Import/export HS code 490191: Dictionaries and encyclopaedias
Includes dictionaries, encyclopaedias, and their serial instalments
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 | 898,174 |
| United States | 467,575 |
| Estonia | 297,236 |
| Japan | 271,750 |
| Belgium | 243,191 |
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 | 726,559 | 171,615 | -554,944 |
| United States | 158,278 | 309,297 | +151,019 |
| Estonia | 297,236 | 0 | -297,236 |
| Japan | 258,563 | 13,187 | -245,376 |
| Belgium | 96,148 | 147,043 | +50,895 |
| Netherlands | 151,203 | 26,458 | -124,745 |
| Italy | 106,638 | 61,374 | -45,264 |
| India | 75,385 | 37,068 | -38,317 |
| France | 58,445 | 18,226 | -40,219 |
| Ireland | 17,931 | 41,494 | +23,563 |
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 | 968,933 |
| United States | 390,586 |
| Estonia | 297,236 |
| Japan | 272,461 |
| Belgium | 230,665 |
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 | 778,320 | 190,613 | -587,707 |
| United States | 151,322 | 239,264 | +87,942 |
| Estonia | 297,236 | 0 | -297,236 |
| Japan | 258,563 | 13,898 | -244,665 |
| Belgium | 80,531 | 150,134 | +69,603 |
| United Kingdom | 166,614 | 60,188 | -106,426 |
| Italy | 118,658 | 66,084 | -52,574 |
| India | 75,385 | 37,068 | -38,317 |
| France | 34,049 | 13,153 | -20,896 |
| Turkey | 34,900 | 0 | -34,900 |
Importers across UK regions
What this shows: Number of importing companies by UK ITL2 region.
Top 5 values
| UK region | Companies |
|---|---|
| Inner London - West | 9 |
| Northumberland, Durham and Tyne & Wear | 3 |
| Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire | 2 |
| Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire | 2 |
| Essex | 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 | 4 | 7 | +3 |
| Northumberland, Durham and Tyne & Wear | 3 | 1 | -2 |
| Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire | 1 | 1 | +0 |
| Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire | 2 | 0 | -2 |
| Essex | 2 | 1 | -1 |
| Inner London - East | 1 | 2 | +1 |
| Leicestershire, Rutland and Northamptonshire | 0 | 2 | +2 |
| Outer London - East and North East | 2 | 0 | -2 |
| Outer London - South | 0 | 2 | +2 |
| Outer London - West and North West | 1 | 1 | +0 |
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) | 1,187,808 |
| Air transport | 1,102,635 |
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 647,694 |
| Other | 48,582 |
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) | 919,998 | 267,810 | -652,188 |
| Air transport | 587,416 | 515,219 | -72,197 |
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 547,119 | 100,575 | -446,544 |
| Other | 14,748 | 33,834 | +19,086 |
Import volume by port
What this shows: Import value handled by each UK port.
Top 5 values
| Port | £ |
|---|---|
| Southampton | 755,435 |
| London Heathrow Airport | 497,596 |
| Dover | 316,232 |
| East Midlands Airport | 289,298 |
| London Stansted Airport | 232,818 |
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 | 742,879 | 12,556 | -730,323 |
| London Heathrow Airport | 295,512 | 202,084 | -93,428 |
| Dover | 308,737 | 7,495 | -301,242 |
| East Midlands Airport | 115,849 | 173,449 | +57,600 |
| London Stansted Airport | 124,513 | 108,305 | -16,208 |
| Eurotunnel | 146,935 | 77,581 | -69,354 |
| London Gateway Port | 12,605 | 133,741 | +121,136 |
| Felixstowe | 56,902 | 61,001 | +4,099 |
| Immingham Docks | 77,671 | 0 | -77,671 |
| Thamesport | 25,011 | 51,362 | +26,351 |
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
|
10 |
|
Wholesale trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles
|
9 |
|
Publishing activities
|
8 |
|
Office administrative, office support and other business support activities
|
3 |
|
Architectural and engineering activities; technical testing and analysis
|
1 |
Importer companies over time
What this shows: Monthly count of unique importing companies.
Latest 5
| Month | Companies |
|---|---|
| 2026-05 | 9 |
| 2026-04 | 2 |
| 2026-03 | 6 |
| 2026-02 | 3 |
| 2026-01 | 3 |
Top importers
What this shows: Companies with the highest number of months traded for this HS code.
| Company | Months traded |
|---|---|
| THE BOOK DEPOSITORY LIMITED | 48 |
| KOMATSU UK LIMITED | 46 |
| IMPRINT DIGITAL LIMITED | 42 |
| MONEYSAVERS LONDON LTD | 30 |
| PEARSON EDUCATION LIMITED | 28 |
| BRISTOL LABORATORIES LIMITED | 28 |
| AMAZON EU S.A R.L. | 13 |
| GARDNERS BOOKS LIMITED | 13 |
| BLACKWELL UK LIMITED | 13 |
| W. & G. FOYLE LIMITED | 11 |
Importer company size by revenue band
What this shows: Distribution of importers across company revenue bands.
Top 5 values
| Revenue | Companies |
|---|---|
| 54m+ | 13 |
| 1m-15m | 11 |
| Other | 5 |
| 0-1m | 4 |
| 15m-54m | 4 |
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 Arab Emirates | 29,073,487 |
| China | 16,279,005 |
| India | 9,301,203 |
| Singapore | 8,036,662 |
| United States | 5,778,240 |
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 Arab Emirates | 6,981,528 | 22,091,959 | +15,110,431 |
| China | 6,678,405 | 9,600,600 | +2,922,195 |
| India | 4,045,231 | 5,255,972 | +1,210,741 |
| Singapore | 3,586,983 | 4,449,679 | +862,696 |
| United States | 3,554,081 | 2,224,159 | -1,329,922 |
| Indonesia | 1,127,881 | 2,787,863 | +1,659,982 |
| Pakistan | 1,401,153 | 2,455,457 | +1,054,304 |
| Israel | 1,542,691 | 1,933,835 | +391,144 |
| Qatar | 1,572,069 | 1,603,398 | +31,329 |
| Sri Lanka | 949,813 | 1,973,907 | +1,024,094 |
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 | 60,135,647 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 49,966,077 |
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 1,977,979 |
| Other | 279 |
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 | 18,423,448 | 41,712,199 | +23,288,751 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 24,042,063 | 25,924,014 | +1,881,951 |
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 1,079,795 | 898,184 | -181,611 |
| Other | 137 | 142 | +5 |
Export volume by port
What this shows: Export value handled by each UK port.
Top 5 values
| Port | £ |
|---|---|
| London Heathrow Airport | 57,900,395 |
| London Gateway Port | 27,219,562 |
| Southampton | 16,223,201 |
| Felixstowe | 4,031,088 |
| Dover / Eurotunnel | 1,198,637 |
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 | 17,811,316 | 40,089,079 | +22,277,763 |
| London Gateway Port | 12,991,701 | 14,227,861 | +1,236,160 |
| Southampton | 7,912,302 | 8,310,899 | +398,597 |
| Felixstowe | 1,926,475 | 2,104,613 | +178,138 |
| Dover / Eurotunnel | 475,431 | 723,206 | +247,775 |
| London | 468,499 | 725,730 | +257,231 |
| Liverpool Docks | 614,027 | 504,205 | -109,822 |
| London Gatwick Airport | 61,430 | 916,008 | +854,578 |
| East Midlands Airport | 310,421 | 293,866 | -16,555 |
| Holyhead | 411,864 | 113,550 | -298,314 |
Quick facts
HS code: 490191
Coverage: United Kingdom, most metrics for the last 24 months
Description: Includes dictionaries, encyclopaedias, and their serial instalments