Import/export HS code 8478: Tobacco processing machines
Machines used to prepare or make tobacco 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 | £ |
|---|---|
| South Korea | 4,869,898 |
| Italy | 2,589,188 |
| South Africa | 2,431,559 |
| China | 1,760,334 |
| United States | 1,611,472 |
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 £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| South Korea | 551,675 | 4,318,223 | +3,766,548 |
| Italy | 127,973 | 2,461,215 | +2,333,242 |
| South Africa | 730,316 | 1,701,243 | +970,927 |
| China | 996,326 | 764,008 | -232,318 |
| United States | 166,149 | 1,445,323 | +1,279,174 |
| Czechia | 842,097 | 753,007 | -89,090 |
| Germany | 744,580 | 572,344 | -172,236 |
| Netherlands | 408,549 | 580,649 | +172,100 |
| Switzerland | 489,348 | 192,022 | -297,326 |
| Norway | 499,171 | 44,034 | -455,137 |
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 | £ |
|---|---|
| South Korea | 3,812,483 |
| Italy | 2,614,991 |
| South Africa | 2,326,797 |
| China | 1,926,358 |
| Czechia | 1,601,649 |
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 £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| South Korea | 487,361 | 3,325,122 | +2,837,761 |
| Italy | 152,723 | 2,462,268 | +2,309,545 |
| South Africa | 681,184 | 1,645,613 | +964,429 |
| China | 1,115,377 | 810,981 | -304,396 |
| Czechia | 819,252 | 782,397 | -36,855 |
| United States | 164,152 | 1,405,115 | +1,240,963 |
| United Kingdom | 289,512 | 1,152,136 | +862,624 |
| Germany | 653,351 | 605,671 | -47,680 |
| Norway | 499,171 | 349,816 | -149,355 |
| Switzerland | 447,324 | 195,721 | -251,603 |
Importers across UK regions
What this shows: Number of importing companies by UK ITL2 region.
Top 5 values
| UK region | Companies |
|---|---|
| Inner London - West | 8 |
| Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire | 7 |
| Greater Manchester | 7 |
| Leicestershire, Rutland and Northamptonshire | 6 |
| Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire | 5 |
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 | 7 | 4 | -3 |
| Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire | 4 | 4 | +0 |
| Greater Manchester | 4 | 4 | +0 |
| Leicestershire, Rutland and Northamptonshire | 5 | 1 | -4 |
| Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire | 3 | 3 | +0 |
| Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire | 2 | 2 | +0 |
| Cheshire | 2 | 3 | +1 |
| Hampshire and Isle of Wight | 2 | 4 | +2 |
| South East Wales | 1 | 3 | +2 |
| East Central Scotland | 3 | 1 | -2 |
Import volume by transport
What this shows: Import value by transport mode used to bring goods into the UK.
Top 5 values
| Transport | £ |
|---|---|
| Air transport | 11,238,330 |
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 5,679,089 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 3,363,329 |
| Road transport | 246,867 |
| Other | 1,676 |
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 £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Air transport | 2,817,762 | 8,420,568 | +5,602,806 |
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 1,883,825 | 3,795,264 | +1,911,439 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 2,044,380 | 1,318,949 | -725,431 |
| Road transport | 11,947 | 234,920 | +222,973 |
| Other | 128 | 1,548 | +1,420 |
Import volume by port
What this shows: Import value handled by each UK port.
Top 5 values
| Port | £ |
|---|---|
| London Heathrow Airport | 8,870,316 |
| Dover | 3,320,356 |
| Eurotunnel | 1,716,766 |
| East Midlands Airport | 1,485,710 |
| Southampton | 1,303,361 |
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 £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| London Heathrow Airport | 1,290,106 | 7,580,210 | +6,290,104 |
| Dover | 626,527 | 2,693,829 | +2,067,302 |
| Eurotunnel | 1,031,913 | 684,853 | -347,060 |
| East Midlands Airport | 982,786 | 502,924 | -479,862 |
| Southampton | 594,424 | 708,937 | +114,513 |
| Felixstowe | 267,747 | 433,300 | +165,553 |
| Aberdeen Docks | 482,675 | 44,034 | -438,641 |
| Thamesport | 390,156 | 26,980 | -363,176 |
| London Stansted Airport | 136,748 | 226,545 | +89,797 |
| ZLC | 100,839 | 236,158 | +135,319 |
Importer companies by SIC division
What this shows: Industry breakdown (SIC divisions) of importing companies.
Top 5 values
| SIC | Companies |
|---|---|
| Manufacture of machinery and equipment n.e.c. | 25 |
| Wholesale trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles | 25 |
| Retail trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles | 8 |
| Manufacture of computer, electronic and optical products | 6 |
| Manufacture of fabricated metal products, except machinery and equipment | 6 |
Importer companies over time
What this shows: Monthly count of unique importing companies.
Latest 5
| Month | Companies |
|---|---|
| 2025-11 | 15 |
| 2025-10 | 19 |
| 2025-09 | 12 |
| 2025-08 | 10 |
| 2025-07 | 16 |
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 | 52 |
| 54m+ | 36 |
| 15m-54m | 12 |
| 0-1m | 8 |
| Other | 6 |
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 | £ |
|---|---|
| South Korea | 12,934,428 |
| United States | 10,840,667 |
| Indonesia | 10,605,722 |
| Italy | 10,602,889 |
| Germany | 4,654,706 |
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 £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| South Korea | 12,082,228 | 852,200 | -11,230,028 |
| United States | 3,536,937 | 7,303,730 | +3,766,793 |
| Indonesia | 6,827,846 | 3,777,876 | -3,049,970 |
| Italy | 235,191 | 10,367,698 | +10,132,507 |
| Germany | 2,896,870 | 1,757,836 | -1,139,034 |
| Egypt | 2,059,427 | 1,031,057 | -1,028,370 |
| Netherlands | 889,270 | 1,674,713 | +785,443 |
| China | 1,744,237 | 578,817 | -1,165,420 |
| United Arab Emirates | 1,402,023 | 808,707 | -593,316 |
| Japan | 1,812,987 | 320,913 | -1,492,074 |
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 | 1,149 |
| China | 58 |
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 | 587 | 562 | -25 |
| China | 58 | 0 | -58 |
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 | 51,003,454 |
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 18,866,037 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 13,257,052 |
| Road transport | 261,234 |
| Other | 1,207 |
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 | 34,907,216 | 16,096,238 | -18,810,978 |
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 4,228,870 | 14,637,167 | +10,408,297 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 5,775,991 | 7,481,061 | +1,705,070 |
| Road transport | 261,234 | 0 | -261,234 |
| Other | 645 | 562 | -83 |
Export volume by port
What this shows: Export value handled by each UK port.
Top 5 values
| Port | £ |
|---|---|
| London Heathrow Airport | 40,045,856 |
| Dover / Eurotunnel | 16,945,298 |
| East Midlands Airport | 8,735,380 |
| Southampton | 5,705,020 |
| London Gateway Port | 5,275,682 |
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 £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| London Heathrow Airport | 28,794,460 | 11,251,396 | -17,543,064 |
| Dover / Eurotunnel | 3,516,684 | 13,428,614 | +9,911,930 |
| East Midlands Airport | 5,167,199 | 3,568,181 | -1,599,018 |
| Southampton | 914,643 | 4,790,377 | +3,875,734 |
| London Gateway Port | 2,955,685 | 2,319,997 | -635,688 |
| Felixstowe | 1,899,902 | 151,087 | -1,748,815 |
| Manchester Airport | 447,131 | 675,227 | +228,096 |
| Immingham Docks | 7,680 | 1,030,944 | +1,023,264 |
| ZLC | 461,472 | 291,426 | -170,046 |
| London Stansted Airport | 298,944 | 301,458 | +2,514 |
Related HS codes
What this shows: Sibling or child HS codes in the same classification branch.
Quick facts
HS code: 8478
Coverage: United Kingdom, most metrics for the last 24 months
Description: Machines used to prepare or make tobacco products