Import/export HS code 5504: Artificial staple fibers, not processed for spinning

Unprocessed synthetic fibers used in making yarn or thread. Includes fibers like polyester, nylon, and acrylic

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 14,368,974
Austria 5,027,366
China 1,794,474
Japan 1,514,771
Indonesia 952,178

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 10,174,917 4,194,057 -5,980,860
Austria 2,563,115 2,464,251 -98,864
China 1,180,219 614,255 -565,964
Japan 39,070 1,475,701 +1,436,631
Indonesia 377,747 574,431 +196,684
Netherlands 469,430 279,664 -189,766
Italy 263,662 172,029 -91,633
Spain 202,164 0 -202,164
India 5,751 145,186 +139,435
France 64,115 32,771 -31,344

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 14,285,881
Austria 5,795,374
China 1,777,225
Japan 1,603,040
Indonesia 952,178

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 10,156,617 4,129,264 -6,027,353
Austria 3,048,263 2,747,111 -301,152
China 1,162,970 614,255 -548,715
Japan 39,070 1,563,970 +1,524,900
Indonesia 377,747 574,431 +196,684
Italy 509,843 174,272 -335,571
India 5,751 161,817 +156,066
Switzerland 16,438 64,918 +48,480
Turkey 33,097 1,856 -31,241
United States 26,506 6,834 -19,672

Importers across UK regions

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

Top 5 values

UK region Companies
West Yorkshire 7
Greater Manchester 5
Inner London - West 4
Lancashire 3
Cheshire 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
West Yorkshire 5 5 +0
Greater Manchester 4 3 -1
Inner London - West 4 3 -1
Lancashire 2 2 +0
Cheshire 2 1 -1
Cumbria 1 2 +1
Essex 2 2 +0
Hampshire and Isle of Wight 2 2 +0
Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire 1 0 -1
Cornwall and Isles of Scilly 1 0 -1

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) 20,493,470
Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) 4,724,065
Air transport 280,385

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) 13,530,528 6,962,942 -6,567,586
Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) 1,726,353 2,997,712 +1,271,359
Air transport 189,832 90,553 -99,279

Import volume by port

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

Top 5 values

Port £
Dover 9,617,589
Immingham Docks 3,668,657
Felixstowe 2,196,202
Dover / Eurotunnel 2,125,087
Southampton 1,964,572

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 5,178,229 4,439,360 -738,869
Immingham Docks 3,367,219 301,438 -3,065,781
Felixstowe 1,448,109 748,093 -700,016
Dover / Eurotunnel 743,189 1,381,898 +638,709
Southampton 293,971 1,670,601 +1,376,630
Harwich 1,157,233 351,192 -806,041
Killingholme 1,351,196 0 -1,351,196
London Gateway Port 274,985 639,634 +364,649
Eurotunnel 476,530 350,322 -126,208
Purfleet 794,581 0 -794,581

Importer companies by SIC division

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

Top 5 values

SIC Companies
Manufacture of textiles 15
Wholesale trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles 8
Retail trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles 6
Manufacture of paper and paper products 5
Other manufacturing 5

Importer companies over time

What this shows: Monthly count of unique importing companies.

Latest 5

Month Companies
2026-04 7
2026-03 8
2026-02 6
2026-01 10
2025-12 7

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 16
54m+ 10
15m-54m 6
0-1m 3
Other 2

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 £
Turkey 418,577
United States 305,496
Viet Nam 170,177
Romania 112,394
Germany 79,653

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 £
Turkey 268,942 149,635 -119,307
United States 154,136 151,360 -2,776
Viet Nam 170,177 0 -170,177
Romania 93,686 18,708 -74,978
Germany 50,417 29,236 -21,181
India 48,418 16,520 -31,898
Denmark 6,648 37,333 +30,685
Malaysia 25,824 0 -25,824
Italy 9,432 16,218 +6,786
Czechia 24,350 0 -24,350

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) 645,951
Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) 637,198
Air transport 48,959

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) 390,621 255,330 -135,291
Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) 478,390 158,808 -319,582
Air transport 36,887 12,072 -24,815

Export volume by port

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

Top 5 values

Port £
Dover / Eurotunnel 620,309
Felixstowe 289,428
Southampton 227,256
London Gateway Port 104,481
ZLC 35,273

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 372,815 247,494 -125,321
Felixstowe 218,595 70,833 -147,762
Southampton 155,801 71,455 -84,346
London Gateway Port 87,961 16,520 -71,441
ZLC 24,159 11,114 -13,045
Immingham Docks 22,681 3,636 -19,045
East Midlands Airport 11,510 0 -11,510
Portsmouth 7,167 0 -7,167
Heysham 2,251 4,200 +1,949
London Stansted Airport 1,218 958 -260

Related HS codes

What this shows: Sibling or child HS codes in the same classification branch.

Quick facts

HS code: 5504

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

Description: Unprocessed synthetic fibers used in making yarn or thread. Includes fibers like polyester, nylon, and acrylic