Import/export HS code 5401: Sewing thread made from man-made filaments
Sewing thread created from synthetic or artificial fibers, available for retail or bulk sale
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 | 12,524,304 |
| France | 2,289,672 |
| China | 1,647,327 |
| India | 814,732 |
| Romania | 717,552 |
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 | 6,355,040 | 6,169,264 | -185,776 |
| France | 1,024,120 | 1,265,552 | +241,432 |
| China | 1,026,116 | 621,211 | -404,905 |
| India | 569,300 | 245,432 | -323,868 |
| Romania | 390,881 | 326,671 | -64,210 |
| United States | 430,665 | 233,814 | -196,851 |
| Netherlands | 371,249 | 217,512 | -153,737 |
| Turkey | 135,934 | 192,177 | +56,243 |
| Spain | 179,688 | 113,276 | -66,412 |
| South Korea | 178,549 | 63,760 | -114,789 |
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 | 6,617,827 |
| China | 5,814,462 |
| Egypt | 3,895,032 |
| India | 1,011,561 |
| Turkey | 872,099 |
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 | 4,021,764 | 2,596,063 | -1,425,701 |
| China | 3,120,879 | 2,693,583 | -427,296 |
| Egypt | 1,289,810 | 2,605,222 | +1,315,412 |
| India | 677,928 | 333,633 | -344,295 |
| Turkey | 414,740 | 457,359 | +42,619 |
| United States | 468,967 | 225,271 | -243,696 |
| Viet Nam | 168,505 | 218,897 | +50,392 |
| Netherlands | 181,505 | 203,529 | +22,024 |
| South Korea | 136,656 | 80,810 | -55,846 |
| Spain | 80,567 | 61,662 | -18,905 |
Importers across UK regions
What this shows: Number of importing companies by UK ITL2 region.
Top 5 values
| UK region | Companies |
|---|---|
| Greater Manchester | 20 |
| Inner London - West | 14 |
| Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire | 12 |
| Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire | 9 |
| West Yorkshire | 9 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Greater Manchester | 14 | 15 | +1 |
| Inner London - West | 9 | 11 | +2 |
| Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire | 10 | 10 | +0 |
| Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire | 9 | 6 | -3 |
| West Yorkshire | 9 | 7 | -2 |
| Inner London - East | 6 | 4 | -2 |
| Surrey, East and West Sussex | 5 | 6 | +1 |
| Cheshire | 3 | 6 | +3 |
| Lancashire | 4 | 3 | -1 |
| Leicestershire, Rutland and Northamptonshire | 5 | 5 | +0 |
Import volume by transport
What this shows: Import value by transport mode used to bring goods into the UK.
Top 5 values
| Transport | £ |
|---|---|
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 13,059,913 |
| Air transport | 4,141,156 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 3,501,711 |
| Road transport | 102,663 |
| Other | 15,715 |
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 £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 6,611,807 | 6,448,106 | -163,701 |
| Air transport | 2,167,607 | 1,973,549 | -194,058 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 2,222,663 | 1,279,048 | -943,615 |
| Road transport | 30,922 | 71,741 | +40,819 |
| Other | 10,096 | 5,619 | -4,477 |
Import volume by port
What this shows: Import value handled by each UK port.
Top 5 values
| Port | £ |
|---|---|
| Dover | 9,551,402 |
| Eurotunnel | 2,915,320 |
| Birmingham Airport | 1,581,824 |
| Felixstowe | 1,408,869 |
| London Gateway Port | 735,141 |
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 £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dover | 5,117,049 | 4,434,353 | -682,696 |
| Eurotunnel | 1,148,953 | 1,766,367 | +617,414 |
| Birmingham Airport | 796,938 | 784,886 | -12,052 |
| Felixstowe | 1,019,104 | 389,765 | -629,339 |
| London Gateway Port | 391,444 | 343,697 | -47,747 |
| London Heathrow Airport | 479,891 | 247,911 | -231,980 |
| Manchester Airport | 333,994 | 389,716 | +55,722 |
| East Midlands Airport | 379,983 | 260,848 | -119,135 |
| Thamesport | 266,277 | 276,710 | +10,433 |
| Southampton | 293,857 | 139,001 | -154,856 |
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
|
60 |
|
Retail trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles
|
33 |
|
Manufacture of textiles
|
25 |
|
Manufacture of wearing apparel
|
11 |
|
Office administrative, office support and other business support activities
|
8 |
Importer companies over time
What this shows: Monthly count of unique importing companies.
Latest 5
| Month | Companies |
|---|---|
| 2026-05 | 31 |
| 2026-04 | 29 |
| 2026-03 | 36 |
| 2026-02 | 31 |
| 2026-01 | 25 |
Top importers
What this shows: Companies with the highest number of months traded for this HS code.
| Company | Months traded |
|---|---|
| SOMAC THREADS LIMITED | 117 |
| BB MARINE & COVERGUARD LIMITED | 102 |
| GROVES OF THAME LIMITED | 100 |
| CLOCKWORK COMPONENTS LIMITED | 72 |
| MARATHON THREADS (NOTTINGHAM) LTD | 63 |
| KAYOSPRUCE LIMITED | 62 |
| HABICO LIMITED | 55 |
| GEM IMPORTS LIMITED | 55 |
| R.J. BINNIE LIMITED | 54 |
| AMANN THREADS UK LIMITED | 53 |
Importer company size by revenue band
What this shows: Distribution of importers across company revenue bands.
Top 5 values
| Revenue | Companies |
|---|---|
| 1m-15m | 82 |
| 54m+ | 33 |
| 0-1m | 21 |
| 15m-54m | 15 |
| Other | 12 |
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 | £ |
|---|---|
| Germany | 11,105,503 |
| China | 8,600,875 |
| Romania | 6,711,229 |
| United States | 6,150,430 |
| Portugal | 3,710,331 |
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 £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Germany | 5,082,124 | 6,023,379 | +941,255 |
| China | 4,813,721 | 3,787,154 | -1,026,567 |
| Romania | 4,049,675 | 2,661,554 | -1,388,121 |
| United States | 3,513,280 | 2,637,150 | -876,130 |
| Portugal | 2,211,538 | 1,498,793 | -712,745 |
| Viet Nam | 1,418,156 | 1,338,918 | -79,238 |
| Mexico | 1,711,841 | 808,748 | -903,093 |
| North Macedonia | 976,406 | 815,038 | -161,368 |
| Poland | 815,825 | 475,544 | -340,281 |
| India | 583,089 | 632,139 | +49,050 |
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 | 16,886 |
| India | 12,686 |
| Denmark | 9,190 |
| France | 1,902 |
| Romania | 1,110 |
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 | 3,363 | 13,523 | +10,160 |
| India | 6,515 | 6,171 | -344 |
| Denmark | 7,032 | 2,158 | -4,874 |
| France | 1,902 | 0 | -1,902 |
| Romania | 132 | 978 | +846 |
| Belgium | 0 | 369 | +369 |
| United States | 0 | 346 | +346 |
| Italy | 166 | 113 | -53 |
| Saudi Arabia | 0 | 164 | +164 |
| XI | 101 | 40 | -61 |
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) | 26,457,799 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 19,303,101 |
| Air transport | 7,263,920 |
| Other | 68,915 |
| Road transport | 1,334 |
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) | 14,393,434 | 12,064,365 | -2,329,069 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 10,876,483 | 8,426,618 | -2,449,865 |
| Air transport | 4,054,467 | 3,209,453 | -845,014 |
| Other | 31,712 | 37,203 | +5,491 |
| Road transport | 1,334 | 0 | -1,334 |
Export volume by port
What this shows: Export value handled by each UK port.
Top 5 values
| Port | £ |
|---|---|
| Dover / Eurotunnel | 21,906,400 |
| London Gateway Port | 8,161,109 |
| Southampton | 6,070,268 |
| London Heathrow Airport | 3,838,561 |
| Felixstowe | 3,214,455 |
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 | 11,374,699 | 10,531,701 | -842,998 |
| London Gateway Port | 4,137,942 | 4,023,167 | -114,775 |
| Southampton | 3,602,159 | 2,468,109 | -1,134,050 |
| London Heathrow Airport | 2,037,428 | 1,801,133 | -236,295 |
| Felixstowe | 2,263,666 | 950,789 | -1,312,877 |
| Immingham Docks | 1,068,191 | 897,170 | -171,021 |
| East Midlands Airport | 935,748 | 553,296 | -382,452 |
| Harwich | 1,075,332 | 378,300 | -697,032 |
| Liverpool Docks | 499,020 | 917,851 | +418,831 |
| London Stansted Airport | 548,536 | 512,523 | -36,013 |
Related HS codes
What this shows: Sibling or child HS codes in the same classification branch.
Quick facts
HS code: 5401
Coverage: United Kingdom, most metrics for the last 24 months
Description: Sewing thread created from synthetic or artificial fibers, available for retail or bulk sale