | 486 |
| XU | 236 |
Export origin countries rank shift: first 12 months vs second 12 months
What this shows: Origin countries are on both sides of the Sankey. Left side is sorted by first 12-month export value, right side by second 12-month export value, so rank changes are visible from line crossings.
Top 10 values
| Origin | First 12m £ | Second 12m £ | Delta £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| XI | 3,446 | 3,371 | -75 |
| Ireland | 0 | 4,152 | +4,152 |
| United States | 252 | 234 | -18 |
| XU | 194 | 42 | -152 |
Export volume by transport
What this shows: Export value by transport mode used to ship goods from the UK.
Top 5 values
| Transport | £ |
|---|---|
| Air transport | 1,793,074 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 1,434,598 |
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 1,385,497 |
| Other | 11,691 |
Export transport rank shift: first 12 months vs second 12 months
What this shows: Transport modes are on both sides of the Sankey. Left side is sorted by first 12-month export value, right side by second 12-month export value, so rank changes are visible from line crossings.
Top 10 values
| Transport | First 12m £ | Second 12m £ | Delta £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Air transport | 952,026 | 841,048 | -110,978 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 868,337 | 566,261 | -302,076 |
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 620,550 | 764,947 | +144,397 |
| Other | 3,892 | 7,799 | +3,907 |
Export volume by port
What this shows: Export value handled by each UK port.
Top 5 values
| Port | £ |
|---|---|
| Dover / Eurotunnel | 835,608 |
| London Heathrow Airport | 600,432 |
| London Stansted Airport | 598,370 |
| Southampton | 596,488 |
| Liverpool Docks | 462,625 |
Export port rank shift: first 12 months vs second 12 months
What this shows: Ports are on both sides of the Sankey. Left side is sorted by first 12-month export value, right side by second 12-month export value, so rank changes are visible from line crossings.
Top 10 values
| Port | First 12m £ | Second 12m £ | Delta £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dover / Eurotunnel | 491,523 | 344,085 | -147,438 |
| London Heathrow Airport | 399,676 | 200,756 | -198,920 |
| London Stansted Airport | 219,983 | 378,387 | +158,404 |
| Southampton | 265,039 | 331,449 | +66,410 |
| Liverpool Docks | 357,207 | 105,418 | -251,789 |
| Hull | 40,216 | 277,257 | +237,041 |
| East Midlands Airport | 202,770 | 51,521 | -151,249 |
| Manchester Airport | 45,375 | 129,677 | +84,302 |
| London Gateway Port | 70,574 | 89,601 | +19,027 |
| Felixstowe | 136,762 | 18,884 | -117,878 |
Related HS codes
What this shows: Sibling or child HS codes in the same classification branch.
Quick facts
HS code: 2805
Coverage: United Kingdom, most metrics for the last 24 months
Description: Includes metals like sodium, calcium, and rare-earth metals used in batteries, alloys, and electronics