Import/export HS code 9704: Postage stamps and related items

Includes used or unused stamps, first-day covers, and stamped paper, except for those in heading 4907

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 4,116,627
France 3,726,289
Switzerland 3,534,851
Sweden 2,199,756
Czechia 2,170,411

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 547,580 3,569,047 +3,021,467
France 3,286,562 439,727 -2,846,835
Switzerland 2,219,395 1,315,456 -903,939
Sweden 30,877 2,168,879 +2,138,002
Czechia 11,410 2,159,001 +2,147,591
Australia 872,343 1,120,667 +248,324
United States 638,153 787,577 +149,424
Japan 67,513 1,325,367 +1,257,854
Italy 90,944 1,188,308 +1,097,364
Belgium 26,250 738,365 +712,115

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 £
Switzerland 3,468,588
United Kingdom 3,437,802
Germany 3,117,803
Sweden 2,194,726
Czechia 2,171,388

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 £
Switzerland 2,217,262 1,251,326 -965,936
United Kingdom 3,237,464 200,338 -3,037,126
Germany 460,987 2,656,816 +2,195,829
Sweden 29,998 2,164,728 +2,134,730
Czechia 11,410 2,159,978 +2,148,568
Australia 852,343 1,105,687 +253,344
Japan 68,948 1,318,027 +1,249,079
Italy 85,176 1,186,000 +1,100,824
United States 560,077 707,160 +147,083
Canada 17,000 1,052,802 +1,035,802

Importers across UK regions

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

Top 5 values

UK region Companies
Inner London - West 10
Inner London - East 3
Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire 2
Essex 2
Greater Manchester 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
Inner London - West 6 5 -1
Inner London - East 3 1 -2
Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire 1 1 +0
Essex 1 2 +1
Greater Manchester 1 1 +0
Highlands and Islands 2 2 +0
Outer London - West and North West 2 1 -1
Gloucestershire and Wiltshire 1 1 +0
Lancashire 0 1 +1
Leicestershire, Rutland and Northamptonshire 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 £
Air transport 23,633,602
Roll on Roll off (RORO) 2,486,384
Road transport 325,239
Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) 226,835
Other 15,752

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 7,230,999 16,402,603 +9,171,604
Roll on Roll off (RORO) 1,514,362 972,022 -542,340
Road transport 152,180 173,059 +20,879
Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) 122,832 104,003 -18,829
Other 14,901 851 -14,050

Import volume by port

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

Top 5 values

Port £
Birmingham Airport 10,138,336
London Heathrow Airport 8,191,219
London Stansted Airport 3,031,398
London 1,698,659
East Midlands Airport 1,078,099

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 £
Birmingham Airport 408,813 9,729,523 +9,320,710
London Heathrow Airport 3,916,017 4,275,202 +359,185
London Stansted Airport 1,826,195 1,205,203 -620,992
London 1,220,794 477,865 -742,929
East Midlands Airport 666,241 411,858 -254,383
499 0 466,861 +466,861
Eurotunnel 100,709 239,616 +138,907
ZLC 152,180 170,988 +18,808
London City Airport 169,129 32,248 -136,881
Dover 66,817 129,348 +62,531

Importer companies by SIC division

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

Top 5 values

SIC Companies
Retail trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles 9
Wholesale trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles 5
Manufacture of beverages 4
Other personal service activities 4
Office administrative, office support and other business support activities 3

Importer companies over time

What this shows: Monthly count of unique importing companies.

Latest 5

Month Companies
2026-01 2
2025-11 5
2025-10 1
2025-09 3
2025-08 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
54m+ 15
1m-15m 8
0-1m 6
Other 3
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 9,328,322
Switzerland 8,283,264
South Korea 4,847,422
China, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region 4,791,470
Germany 3,418,283

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 7,804,382 1,523,940 -6,280,442
Switzerland 6,615,824 1,667,440 -4,948,384
South Korea 0 4,847,422 +4,847,422
China, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region 878,533 3,912,937 +3,034,404
Germany 218,713 3,199,570 +2,980,857
Denmark 2,272,502 348,625 -1,923,877
Czechia 177,261 2,281,258 +2,103,997
Sweden 6,072 2,101,219 +2,095,147
Uruguay 0 1,510,000 +1,510,000
France 824,889 401,223 -423,666

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 £
XI 636

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 £
XI 636 0 -636

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 50,646,244
Roll on Roll off (RORO) 1,651,849
Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) 139,457
Road transport 4,965
Other 636

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 21,403,023 29,243,221 +7,840,198
Roll on Roll off (RORO) 1,010,119 641,730 -368,389
Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) 58,400 81,057 +22,657
Road transport 4,965 0 -4,965
Other 636 0 -636

Export volume by port

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

Top 5 values

Port £
London Heathrow Airport 29,209,644
Birmingham Airport 12,877,043
London Stansted Airport 3,677,997
ZLC 2,454,758
East Midlands Airport 1,565,109

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 14,977,545 14,232,099 -745,446
Birmingham Airport 1,379,197 11,497,846 +10,118,649
London Stansted Airport 2,372,737 1,305,260 -1,067,477
ZLC 1,910,955 543,803 -1,367,152
East Midlands Airport 583,233 981,876 +398,643
London 739,760 0 -739,760
London Gatwick Airport 49,855 518,002 +468,147
Harwich 134,934 176,840 +41,906
Dover / Eurotunnel 44,212 255,689 +211,477
Immingham Docks 130,730 136,962 +6,232

Quick facts

HS code: 9704

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

Description: Includes used or unused stamps, first-day covers, and stamped paper, except for those in heading 4907