Import/export HS code 52010010: Bleached or absorbent cotton

Cotton that has been treated to make it white or more absorbent, often used in medical or cosmetic products

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 £
Portugal 562,249
Netherlands 124,572
Germany 90,792
United States 46,036
France 42,731

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 £
Portugal 368,272 193,977 -174,295
Netherlands 118,945 5,627 -113,318
Germany 67,988 22,804 -45,184
United States 1,131 44,905 +43,774
France 42,731 0 -42,731
Poland 23,038 13,289 -9,749
India 0 34,503 +34,503
China 11,895 2,869 -9,026
Norway 13,185 0 -13,185
Italy 0 4,191 +4,191

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 £
Portugal 566,440
China 84,039
France 42,731
United States 42,161
Poland 36,327

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 £
Portugal 368,272 198,168 -170,104
China 79,883 4,156 -75,727
France 42,731 0 -42,731
United States 1,131 41,030 +39,899
Poland 23,038 13,289 -9,749
India 0 34,503 +34,503
Netherlands 25,958 0 -25,958
Germany 3,073 22,804 +19,731
Norway 13,185 0 -13,185
Denmark 0 8,215 +8,215

Importers across UK regions

What this shows: Number of importing companies by UK ITL2 region.

Top 5 values

UK region Companies
Outer London - West and North West 2
Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire 1
Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire 1
East Central Scotland 1
Greater Manchester 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
Outer London - West and North West 2 0 -2
Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire 1 0 -1
Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire 0 1 +1
East Central Scotland 0 1 +1
Greater Manchester 1 1 +0
Hampshire and Isle of Wight 1 0 -1
Inner London - West 1 0 -1
Lincolnshire 1 0 -1
Norfolk 0 1 +1
South East Wales 1 0 -1

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) 388,138
Roll on Roll off (RORO) 374,031
Air transport 120,509
Other 92,987

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) 215,578 172,560 -43,018
Roll on Roll off (RORO) 253,704 120,327 -133,377
Air transport 87,989 32,520 -55,469
Other 92,987 0 -92,987

Import volume by port

What this shows: Import value handled by each UK port.

Top 5 values

Port £
Liverpool Docks 450,606
000 92,987
Dover 88,573
London Heathrow Airport 69,215
London 56,591

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 £
Liverpool Docks 317,069 133,537 -183,532
000 92,987 0 -92,987
Dover 65,769 22,804 -42,965
London Heathrow Airport 69,215 0 -69,215
London 28,356 28,235 -121
East Midlands Airport 18,774 32,520 +13,746
Thamesport 18,839 32,205 +13,366
Southampton 2,020 34,503 +32,483
Eurotunnel 25,958 8,531 -17,427
Belfast Port 0 15,627 +15,627

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 6
Retail trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles 5
Other personal service activities 2
Manufacture of chemicals and chemical products 1
Manufacture of paper and paper products 1

Importer companies over time

What this shows: Monthly count of unique importing companies.

Latest 5

Month Companies
2025-10 2
2025-03 1
2025-02 2
2024-12 3
2024-11 2

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
1m-15m 6
54m+ 3
0-1m 2
15m-54m 2

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 963,209
France 195,541
Austria 182,927
Italy 121,094
United Arab Emirates 101,700

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 919,668 43,541 -876,127
France 103,364 92,177 -11,187
Austria 182,927 0 -182,927
Italy 29,497 91,597 +62,100
United Arab Emirates 74,187 27,513 -46,674
Germany 85,421 11,353 -74,068
Ireland 82,222 4,058 -78,164
China, Macao Special Administrative Region 59,260 0 -59,260
Norway 35,951 18,647 -17,304
China 40,460 1,063 -39,397

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 £
Ireland 34

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 £
Ireland 16 18 +2

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 2,276,800
Roll on Roll off (RORO) 132,233
Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) 98,308
Other 34

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 2,068,064 208,736 -1,859,328
Roll on Roll off (RORO) 25,704 106,529 +80,825
Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) 65,210 33,098 -32,112
Other 16 18 +2

Export volume by port

What this shows: Export value handled by each UK port.

Top 5 values

Port £
East Midlands Airport 1,828,651
London Heathrow Airport 306,102
Dover / Eurotunnel 111,565
London Stansted Airport 70,077
London Gateway Port 66,624

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 £
East Midlands Airport 1,676,374 152,277 -1,524,097
London Heathrow Airport 292,593 13,509 -279,084
Dover / Eurotunnel 12,184 99,381 +87,197
London Stansted Airport 37,703 32,374 -5,329
London Gateway Port 48,758 17,866 -30,892
ZLC 55,771 10,576 -45,195
Immingham Docks 12,708 9,059 -3,649
Southampton 4,127 9,281 +5,154
Dover 10,512 0 -10,512
Holyhead 0 4,040 +4,040

Quick facts

HS code: 52010010

Coverage: United Kingdom, most metrics for the last 24 months

Description: Cotton that has been treated to make it white or more absorbent, often used in medical or cosmetic products