Import/export HS code 5504: Artificial staple fibers, not processed for spinning

Unprocessed synthetic fibers used in making yarn or thread. Includes fibers like polyester, nylon, and acrylic

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 £
Germany 15,687,642
Austria 4,832,382
China 1,904,306
Netherlands 1,097,847
Indonesia 717,895

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 £
Germany 10,855,209 4,832,433 -6,022,776
Austria 2,305,406 2,526,976 +221,570
China 1,024,503 879,803 -144,700
Netherlands 733,591 364,256 -369,335
Indonesia 206,678 511,217 +304,539
Japan 13,303 581,410 +568,107
Italy 334,790 194,189 -140,601
Spain 32,062 170,102 +138,040
France 77,042 4,477 -72,565
United States 26,487 40,162 +13,675

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 £
Germany 15,666,965
Austria 5,942,225
China 1,887,057
Italy 793,746
Indonesia 717,895

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 £
Germany 10,836,909 4,830,056 -6,006,853
Austria 3,045,002 2,897,223 -147,779
China 1,024,503 862,554 -161,949
Italy 432,448 361,298 -71,150
Indonesia 206,678 511,217 +304,539
Japan 13,303 581,410 +568,107
Switzerland 16,438 30,049 +13,611
Taiwan 40,147 0 -40,147
Turkey 33,097 0 -33,097
United States 20,080 12,185 -7,895

Importers across UK regions

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

Top 5 values

UK region Companies
West Yorkshire 7
Greater Manchester 5
Inner London - West 4
Lancashire 3
Cheshire 2

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
West Yorkshire 5 6 +1
Greater Manchester 4 4 +0
Inner London - West 4 3 -1
Lancashire 3 2 -1
Cheshire 1 2 +1
Cumbria 1 2 +1
Essex 2 2 +0
Hampshire and Isle of Wight 1 2 +1
Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire 1 0 -1
Cornwall and Isles of Scilly 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 £
Roll on Roll off (RORO) 21,958,674
Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) 3,592,255
Air transport 311,735

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 £
Roll on Roll off (RORO) 14,035,898 7,922,776 -6,113,122
Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) 1,449,819 2,142,436 +692,617
Air transport 235,502 76,233 -159,269

Import volume by port

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

Top 5 values

Port £
Dover 9,868,081
Immingham Docks 4,356,804
Felixstowe 2,535,039
Dover / Eurotunnel 1,540,130
Killingholme 1,533,980

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 £
Dover 4,372,904 5,495,177 +1,122,273
Immingham Docks 4,085,311 271,493 -3,813,818
Felixstowe 1,456,358 1,078,681 -377,677
Dover / Eurotunnel 482,638 1,057,492 +574,854
Killingholme 1,533,980 0 -1,533,980
Harwich 1,062,562 404,155 -658,407
Purfleet 1,165,393 0 -1,165,393
Southampton 301,136 798,355 +497,219
Eurotunnel 500,022 467,820 -32,202
London Gateway Port 173,741 441,630 +267,889

Importer companies by SIC division

What this shows: Industry breakdown (SIC divisions) of importing companies.

Top 5 values

SIC Companies
Manufacture of textiles 14
Wholesale trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles 8
Retail trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles 7
Manufacture of paper and paper products 5
Other manufacturing 4

Importer companies over time

What this shows: Monthly count of unique importing companies.

Latest 5

Month Companies
2026-01 10
2025-11 10
2025-10 10
2025-09 7
2025-08 7

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 16
54m+ 10
15m-54m 6
0-1m 3
Other 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 £
Turkey 428,909
United States 271,601
Viet Nam 170,177
Germany 158,478
Romania 112,394

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 £
Turkey 129,227 299,682 +170,455
United States 192,032 79,569 -112,463
Viet Nam 170,177 0 -170,177
Germany 93,346 65,132 -28,214
Romania 85,187 27,207 -57,980
India 48,418 0 -48,418
Czechia 43,399 0 -43,399
Italy 5,591 23,119 +17,528
Malaysia 25,824 0 -25,824
Sweden 16,033 0 -16,033

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) 718,591
Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) 586,554
Air transport 53,214

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) 361,189 357,402 -3,787
Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) 435,801 150,753 -285,048
Air transport 42,100 11,114 -30,986

Export volume by port

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

Top 5 values

Port £
Dover / Eurotunnel 688,549
Southampton 263,965
Felixstowe 218,595
London Gateway Port 87,961
ZLC 35,273

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 341,950 346,599 +4,649
Southampton 192,510 71,455 -121,055
Felixstowe 218,595 0 -218,595
London Gateway Port 8,663 79,298 +70,635
ZLC 24,159 11,114 -13,045
Immingham Docks 22,681 3,636 -19,045
East Midlands Airport 14,602 0 -14,602
Dover 10,340 0 -10,340
Portsmouth 0 7,167 +7,167
London Stansted Airport 2,373 0 -2,373

Related HS codes

What this shows: Sibling or child HS codes in the same classification branch.

Quick facts

HS code: 5504

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

Description: Unprocessed synthetic fibers used in making yarn or thread. Includes fibers like polyester, nylon, and acrylic