Import/export HS code 4502: Natural cork, prepared or shaped

Natural cork that has been processed, such as debacked, roughly squared, or cut into blocks, plates, sheets, or strips. Includes sharp-edged blanks for making corks or stoppers

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 £
China 602,778
Portugal 26,083
India 21,829
Italy 10,426
Poland 7,767

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 £
China 287,943 314,835 +26,892
Portugal 0 26,083 +26,083
India 18,704 3,125 -15,579
Italy 4,709 5,717 +1,008
Poland 0 7,767 +7,767
Germany 3,210 1,185 -2,025
United States 1,483 1,883 +400
Ireland 243 0 -243
Spain 12 0 -12

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 £
China 604,261
India 21,829
Portugal 20,284
Italy 16,225
Poland 7,752

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 £
China 289,426 314,835 +25,409
India 18,704 3,125 -15,579
Portugal 0 20,284 +20,284
Italy 4,709 11,516 +6,807
Poland 0 7,752 +7,752
Germany 3,210 1,171 -2,039
United Kingdom 0 1,883 +1,883

Importers across UK regions

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

Top 5 values

UK region Companies
Gloucestershire and Wiltshire 2
Greater Manchester 2
Lincolnshire 2
Surrey, East and West Sussex 2
Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire 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
Gloucestershire and Wiltshire 1 1 +0
Greater Manchester 2 2 +0
Lincolnshire 2 1 -1
Surrey, East and West Sussex 1 1 +0
Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire 0 1 +1
Cambridgeshire and Peterborough 1 0 -1
East Central Scotland 1 1 +0
Inner London - East 1 1 +0
Inner London - West 1 0 -1
Merseyside 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) 618,361
Air transport 36,720
Roll on Roll off (RORO) 21,534
Other 284

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) 292,411 325,950 +33,539
Air transport 23,638 13,082 -10,556
Roll on Roll off (RORO) 0 21,534 +21,534
Other 255 29 -226

Import volume by port

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

Top 5 values

Port £
Felixstowe 233,061
Southampton 193,015
London Gateway Port 181,598
London Stansted Airport 20,863
Newhaven 15,735

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 £
Felixstowe 161,506 71,555 -89,951
Southampton 110,966 82,049 -28,917
London Gateway Port 16,303 165,295 +148,992
London Stansted Airport 16,314 4,549 -11,765
Newhaven 0 15,735 +15,735
East Midlands Airport 4,696 5,244 +548
Dover 0 5,799 +5,799
Thamesport 0 5,508 +5,508
London 3,636 0 -3,636
London Heathrow Airport 1,230 2,118 +888

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 8
Wholesale trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles 4
Other manufacturing 3
Office administrative, office support and other business support activities 2
Advertising and market research 1

Importer companies over time

What this shows: Monthly count of unique importing companies.

Latest 5

Month Companies
2026-02 4
2026-01 2
2025-12 2
2025-11 2
2025-10 5

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 12
54m+ 6
0-1m 2
15m-54m 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 £
Canada 206,390
United States 44,678
Austria 37,577
Netherlands 23,944
Germany 10,080

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 £
Canada 202,665 3,725 -198,940
United States 30,608 14,070 -16,538
Austria 37,577 0 -37,577
Netherlands 10,427 13,517 +3,090
Germany 10,080 0 -10,080
Poland 7,037 1,120 -5,917
India 3,380 0 -3,380
Philippines 0 3,350 +3,350
Italy 2,100 907 -1,193
Switzerland 2,518 0 -2,518

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 27
XI 4

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 27 0 -27
XI 0 4 +4

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 276,811
Roll on Roll off (RORO) 71,508
Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) 4,154
Other 31

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 251,820 24,991 -226,829
Roll on Roll off (RORO) 58,903 12,605 -46,298
Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) 1,122 3,032 +1,910
Other 27 4 -23

Export volume by port

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

Top 5 values

Port £
ZLC 229,113
Eurotunnel 37,577
East Midlands Airport 28,393
Felixstowe 23,944
Dover / Eurotunnel 11,899

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 £
ZLC 218,683 10,430 -208,253
Eurotunnel 37,577 0 -37,577
East Midlands Airport 27,486 907 -26,579
Felixstowe 10,427 13,517 +3,090
Dover / Eurotunnel 10,899 1,000 -9,899
London Stansted Airport 971 10,772 +9,801
London Heathrow Airport 2,987 2,882 -105
Manchester Airport 1,693 0 -1,693
London Gateway Port 1,122 0 -1,122
Dover 0 1,120 +1,120

Quick facts

HS code: 4502

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

Description: Natural cork that has been processed, such as debacked, roughly squared, or cut into blocks, plates, sheets, or strips. Includes sharp-edged blanks for making corks or stoppers