Import/export HS code 481960: Office storage items
Paper-based office supplies like box files, letter trays, and storage boxes
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 | £ |
|---|---|
| China | 10,367,557 |
| Ireland | 5,277,963 |
| Turkey | 4,693,128 |
| Germany | 3,185,971 |
| Netherlands | 2,165,100 |
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 £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| China | 5,602,873 | 4,764,684 | -838,189 |
| Ireland | 2,670,360 | 2,607,603 | -62,757 |
| Turkey | 2,405,114 | 2,288,014 | -117,100 |
| Germany | 1,649,788 | 1,536,183 | -113,605 |
| Netherlands | 793,865 | 1,371,235 | +577,370 |
| United States | 360,020 | 1,626,879 | +1,266,859 |
| Lithuania | 1,004,703 | 935,807 | -68,896 |
| France | 485,718 | 651,335 | +165,617 |
| China, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region | 414,724 | 376,599 | -38,125 |
| Poland | 296,757 | 302,869 | +6,112 |
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 | £ |
|---|---|
| China | 12,075,827 |
| Turkey | 4,694,446 |
| Germany | 3,072,973 |
| Ireland | 2,206,809 |
| Lithuania | 2,173,874 |
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 £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| China | 6,366,015 | 5,709,812 | -656,203 |
| Turkey | 2,408,079 | 2,286,367 | -121,712 |
| Germany | 1,602,425 | 1,470,548 | -131,877 |
| Ireland | 1,070,982 | 1,135,827 | +64,845 |
| Lithuania | 1,014,532 | 1,159,342 | +144,810 |
| United States | 383,730 | 1,609,837 | +1,226,107 |
| Netherlands | 585,840 | 701,672 | +115,832 |
| Poland | 411,714 | 748,263 | +336,549 |
| Italy | 266,937 | 511,325 | +244,388 |
| France | 465,817 | 240,061 | -225,756 |
Importers across UK regions
What this shows: Number of importing companies by UK ITL2 region.
Top 5 values
| UK region | Companies |
|---|---|
| Inner London - West | 97 |
| Greater Manchester | 72 |
| Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire | 49 |
| Inner London - East | 43 |
| Outer London - West and North West | 35 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inner London - West | 56 | 56 | +0 |
| Greater Manchester | 52 | 35 | -17 |
| Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire | 28 | 29 | +1 |
| Inner London - East | 26 | 27 | +1 |
| Outer London - West and North West | 26 | 19 | -7 |
| Leicestershire, Rutland and Northamptonshire | 22 | 20 | -2 |
| West Yorkshire | 20 | 10 | -10 |
| Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire | 14 | 13 | -1 |
| West Midlands | 16 | 7 | -9 |
| Gloucestershire and Wiltshire | 14 | 8 | -6 |
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) | 13,172,137 |
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 11,535,296 |
| Air transport | 6,590,050 |
| Other | 3,917,402 |
| Road transport | 731,255 |
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) | 6,430,832 | 6,741,305 | +310,473 |
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 5,607,955 | 5,927,341 | +319,386 |
| Air transport | 3,341,421 | 3,248,629 | -92,792 |
| Other | 2,108,398 | 1,809,004 | -299,394 |
| Road transport | 408,510 | 322,745 | -85,765 |
Import volume by port
What this shows: Import value handled by each UK port.
Top 5 values
| Port | £ |
|---|---|
| Felixstowe | 7,336,345 |
| Dover | 4,040,789 |
| 000 | 3,917,402 |
| ZLC | 3,180,792 |
| Southampton | 2,691,957 |
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 £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Felixstowe | 3,954,744 | 3,381,601 | -573,143 |
| Dover | 1,947,933 | 2,092,856 | +144,923 |
| 000 | 2,108,398 | 1,809,004 | -299,394 |
| ZLC | 1,601,948 | 1,578,844 | -23,104 |
| Southampton | 1,043,864 | 1,648,093 | +604,229 |
| London Heathrow Airport | 766,020 | 1,192,081 | +426,061 |
| Liverpool John Lennon Airport - Speke | 892,984 | 1,029,428 | +136,444 |
| Eurotunnel | 558,601 | 762,165 | +203,564 |
| Middlesbrough | 663,476 | 645,438 | -18,038 |
| East Midlands Airport | 741,282 | 467,671 | -273,611 |
Importer companies by SIC division
What this shows: Industry breakdown (SIC divisions) of importing companies.
Top 5 values
| SIC | Companies |
|---|---|
| Wholesale trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles | 233 |
| Retail trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles | 223 |
| Office administrative, office support and other business support activities | 44 |
| Other manufacturing | 34 |
| Manufacture of paper and paper products | 24 |
Importer companies over time
What this shows: Monthly count of unique importing companies.
Latest 5
| Month | Companies |
|---|---|
| 2025-11 | 94 |
| 2025-10 | 105 |
| 2025-09 | 79 |
| 2025-08 | 81 |
| 2025-07 | 86 |
Top importers
What this shows: Companies with the highest number of months traded for this HS code.
| Company | Months traded |
|---|---|
| PRESERVATION EQUIPMENT LIMITED | 102 |
| TG JONES HIGH STREET LIMITED | 101 |
| MATALAN RETAIL LTD. | 101 |
| ACCO UK LIMITED | 98 |
| ROCABA PACKAGING LIMITED | 80 |
| COCHLEAR EUROPE LIMITED | 78 |
| TJX UK | 73 |
| DUNELM (SOFT FURNISHINGS) LTD | 70 |
| PRECIOUS PACKAGING LTD | 66 |
| ESTEE LAUDER COSMETICS LIMITED | 63 |
Importer company size by revenue band
What this shows: Distribution of importers across company revenue bands.
Top 5 values
| Revenue | Companies |
|---|---|
| 1m-15m | 259 |
| 54m+ | 188 |
| 0-1m | 133 |
| 15m-54m | 70 |
| Other | 49 |
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 | £ |
|---|---|
| Ireland | 2,272,209 |
| France | 1,931,971 |
| Netherlands | 881,904 |
| Belgium | 576,234 |
| Germany | 487,124 |
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 £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ireland | 1,190,030 | 1,082,179 | -107,851 |
| France | 926,657 | 1,005,314 | +78,657 |
| Netherlands | 460,445 | 421,459 | -38,986 |
| Belgium | 381,056 | 195,178 | -185,878 |
| Germany | 376,686 | 110,438 | -266,248 |
| United States | 161,416 | 152,680 | -8,736 |
| Italy | 192,608 | 21,198 | -171,410 |
| Norway | 32,306 | 72,544 | +40,238 |
| United Arab Emirates | 60,066 | 30,098 | -29,968 |
| Qatar | 79,932 | 9,602 | -70,330 |
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 | £ |
|---|---|
| XU | 61,820 |
| Ireland | 4,388 |
| China | 1,804 |
| Belgium | 293 |
| Sri Lanka | 108 |
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 £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| XU | 41,791 | 20,029 | -21,762 |
| Ireland | 2,187 | 2,201 | +14 |
| China | 1,049 | 755 | -294 |
| Belgium | 118 | 175 | +57 |
| Sri Lanka | 107 | 1 | -106 |
| Netherlands | 36 | 15 | -21 |
| Italy | 48 | 2 | -46 |
| Switzerland | 31 | 0 | -31 |
| Germany | 21 | 0 | -21 |
| India | 0 | 18 | +18 |
Export volume by transport
What this shows: Export value by transport mode used to ship goods from the UK.
Top 5 values
| Transport | £ |
|---|---|
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 6,098,910 |
| Air transport | 1,019,539 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 869,382 |
| Other | 68,588 |
| Road transport | 1,180 |
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 £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 3,154,517 | 2,944,393 | -210,124 |
| Air transport | 606,821 | 412,718 | -194,103 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 722,184 | 147,198 | -574,986 |
| Other | 45,388 | 23,200 | -22,188 |
| Road transport | 1,180 | 0 | -1,180 |
Export volume by port
What this shows: Export value handled by each UK port.
Top 5 values
| Port | £ |
|---|---|
| Dover / Eurotunnel | 2,829,373 |
| Holyhead | 1,080,213 |
| Liverpool Docks | 852,023 |
| East Midlands Airport | 540,018 |
| Immingham Docks | 477,307 |
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 | 1,622,459 | 1,206,914 | -415,545 |
| Holyhead | 515,082 | 565,131 | +50,049 |
| Liverpool Docks | 457,450 | 394,573 | -62,877 |
| East Midlands Airport | 343,395 | 196,623 | -146,772 |
| Immingham Docks | 280,059 | 197,248 | -82,811 |
| Portsmouth | 63,329 | 263,070 | +199,741 |
| Felixstowe | 265,189 | 26,790 | -238,399 |
| Heysham | 86,609 | 122,720 | +36,111 |
| London Heathrow Airport | 66,964 | 137,240 | +70,276 |
| Dover | 92,488 | 98,957 | +6,469 |
Quick facts
HS code: 481960
Coverage: United Kingdom, most metrics for the last 24 months
Description: Paper-based office supplies like box files, letter trays, and storage boxes