Import/export HS code 55: Man-made staple fibers
Fibers made by humans, not natural, used in textiles and fabrics
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 | £ |
|---|---|
| Turkey | 88,186,306 |
| Germany | 66,372,955 |
| China | 63,070,779 |
| Italy | 37,225,612 |
| Indonesia | 35,633,734 |
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 £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Turkey | 50,317,537 | 37,868,769 | -12,448,768 |
| Germany | 37,828,175 | 28,544,780 | -9,283,395 |
| China | 31,663,135 | 31,407,644 | -255,491 |
| Italy | 19,984,161 | 17,241,451 | -2,742,710 |
| Indonesia | 20,442,845 | 15,190,889 | -5,251,956 |
| South Korea | 21,572,458 | 13,895,571 | -7,676,887 |
| Viet Nam | 15,734,997 | 14,815,974 | -919,023 |
| India | 14,907,804 | 13,662,497 | -1,245,307 |
| Belgium | 14,159,018 | 12,103,761 | -2,055,257 |
| France | 12,818,573 | 12,595,030 | -223,543 |
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 | £ |
|---|---|
| Turkey | 92,375,654 |
| China | 65,483,866 |
| Germany | 60,499,447 |
| Indonesia | 39,082,960 |
| South Korea | 37,915,101 |
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 £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Turkey | 52,705,022 | 39,670,632 | -13,034,390 |
| China | 33,183,354 | 32,300,512 | -882,842 |
| Germany | 34,109,651 | 26,389,796 | -7,719,855 |
| Indonesia | 22,341,173 | 16,741,787 | -5,599,386 |
| South Korea | 23,290,071 | 14,625,030 | -8,665,041 |
| Italy | 19,835,539 | 17,152,383 | -2,683,156 |
| India | 16,638,743 | 15,815,950 | -822,793 |
| Viet Nam | 16,443,942 | 15,453,884 | -990,058 |
| United States | 14,405,162 | 9,808,054 | -4,597,108 |
| Japan | 8,769,425 | 13,147,526 | +4,378,101 |
Importers across UK regions
What this shows: Number of importing companies by UK ITL2 region.
Top 5 values
| UK region | Companies |
|---|---|
| Inner London - West | 215 |
| West Yorkshire | 127 |
| Greater Manchester | 113 |
| Inner London - East | 76 |
| Leicestershire, Rutland and Northamptonshire | 62 |
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 | 160 | 149 | -11 |
| West Yorkshire | 107 | 106 | -1 |
| Greater Manchester | 81 | 86 | +5 |
| Inner London - East | 55 | 51 | -4 |
| Leicestershire, Rutland and Northamptonshire | 45 | 44 | -1 |
| Outer London - West and North West | 51 | 34 | -17 |
| Lancashire | 45 | 40 | -5 |
| Surrey, East and West Sussex | 44 | 36 | -8 |
| Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire | 42 | 36 | -6 |
| West Midlands | 34 | 38 | +4 |
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) | 370,177,743 |
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 189,875,117 |
| Air transport | 31,894,681 |
| Other | 18,026,031 |
| Road transport | 4,717,827 |
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) | 199,793,492 | 170,384,251 | -29,409,241 |
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 106,372,209 | 83,502,908 | -22,869,301 |
| Air transport | 16,533,572 | 15,361,109 | -1,172,463 |
| Other | 11,208,774 | 6,817,257 | -4,391,517 |
| Road transport | 2,649,349 | 2,068,478 | -580,871 |
Import volume by port
What this shows: Import value handled by each UK port.
Top 5 values
| Port | £ |
|---|---|
| Felixstowe | 159,429,426 |
| Dover | 88,279,058 |
| Southampton | 84,515,828 |
| Liverpool Docks | 50,039,674 |
| London Gateway Port | 39,285,898 |
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 | 104,417,153 | 55,012,273 | -49,404,880 |
| Dover | 45,167,473 | 43,111,585 | -2,055,888 |
| Southampton | 43,969,034 | 40,546,794 | -3,422,240 |
| Liverpool Docks | 23,746,110 | 26,293,564 | +2,547,454 |
| London Gateway Port | 14,494,246 | 24,791,652 | +10,297,406 |
| Eurotunnel | 14,463,147 | 10,458,226 | -4,004,921 |
| 000 | 11,207,282 | 6,809,528 | -4,397,754 |
| Immingham Docks | 10,415,826 | 6,371,877 | -4,043,949 |
| ZLC | 8,633,440 | 6,719,243 | -1,914,197 |
| Grangemouth Docks | 6,088,894 | 8,535,749 | +2,446,855 |
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 | 386 |
| Retail trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles | 292 |
| Manufacture of textiles | 225 |
| Other manufacturing | 89 |
| Manufacture of wearing apparel | 83 |
Importer companies over time
What this shows: Monthly count of unique importing companies.
Latest 5
| Month | Companies |
|---|---|
| 2026-01 | 322 |
| 2025-11 | 334 |
| 2025-10 | 363 |
| 2025-09 | 335 |
| 2025-08 | 312 |
Top importers
What this shows: Companies with the highest number of months traded for this HS code.
| Company | Months traded |
|---|---|
| JOHN COTTON GROUP LIMITED | 120 |
| ROMO LIMITED | 120 |
| A.MARTIN BUNZL LIMITED | 120 |
| SANDERSON DESIGN GROUP PLC | 119 |
| SPECTRUM YARNS LIMITED | 119 |
| COLEFAX GROUP PLC | 119 |
| PRESTIGIOUS TEXTILES LIMITED | 119 |
| WARWICK FABRICS (UK) LIMITED | 119 |
| SMD (HOLDINGS) LIMITED | 119 |
| FRYETT'S FABRICS LIMITED | 119 |
Importer company size by revenue band
What this shows: Distribution of importers across company revenue bands.
Top 5 values
| Revenue | Companies |
|---|---|
| 1m-15m | 678 |
| 0-1m | 273 |
| 54m+ | 250 |
| 15m-54m | 135 |
| Other | 73 |
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 | £ |
|---|---|
| Germany | 24,011,986 |
| United States | 21,138,618 |
| Morocco | 13,145,506 |
| France | 13,048,606 |
| Italy | 10,853,167 |
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 £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Germany | 11,970,024 | 12,041,962 | +71,938 |
| United States | 10,848,815 | 10,289,803 | -559,012 |
| Morocco | 7,431,535 | 5,713,971 | -1,717,564 |
| France | 7,856,806 | 5,191,800 | -2,665,006 |
| Italy | 6,397,796 | 4,455,371 | -1,942,425 |
| Turkey | 5,725,230 | 4,794,415 | -930,815 |
| Tunisia | 5,648,202 | 4,481,196 | -1,167,006 |
| Ireland | 5,157,475 | 4,016,059 | -1,141,416 |
| Romania | 4,666,080 | 3,287,879 | -1,378,201 |
| China | 4,218,819 | 3,706,079 | -512,740 |
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 | £ |
|---|---|
| Turkey | 192,119 |
| XI | 70,661 |
| Portugal | 48,569 |
| India | 29,899 |
| Netherlands | 27,482 |
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 £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Turkey | 177,378 | 14,741 | -162,637 |
| XI | 40,818 | 29,843 | -10,975 |
| Portugal | 0 | 48,569 | +48,569 |
| India | 18,047 | 11,852 | -6,195 |
| Netherlands | 3,587 | 23,895 | +20,308 |
| Panama | 11,775 | 11,436 | -339 |
| Belgium | 7,390 | 11,661 | +4,271 |
| Switzerland | 6,829 | 11,871 | +5,042 |
| Spain | 15,521 | 0 | -15,521 |
| Ireland | 5,946 | 5,729 | -217 |
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) | 123,541,902 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 58,966,445 |
| Air transport | 33,032,863 |
| Other | 497,965 |
| Road transport | 451,888 |
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) | 68,510,231 | 55,031,671 | -13,478,560 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 31,273,322 | 27,693,123 | -3,580,199 |
| Air transport | 16,714,169 | 16,318,694 | -395,475 |
| Other | 304,930 | 193,035 | -111,895 |
| Road transport | 451,888 | 0 | -451,888 |
Export volume by port
What this shows: Export value handled by each UK port.
Top 5 values
| Port | £ |
|---|---|
| Dover / Eurotunnel | 83,014,732 |
| Southampton | 19,081,606 |
| Immingham Docks | 18,169,108 |
| London Gateway Port | 14,879,005 |
| London Heathrow Airport | 11,277,419 |
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 | 48,775,292 | 34,239,440 | -14,535,852 |
| Southampton | 8,001,324 | 11,080,282 | +3,078,958 |
| Immingham Docks | 9,202,378 | 8,966,730 | -235,648 |
| London Gateway Port | 9,026,341 | 5,852,664 | -3,173,677 |
| London Heathrow Airport | 4,961,612 | 6,315,807 | +1,354,195 |
| Felixstowe | 4,199,723 | 6,369,962 | +2,170,239 |
| Dover | 5,530,555 | 4,905,369 | -625,186 |
| East Midlands Airport | 5,034,478 | 3,496,554 | -1,537,924 |
| London Stansted Airport | 3,173,137 | 3,101,110 | -72,027 |
| Liverpool Docks | 2,842,607 | 2,137,846 | -704,761 |
Related HS codes
What this shows: Sibling or child HS codes in the same classification branch.
- 5501 – Synthetic filament tow
- 5502 – Artificial fiber bundles
- 5503 – Synthetic fiber strands, unprocessed
- 5504 – Artificial staple fibers, not processed for spinning
- 5505 – Waste of man-made fibers
- 5506 – Synthetic fibers ready for spinning
- 5507 – Artificial fibers ready for spinning
- 5508 – Sewing thread made from man-made fibers
- 5509 – Yarn made from synthetic fibers
- 5510 – Yarn made from artificial fibers, not for retail sale
- 5511 – Yarn made from man-made fibers, for retail sale
- 5512 – Woven fabrics made mostly of synthetic fibers
- 5513 – Lightweight synthetic-cotton fabrics
- 5514 – Woven fabrics made of synthetic fibers mixed with cotton
- 5515 – Woven fabrics made of synthetic fibers
- 5516 – Woven fabrics made from artificial fibers
Quick facts
HS code: 55
Coverage: United Kingdom, most metrics for the last 24 months
Description: Fibers made by humans, not natural, used in textiles and fabrics