Import/export HS code 481960: Office storage items
Paper-based office supplies like box files, letter trays, and storage boxes
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 | 10,746,366 |
| Ireland | 5,474,746 |
| Turkey | 4,607,017 |
| Germany | 3,234,935 |
| United States | 2,729,929 |
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 | 5,745,152 | 5,001,214 | -743,938 |
| Ireland | 2,754,276 | 2,720,470 | -33,806 |
| Turkey | 2,449,230 | 2,157,787 | -291,443 |
| Germany | 1,528,933 | 1,706,002 | +177,069 |
| United States | 468,282 | 2,261,647 | +1,793,365 |
| Netherlands | 1,343,634 | 785,143 | -558,491 |
| France | 442,115 | 1,599,354 | +1,157,239 |
| Lithuania | 1,078,566 | 783,658 | -294,908 |
| China, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region | 684,251 | 59,153 | -625,098 |
| Poland | 328,025 | 239,057 | -88,968 |
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 | 12,574,365 |
| Turkey | 4,613,051 |
| Germany | 3,082,466 |
| United States | 2,799,009 |
| Ireland | 2,177,220 |
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 | 6,845,128 | 5,729,237 | -1,115,891 |
| Turkey | 2,451,135 | 2,161,916 | -289,219 |
| Germany | 1,549,169 | 1,533,297 | -15,872 |
| United States | 452,432 | 2,346,577 | +1,894,145 |
| Ireland | 1,000,498 | 1,176,722 | +176,224 |
| Lithuania | 1,158,800 | 986,881 | -171,919 |
| Italy | 162,046 | 1,532,957 | +1,370,911 |
| Netherlands | 699,400 | 508,614 | -190,786 |
| Poland | 766,249 | 364,199 | -402,050 |
| France | 485,053 | 266,034 | -219,019 |
Importers across UK regions
What this shows: Number of importing companies by UK ITL2 region.
Top 5 values
| UK region | Companies |
|---|---|
| Inner London - West | 97 |
| Greater Manchester | 75 |
| Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire | 42 |
| Inner London - East | 39 |
| Outer London - West and North West | 34 |
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 | 61 | 52 | -9 |
| Greater Manchester | 56 | 35 | -21 |
| Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire | 28 | 24 | -4 |
| Inner London - East | 34 | 21 | -13 |
| Outer London - West and North West | 20 | 24 | +4 |
| Leicestershire, Rutland and Northamptonshire | 25 | 17 | -8 |
| West Yorkshire | 18 | 13 | -5 |
| Kent | 12 | 14 | +2 |
| Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire | 10 | 15 | +5 |
| Surrey, East and West Sussex | 14 | 8 | -6 |
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) | 14,409,479 |
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 12,510,025 |
| Air transport | 6,442,509 |
| Other | 3,840,508 |
| Road transport | 497,128 |
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) | 7,161,474 | 7,248,005 | +86,531 |
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 6,122,437 | 6,387,588 | +265,151 |
| Air transport | 2,654,682 | 3,787,827 | +1,133,145 |
| Other | 2,463,083 | 1,377,425 | -1,085,658 |
| Road transport | 324,698 | 172,430 | -152,268 |
Import volume by port
What this shows: Import value handled by each UK port.
Top 5 values
| Port | £ |
|---|---|
| Felixstowe | 6,776,557 |
| Dover | 3,977,049 |
| 000 | 3,840,508 |
| Southampton | 3,501,477 |
| ZLC | 3,027,517 |
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 | 4,134,280 | 2,642,277 | -1,492,003 |
| Dover | 2,217,634 | 1,759,415 | -458,219 |
| 000 | 2,463,083 | 1,377,425 | -1,085,658 |
| Southampton | 1,430,872 | 2,070,605 | +639,733 |
| ZLC | 1,551,926 | 1,475,591 | -76,335 |
| Eurotunnel | 502,508 | 2,049,149 | +1,546,641 |
| London Heathrow Airport | 457,742 | 1,590,517 | +1,132,775 |
| Liverpool John Lennon Airport - Speke | 879,149 | 1,088,898 | +209,749 |
| Grangemouth Docks | 697,715 | 815,193 | +117,478 |
| Immingham Docks | 817,051 | 451,482 | -365,569 |
Importer companies by SIC division
What this shows: Industry breakdown (SIC divisions) of importing companies.
Top 5 values
| SIC | Companies |
|---|---|
|
Wholesale trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles
|
226 |
|
Retail trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles
|
223 |
|
Office administrative, office support and other business support activities
|
42 |
|
Other manufacturing
|
33 |
|
Activities of head offices; management consultancy activities
|
24 |
Importer companies over time
What this shows: Monthly count of unique importing companies.
Latest 5
| Month | Companies |
|---|---|
| 2026-05 | 71 |
| 2026-04 | 64 |
| 2026-03 | 76 |
| 2026-02 | 62 |
| 2026-01 | 73 |
Top importers
What this shows: Companies with the highest number of months traded for this HS code.
| Company | Months traded |
|---|---|
| MATALAN RETAIL LTD. | 107 |
| PRESERVATION EQUIPMENT LIMITED | 105 |
| ACCO UK LIMITED | 104 |
| TG JONES HIGH STREET LIMITED | 103 |
| ROCABA PACKAGING LIMITED | 85 |
| COCHLEAR EUROPE LIMITED | 82 |
| TJX UK | 76 |
| DUNELM (SOFT FURNISHINGS) LTD | 71 |
| PRECIOUS PACKAGING LTD | 66 |
| SIFCON INTERNATIONAL PLC | 64 |
Importer company size by revenue band
What this shows: Distribution of importers across company revenue bands.
Top 5 values
| Revenue | Companies |
|---|---|
| 1m-15m | 255 |
| 54m+ | 170 |
| 0-1m | 137 |
| 15m-54m | 75 |
| Other | 51 |
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 | £ |
|---|---|
| France | 2,311,099 |
| Ireland | 2,118,238 |
| Netherlands | 734,838 |
| Germany | 493,338 |
| Belgium | 368,209 |
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 £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| France | 982,462 | 1,328,637 | +346,175 |
| Ireland | 1,048,613 | 1,069,625 | +21,012 |
| Netherlands | 466,252 | 268,586 | -197,666 |
| Germany | 362,862 | 130,476 | -232,386 |
| Belgium | 255,616 | 112,593 | -143,023 |
| United States | 158,967 | 108,570 | -50,397 |
| Italy | 66,132 | 56,206 | -9,926 |
| China, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region | 23,809 | 98,498 | +74,689 |
| Norway | 75,513 | 29,851 | -45,662 |
| Spain | 47,831 | 50,353 | +2,522 |
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 | 5,808 |
| China | 2,563 |
| Belgium | 311 |
| Sri Lanka | 92 |
| Italy | 53 |
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 | 2,100 | 3,708 | +1,608 |
| China | 1,455 | 1,108 | -347 |
| Belgium | 112 | 199 | +87 |
| Sri Lanka | 91 | 1 | -90 |
| Italy | 49 | 4 | -45 |
| Netherlands | 26 | 2 | -24 |
| India | 0 | 18 | +18 |
| XI | 3 | 0 | -3 |
| United States | 0 | 1 | +1 |
Export volume by transport
What this shows: Export value by transport mode used to ship goods from the UK.
Top 5 values
| Transport | £ |
|---|---|
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 6,071,456 |
| Air transport | 937,285 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 575,522 |
| Other | 52,272 |
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 £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 3,048,295 | 3,023,161 | -25,134 |
| Air transport | 529,074 | 408,211 | -120,863 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 447,756 | 127,766 | -319,990 |
| Other | 44,753 | 7,519 | -37,234 |
Export volume by port
What this shows: Export value handled by each UK port.
Top 5 values
| Port | £ |
|---|---|
| Dover / Eurotunnel | 2,988,617 |
| Holyhead | 1,001,328 |
| Liverpool Docks | 855,927 |
| East Midlands Airport | 408,388 |
| Immingham Docks | 401,312 |
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 | 1,462,850 | 1,525,767 | +62,917 |
| Holyhead | 337,544 | 663,784 | +326,240 |
| Liverpool Docks | 549,631 | 306,296 | -243,335 |
| East Midlands Airport | 276,832 | 131,556 | -145,276 |
| Immingham Docks | 323,479 | 77,833 | -245,646 |
| London Heathrow Airport | 143,979 | 190,173 | +46,194 |
| Portsmouth | 129,209 | 171,205 | +41,996 |
| Felixstowe | 271,379 | 19,658 | -251,721 |
| Dover | 129,747 | 27,030 | -102,717 |
| Heysham | 62,425 | 93,739 | +31,314 |
Quick facts
HS code: 481960
Coverage: United Kingdom, most metrics for the last 24 months
Description: Paper-based office supplies like box files, letter trays, and storage boxes