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 15,017,447
Austria 4,685,033
China 1,854,700
Netherlands 995,112
Indonesia 717,895

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 10,640,728 4,376,719 -6,264,009
Austria 2,362,627 2,322,406 -40,221
China 1,110,675 744,025 -366,650
Netherlands 712,952 282,160 -430,792
Indonesia 242,825 475,070 +232,245
Japan 39,070 555,643 +516,573
Italy 325,588 176,927 -148,661
Spain 85,746 116,418 +30,672
France 68,808 0 -68,808
United States 27,389 39,260 +11,871

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 14,996,770
Austria 5,692,141
China 1,837,451
Italy 755,632
Indonesia 717,895

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 10,622,428 4,374,342 -6,248,086
Austria 3,091,297 2,600,844 -490,453
China 1,110,675 726,776 -383,899
Italy 460,044 295,588 -164,456
Indonesia 242,825 475,070 +232,245
Japan 39,070 555,643 +516,573
Switzerland 16,438 30,049 +13,611
Taiwan 40,147 0 -40,147
Turkey 33,097 0 -33,097
United States 20,982 11,283 -9,699

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 4 +0
Inner London - West 4 3 -1
Lancashire 2 2 +0
Cheshire 2 2 +0
Cumbria 1 2 +1
Essex 2 2 +0
Hampshire and Isle of Wight 1 2 +1
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) 21,012,841
Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) 3,530,089
Air transport 310,674

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) 13,895,842 7,116,999 -6,778,843
Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) 1,597,371 1,932,718 +335,347
Air transport 235,343 75,331 -160,012

Import volume by port

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

Top 5 values

Port £
Dover 9,554,413
Immingham Docks 4,058,940
Felixstowe 2,383,701
Dover / Eurotunnel 1,540,130
Killingholme 1,533,980

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 4,643,837 4,910,576 +266,739
Immingham Docks 3,793,530 265,410 -3,528,120
Felixstowe 1,481,652 902,049 -579,603
Dover / Eurotunnel 482,638 1,057,492 +574,854
Killingholme 1,533,980 0 -1,533,980
Harwich 1,112,062 354,655 -757,407
Purfleet 1,131,065 0 -1,131,065
Southampton 364,073 735,418 +371,345
Eurotunnel 512,097 373,289 -138,808
London Gateway Port 209,888 405,483 +195,595

Importer companies by SIC division

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

Top 5 values

SIC Companies
Manufacture of textiles 14
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 4

Importer companies over time

What this shows: Monthly count of unique importing companies.

Latest 5

Month Companies
2026-01 10
2025-11 10
2025-10 10
2025-09 7
2025-08 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 15
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 422,933
United States 271,601
Viet Nam 170,177
Romania 112,394
Germany 68,471

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 196,960 225,973 +29,013
United States 192,032 79,569 -112,463
Viet Nam 170,177 0 -170,177
Romania 89,052 23,342 -65,710
Germany 44,490 23,981 -20,509
India 48,418 0 -48,418
Italy 5,591 23,119 +17,528
Malaysia 25,824 0 -25,824
Czechia 24,350 0 -24,350
Sweden 16,033 0 -16,033

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) 602,512
Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) 586,554
Air transport 52,248

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) 369,175 233,337 -135,838
Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) 435,801 150,753 -285,048
Air transport 41,134 11,114 -30,020

Export volume by port

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

Top 5 values

Port £
Dover / Eurotunnel 572,470
Southampton 263,965
Felixstowe 218,595
London Gateway Port 87,961
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 349,936 222,534 -127,402
Southampton 192,510 71,455 -121,055
Felixstowe 218,595 0 -218,595
London Gateway Port 8,663 79,298 +70,635
ZLC 24,159 11,114 -13,045
Immingham Docks 22,681 3,636 -19,045
East Midlands Airport 14,602 0 -14,602
Dover 10,340 0 -10,340
Portsmouth 0 7,167 +7,167
London Stansted Airport 2,373 0 -2,373

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