Import/export HS code 2805: Alkali and rare-earth metals
Includes metals like sodium, calcium, and rare-earth metals used in batteries, alloys, and electronics
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 | £ |
|---|---|
| United States | 24,666,712 |
| France | 2,958,830 |
| China | 2,579,084 |
| Ireland | 1,207,447 |
| Germany | 745,834 |
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 £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States | 13,995,326 | 10,671,386 | -3,323,940 |
| France | 1,621,403 | 1,337,427 | -283,976 |
| China | 762,560 | 1,816,524 | +1,053,964 |
| Ireland | 678,987 | 528,460 | -150,527 |
| Germany | 154,623 | 591,211 | +436,588 |
| Netherlands | 206,309 | 342,164 | +135,855 |
| Austria | 253,835 | 208,349 | -45,486 |
| Japan | 4,758 | 191,337 | +186,579 |
| India | 69,217 | 95,404 | +26,187 |
| China, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region | 30,729 | 29,577 | -1,152 |
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 | £ |
|---|---|
| United States | 22,563,236 |
| China | 6,311,116 |
| France | 2,775,437 |
| Germany | 216,621 |
| Japan | 196,095 |
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 £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States | 13,450,207 | 9,113,029 | -4,337,178 |
| China | 1,920,014 | 4,391,102 | +2,471,088 |
| France | 1,483,653 | 1,291,784 | -191,869 |
| Germany | 121,612 | 95,009 | -26,603 |
| Japan | 4,758 | 191,337 | +186,579 |
| India | 69,217 | 95,404 | +26,187 |
| Austria | 15,837 | 69,556 | +53,719 |
| Taiwan | 48,235 | 11,543 | -36,692 |
| Thailand | 0 | 58,157 | +58,157 |
| Hungary | 28,753 | 2,751 | -26,002 |
Importers across UK regions
What this shows: Number of importing companies by UK ITL2 region.
Top 5 values
| UK region | Companies |
|---|---|
| Shropshire and Staffordshire | 3 |
| Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire | 2 |
| Cheshire | 2 |
| Inner London - West | 2 |
| Cambridgeshire and Peterborough | 1 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shropshire and Staffordshire | 1 | 3 | +2 |
| Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire | 2 | 1 | -1 |
| Cheshire | 2 | 2 | +0 |
| Inner London - West | 1 | 1 | +0 |
| Cambridgeshire and Peterborough | 1 | 1 | +0 |
| Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire | 1 | 1 | +0 |
| East Central Scotland | 0 | 1 | +1 |
| Essex | 1 | 1 | +0 |
| Greater Manchester | 1 | 1 | +0 |
| Inner London - East | 0 | 1 | +1 |
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) | 26,079,669 |
| Air transport | 3,215,256 |
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 2,268,852 |
| Other | 2,222,909 |
| Road transport | 2,233 |
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) | 14,832,761 | 11,246,908 | -3,585,853 |
| Air transport | 833,995 | 2,381,261 | +1,547,266 |
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 973,164 | 1,295,688 | +322,524 |
| Other | 1,233,530 | 989,379 | -244,151 |
| Road transport | 2,233 | 0 | -2,233 |
Import volume by port
What this shows: Import value handled by each UK port.
Top 5 values
| Port | £ |
|---|---|
| Southampton | 19,216,789 |
| London Gateway Port | 2,751,223 |
| 000 | 2,222,909 |
| Felixstowe | 1,978,885 |
| Hull | 1,675,916 |
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 £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Southampton | 10,525,644 | 8,691,145 | -1,834,499 |
| London Gateway Port | 2,736,691 | 14,532 | -2,722,159 |
| 000 | 1,233,530 | 989,379 | -244,151 |
| Felixstowe | 515,185 | 1,463,700 | +948,515 |
| Hull | 818,639 | 857,277 | +38,638 |
| Manchester Airport | 172,513 | 1,394,068 | +1,221,555 |
| Dover | 218,090 | 402,843 | +184,753 |
| Portsmouth | 320,882 | 213,186 | -107,696 |
| London Stansted Airport | 240,784 | 290,767 | +49,983 |
| London Heathrow Airport | 189,162 | 331,793 | +142,631 |
Importer companies by SIC division
What this shows: Industry breakdown (SIC divisions) of importing companies.
Top 5 values
| SIC | Companies |
|---|---|
| Manufacture of basic metals | 6 |
| Manufacture of chemicals and chemical products | 5 |
| Wholesale trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles | 5 |
| Manufacture of electrical equipment | 3 |
| Manufacture of other non-metallic mineral products | 3 |
Importer companies over time
What this shows: Monthly count of unique importing companies.
Latest 5
| Month | Companies |
|---|---|
| 2026-01 | 5 |
| 2025-11 | 10 |
| 2025-10 | 6 |
| 2025-09 | 2 |
| 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+ | 10 |
| 1m-15m | 7 |
| 15m-54m | 5 |
| 0-1m | 1 |
| Other | 1 |
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 | 1,568,467 |
| Germany | 870,168 |
| France | 336,828 |
| Australia | 260,933 |
| South Africa | 247,935 |
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 | 912,031 | 656,436 | -255,595 |
| Germany | 396,691 | 473,477 | +76,786 |
| France | 198,825 | 138,003 | -60,822 |
| Australia | 131,253 | 129,680 | -1,573 |
| South Africa | 169,191 | 78,744 | -90,447 |
| Saudi Arabia | 84,224 | 104,740 | +20,516 |
| Italy | 55,577 | 55,005 | -572 |
| Switzerland | 57,399 | 42,660 | -14,739 |
| Japan | 28,688 | 48,907 | +20,219 |
| Ireland | 21,450 | 42,749 | +21,299 |
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 | £ |
|---|---|
| Ireland | 8,324 |
| XI | 6,817 |
| United States | 529 |
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 £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ireland | 0 | 8,324 | +8,324 |
| XI | 6,817 | 0 | -6,817 |
| United States | 252 | 277 | +25 |
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 | 1,673,064 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 1,403,236 |
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 1,292,697 |
| Other | 15,879 |
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 | 980,639 | 692,425 | -288,214 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 755,201 | 648,035 | -107,166 |
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 600,159 | 692,538 | +92,379 |
| Other | 7,278 | 8,601 | +1,323 |
Export volume by port
What this shows: Export value handled by each UK port.
Top 5 values
| Port | £ |
|---|---|
| Dover / Eurotunnel | 718,630 |
| Southampton | 636,310 |
| London Stansted Airport | 595,497 |
| London Heathrow Airport | 504,312 |
| Liverpool Docks | 457,745 |
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 | 357,981 | 360,649 | +2,668 |
| Southampton | 227,303 | 409,007 | +181,704 |
| London Stansted Airport | 311,158 | 284,339 | -26,819 |
| London Heathrow Airport | 302,664 | 201,648 | -101,016 |
| Liverpool Docks | 343,452 | 114,293 | -229,159 |
| Hull | 61,461 | 268,579 | +207,118 |
| East Midlands Airport | 196,135 | 47,918 | -148,217 |
| Manchester Airport | 78,770 | 91,733 | +12,963 |
| London Gateway Port | 75,563 | 84,612 | +9,049 |
| ZLC | 91,912 | 54,384 | -37,528 |
Related HS codes
What this shows: Sibling or child HS codes in the same classification branch.
Quick facts
HS code: 2805
Coverage: United Kingdom, most metrics for the last 24 months
Description: Includes metals like sodium, calcium, and rare-earth metals used in batteries, alloys, and electronics