Import/export HS code 291511: Formic acid

A chemical used in textiles, leather processing, and as a preservative

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 5,237,063
China 1,733,121
Finland 1,082,841
Belgium 829,149
Netherlands 611,626

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 2,771,550 2,465,513 -306,037
China 804,608 928,513 +123,905
Finland 586,488 496,353 -90,135
Belgium 609,881 219,268 -390,613
Netherlands 287,708 323,918 +36,210
United States 26,476 69,378 +42,902
France 70,454 22,960 -47,494
Sweden 22,191 25,639 +3,448
Ireland 4,632 29,611 +24,979
South Korea 0 22,882 +22,882

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 4,825,009
China 1,793,106
Finland 1,688,802
Belgium 828,094
Netherlands 361,765

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 2,592,838 2,232,171 -360,667
China 820,620 972,486 +151,866
Finland 1,000,380 688,422 -311,958
Belgium 431,338 396,756 -34,582
Netherlands 167,005 194,760 +27,755
United States 31,031 50,313 +19,282
United Kingdom 42,499 12,437 -30,062
Sweden 22,191 25,639 +3,448
Austria 33,070 0 -33,070
Czechia 3,315 15,288 +11,973

Importers across UK regions

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

Top 5 values

UK region Companies
West Yorkshire 5
Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire 4
Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire 3
Greater Manchester 3
Leicestershire, Rutland and Northamptonshire 3

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 3 5 +2
Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire 3 3 +0
Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire 3 2 -1
Greater Manchester 3 3 +0
Leicestershire, Rutland and Northamptonshire 2 3 +1
Northern Ireland 2 2 +0
North Somerset, Somerset and Dorset 1 1 +0
Cheshire 1 1 +0
Hampshire and Isle of Wight 1 1 +0
Inner London - West 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) 7,516,962
Roll on Roll off (RORO) 2,165,622
Air transport 87,946
Other 53,242

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) 3,933,289 3,583,673 -349,616
Roll on Roll off (RORO) 1,191,771 973,851 -217,920
Air transport 43,988 43,958 -30
Other 45,367 7,875 -37,492

Import volume by port

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

Top 5 values

Port £
Hull 2,427,842
Immingham Docks 2,172,776
Felixstowe 1,689,596
Middlesbrough 780,231
London 756,015

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 £
Hull 1,715,275 712,567 -1,002,708
Immingham Docks 1,033,052 1,139,724 +106,672
Felixstowe 871,072 818,524 -52,548
Middlesbrough 236,233 543,998 +307,765
London 389,448 366,567 -22,881
Grangemouth Docks 387,273 194,592 -192,681
London Gateway Port 37,424 282,128 +244,704
Dover 146,638 53,325 -93,313
Thamesport 136,790 0 -136,790
Liverpool Docks 13,050 119,826 +106,776

Importer companies by SIC division

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

Top 5 values

SIC Companies
Manufacture of chemicals and chemical products
13
Wholesale trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles
10
Other manufacturing
4
Activities of head offices; management consultancy activities
2
Manufacture of food products
2

Importer companies over time

What this shows: Monthly count of unique importing companies.

Latest 5

Month Companies
2026-05 13
2026-04 10
2026-03 10
2026-02 11
2026-01 6

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+ 19
15m-54m 5
Other 4
1m-15m 3
0-1m 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 £
Taiwan 1,355,401
Ireland 389,195
Netherlands 347,845
United States 180,758
China 147,475

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 £
Taiwan 910,232 445,169 -465,063
Ireland 235,336 153,859 -81,477
Netherlands 199,389 148,456 -50,933
United States 180,758 0 -180,758
China 97,055 50,420 -46,635
Belgium 36,095 51,457 +15,362
Georgia 17,861 37,248 +19,387
Saudi Arabia 45,902 0 -45,902
Thailand 10,147 27,144 +16,997
India 27,067 9,105 -17,962

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 £
Germany 137,535
China 70,768
XI 3,907
Ireland 83

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 £
Germany 98,198 39,337 -58,861
China 38,978 31,790 -7,188
XI 3,679 228 -3,451
Ireland 0 83 +83

Export volume by transport

What this shows: Export value by transport mode used to ship goods from the UK.

Top 5 values

Transport £
Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) 1,974,734
Roll on Roll off (RORO) 379,482
Air transport 254,521
Other 214,410

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 £
Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) 1,303,521 671,213 -632,308
Roll on Roll off (RORO) 195,921 183,561 -12,360
Air transport 201,246 53,275 -147,971
Other 142,132 72,278 -69,854

Export volume by port

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

Top 5 values

Port £
Southampton 737,531
Felixstowe 580,618
London Gateway Port 401,646
Immingham Docks 324,232
000 214,410

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 £
Southampton 719,319 18,212 -701,107
Felixstowe 205,959 374,659 +168,700
London Gateway Port 259,929 141,717 -118,212
Immingham Docks 177,612 146,620 -30,992
000 142,132 72,278 -69,854
London Heathrow Airport 159,739 53,275 -106,464
Liverpool Docks 67,017 33,218 -33,799
Holyhead 25,158 46,405 +21,247
Dover / Eurotunnel 22,276 33,910 +11,634
Grangemouth Docks 17,861 37,248 +19,387

Quick facts

HS code: 291511

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

Description: A chemical used in textiles, leather processing, and as a preservative