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 | 6,823,522 |
| Italy | 2,599,500 |
| South Africa | 2,425,381 |
| China | 1,671,681 |
| Czechia | 1,636,575 |
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 | 586,789 | 6,236,733 | +5,649,944 |
| Italy | 111,928 | 2,487,572 | +2,375,644 |
| South Africa | 724,138 | 1,701,243 | +977,105 |
| China | 950,084 | 721,597 | -228,487 |
| Czechia | 828,025 | 808,550 | -19,475 |
| United States | 112,843 | 1,442,486 | +1,329,643 |
| Germany | 667,930 | 626,067 | -41,863 |
| Netherlands | 400,555 | 599,646 | +199,091 |
| Switzerland | 523,569 | 353,871 | -169,698 |
| 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 | 5,785,840 |
| Italy | 2,622,872 |
| South Africa | 2,320,619 |
| China | 1,838,213 |
| Czechia | 1,639,219 |
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 | 548,092 | 5,237,748 | +4,689,656 |
| Italy | 135,163 | 2,487,709 | +2,352,546 |
| South Africa | 675,006 | 1,645,613 | +970,607 |
| China | 1,073,552 | 764,661 | -308,891 |
| Czechia | 802,863 | 836,356 | +33,493 |
| United States | 109,632 | 1,405,839 | +1,296,207 |
| United Kingdom | 275,270 | 1,138,892 | +863,622 |
| Germany | 608,750 | 658,203 | +49,453 |
| Norway | 499,171 | 349,816 | -149,355 |
| Switzerland | 479,960 | 356,587 | -123,373 |
Importers across UK regions
What this shows: Number of importing companies by UK ITL2 region.
Top 5 values
| UK region | Companies |
|---|---|
| Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire | 8 |
| Inner London - West | 8 |
| Greater Manchester | 7 |
| Leicestershire, Rutland and Northamptonshire | 5 |
| Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire | 4 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire | 5 | 4 | -1 |
| Inner London - West | 8 | 3 | -5 |
| Greater Manchester | 4 | 5 | +1 |
| Leicestershire, Rutland and Northamptonshire | 4 | 1 | -3 |
| Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire | 2 | 2 | +0 |
| Cheshire | 2 | 3 | +1 |
| Hampshire and Isle of Wight | 2 | 4 | +2 |
| Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire | 2 | 3 | +1 |
| South East Wales | 1 | 3 | +2 |
| West Midlands | 2 | 2 | +0 |
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 | 11,120,707 |
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 5,718,122 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 5,325,838 |
| Road transport | 440,369 |
| 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 | 2,656,638 | 8,464,069 | +5,807,431 |
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 1,875,625 | 3,842,497 | +1,966,872 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 2,077,281 | 3,248,557 | +1,171,276 |
| Road transport | 44,583 | 395,786 | +351,203 |
| Other | 495 | 1,181 | +686 |
Import volume by port
What this shows: Import value handled by each UK port.
Top 5 values
| Port | £ |
|---|---|
| London Heathrow Airport | 8,781,906 |
| Dover | 3,325,405 |
| Southampton | 3,276,718 |
| Eurotunnel | 1,683,037 |
| East Midlands Airport | 1,517,101 |
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 | 1,197,294 | 7,584,612 | +6,387,318 |
| Dover | 634,291 | 2,691,114 | +2,056,823 |
| Southampton | 682,540 | 2,594,178 | +1,911,638 |
| Eurotunnel | 1,013,712 | 669,325 | -344,387 |
| East Midlands Airport | 944,430 | 572,671 | -371,759 |
| Felixstowe | 255,061 | 435,905 | +180,844 |
| ZLC | 135,712 | 394,787 | +259,075 |
| Aberdeen Docks | 482,675 | 44,034 | -438,641 |
| London Stansted Airport | 132,716 | 259,500 | +126,784 |
| Thamesport | 351,754 | 11,980 | -339,774 |
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 |
|---|---|
| 2026-01 | 14 |
| 2025-11 | 15 |
| 2025-10 | 19 |
| 2025-09 | 12 |
| 2025-08 | 10 |
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 | 54 |
| 54m+ | 35 |
| 15m-54m | 12 |
| 0-1m | 8 |
| Other | 5 |
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 | 12,940,213 |
| United States | 10,696,070 |
| Italy | 10,591,326 |
| Indonesia | 10,583,044 |
| Germany | 4,576,546 |
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 | 12,080,432 | 859,781 | -11,220,651 |
| United States | 3,399,177 | 7,296,893 | +3,897,716 |
| Italy | 268,943 | 10,322,383 | +10,053,440 |
| Indonesia | 6,867,565 | 3,715,479 | -3,152,086 |
| Germany | 3,566,732 | 1,009,814 | -2,556,918 |
| Egypt | 2,274,530 | 848,327 | -1,426,203 |
| Netherlands | 1,032,839 | 1,463,337 | +430,498 |
| China | 1,744,237 | 578,817 | -1,165,420 |
| United Arab Emirates | 1,346,478 | 949,448 | -397,030 |
| Japan | 1,836,755 | 309,411 | -1,527,344 |
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 | £ |
|---|---|
| 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 £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| 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 | 50,654,244 |
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 18,731,155 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 13,245,379 |
| Road transport | 246,471 |
| Other | 1,167 |
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 | 34,795,101 | 15,859,143 | -18,935,958 |
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 5,869,963 | 12,861,192 | +6,991,229 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 6,062,620 | 7,182,759 | +1,120,139 |
| Road transport | 246,471 | 0 | -246,471 |
| Other | 605 | 562 | -43 |
Export volume by port
What this shows: Export value handled by each UK port.
Top 5 values
| Port | £ |
|---|---|
| London Heathrow Airport | 40,020,973 |
| Dover / Eurotunnel | 16,941,120 |
| East Midlands Airport | 8,354,621 |
| Southampton | 5,705,020 |
| London Gateway Port | 5,271,689 |
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 | 28,790,749 | 11,230,224 | -17,560,525 |
| Dover / Eurotunnel | 5,061,873 | 11,879,247 | +6,817,374 |
| East Midlands Airport | 4,944,976 | 3,409,645 | -1,535,331 |
| Southampton | 914,643 | 4,790,377 | +3,875,734 |
| London Gateway Port | 3,182,592 | 2,089,097 | -1,093,495 |
| Felixstowe | 1,899,902 | 151,087 | -1,748,815 |
| Manchester Airport | 455,194 | 667,164 | +211,970 |
| Immingham Docks | 14,494 | 1,016,450 | +1,001,956 |
| ZLC | 474,173 | 324,043 | -150,130 |
| London Stansted Airport | 377,236 | 219,517 | -157,719 |
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