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 605,835
Netherlands 124,572
Germany 90,792
France 42,731
Poland 36,327

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 412,969 192,866 -220,103
Netherlands 88,803 35,769 -53,034
Germany 67,988 22,804 -45,184
France 42,731 0 -42,731
Poland 23,038 13,289 -9,749
India 0 34,503 +34,503
United States 1,131 21,063 +19,932
China 11,693 4,254 -7,439
Norway 13,185 0 -13,185
Belgium 3,952 3,242 -710

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 610,026
China 85,222
France 42,731
Poland 36,327
India 34,503

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 412,969 197,057 -215,912
China 79,681 5,541 -74,140
France 42,731 0 -42,731
Poland 23,038 13,289 -9,749
India 0 34,503 +34,503
United States 1,131 25,403 +24,272
Netherlands 25,958 0 -25,958
Germany 3,073 22,804 +19,731
Norway 13,185 0 -13,185
Belgium 3,952 3,242 -710

Importers across UK regions

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

Top 5 values

UK region Companies
Hampshire and Isle of Wight 2
Outer London - West and North West 2
Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire 1
Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire 1
Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire 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
Hampshire and Isle of Wight 2 0 -2
Outer London - West and North West 2 0 -2
Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire 1 0 -1
Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire 1 0 -1
Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire 0 1 +1
East Central Scotland 0 1 +1
Greater Manchester 1 1 +0
Inner London - West 1 0 -1
Lincolnshire 1 0 -1
Norfolk 0 1 +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) 405,827
Roll on Roll off (RORO) 385,484
Air transport 116,246
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) 248,894 156,933 -91,961
Roll on Roll off (RORO) 266,268 119,216 -147,052
Air transport 90,556 25,690 -64,866
Other 62,845 30,142 -32,703

Import volume by port

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

Top 5 values

Port £
Liverpool Docks 460,610
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 328,184 132,426 -195,758
000 62,845 30,142 -32,703
Dover 65,769 22,804 -42,965
London Heathrow Airport 69,215 0 -69,215
London 28,356 28,235 -121
Thamesport 18,839 32,205 +13,366
Eurotunnel 41,712 8,531 -33,181
East Midlands Airport 21,341 25,690 +4,349
Southampton 2,020 34,503 +32,483
London Gateway Port 17,828 0 -17,828

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 8
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+ 5
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 961,899
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 914,637 47,262 -867,375
France 92,243 103,298 +11,055
Austria 182,927 0 -182,927
Italy 29,497 91,597 +62,100
United Arab Emirates 71,823 29,877 -41,946
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 35,775 5,748 -30,027

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 2,275,490
Roll on Roll off (RORO) 132,233
Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) 103,915
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 2,040,738 234,752 -1,805,986
Roll on Roll off (RORO) 25,297 106,936 +81,639
Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) 67,126 36,789 -30,337
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 68,767
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 1,666,945 161,706 -1,505,239
London Heathrow Airport 292,593 13,509 -279,084
Dover / Eurotunnel 11,777 99,788 +88,011
London Stansted Airport 35,052 33,715 -1,337
London Gateway Port 43,993 22,631 -21,362
ZLC 40,525 25,822 -14,703
Immingham Docks 14,192 7,985 -6,207
Southampton 4,127 9,281 +5,154
Dover 10,512 0 -10,512
Felixstowe 7,822 0 -7,822

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