Import/export HS code 8203: Hand tools like files, pliers, and shears
Common hand tools including files, rasps, pliers, tweezers, metal-cutting shears, and pipe-cutters
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 | 51,148,513 |
| Germany | 28,455,016 |
| United States | 24,146,566 |
| France | 15,239,183 |
| Netherlands | 9,820,629 |
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 | 26,718,500 | 24,430,013 | -2,288,487 |
| Germany | 14,280,336 | 14,174,680 | -105,656 |
| United States | 12,824,690 | 11,321,876 | -1,502,814 |
| France | 8,678,690 | 6,560,493 | -2,118,197 |
| Netherlands | 4,728,459 | 5,092,170 | +363,711 |
| Taiwan | 5,208,779 | 4,187,260 | -1,021,519 |
| Switzerland | 1,549,165 | 1,544,227 | -4,938 |
| Japan | 1,403,727 | 1,330,755 | -72,972 |
| Belgium | 1,329,015 | 1,046,504 | -282,511 |
| Italy | 979,558 | 1,078,467 | +98,909 |
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 | 61,027,317 |
| Germany | 27,110,046 |
| United States | 20,956,250 |
| Taiwan | 11,615,496 |
| Switzerland | 8,441,338 |
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 | 31,609,302 | 29,418,015 | -2,191,287 |
| Germany | 14,641,599 | 12,468,447 | -2,173,152 |
| United States | 10,988,029 | 9,968,221 | -1,019,808 |
| Taiwan | 6,379,048 | 5,236,448 | -1,142,600 |
| Switzerland | 4,259,423 | 4,181,915 | -77,508 |
| India | 2,521,623 | 2,323,886 | -197,737 |
| France | 2,221,521 | 2,097,472 | -124,049 |
| Sweden | 2,211,702 | 1,708,346 | -503,356 |
| Spain | 1,918,803 | 1,675,261 | -243,542 |
| Japan | 1,796,725 | 1,745,835 | -50,890 |
Importers across UK regions
What this shows: Number of importing companies by UK ITL2 region.
Top 5 values
| UK region | Companies |
|---|---|
| Inner London - West | 82 |
| Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire | 79 |
| West Midlands | 68 |
| Greater Manchester | 62 |
| Surrey, East and West Sussex | 60 |
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 | 59 | 53 | -6 |
| Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire | 59 | 60 | +1 |
| West Midlands | 46 | 51 | +5 |
| Greater Manchester | 45 | 43 | -2 |
| Surrey, East and West Sussex | 48 | 41 | -7 |
| Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire | 43 | 36 | -7 |
| Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire | 39 | 41 | +2 |
| Hampshire and Isle of Wight | 38 | 35 | -3 |
| Leicestershire, Rutland and Northamptonshire | 41 | 40 | -1 |
| West Yorkshire | 38 | 35 | -3 |
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) | 69,940,966 |
| Air transport | 52,366,809 |
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 36,992,923 |
| Other | 2,150,466 |
| Road transport | 288,869 |
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) | 37,656,324 | 32,284,642 | -5,371,682 |
| Air transport | 25,811,412 | 26,555,397 | +743,985 |
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 19,742,905 | 17,250,018 | -2,492,887 |
| Other | 1,476,241 | 674,225 | -802,016 |
| Road transport | 146,369 | 142,500 | -3,869 |
Import volume by port
What this shows: Import value handled by each UK port.
Top 5 values
| Port | £ |
|---|---|
| Felixstowe | 29,688,611 |
| Southampton | 21,030,379 |
| Birmingham Airport | 18,389,277 |
| Dover | 15,057,900 |
| London Heathrow Airport | 10,983,811 |
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 | 17,357,932 | 12,330,679 | -5,027,253 |
| Southampton | 12,560,788 | 8,469,591 | -4,091,197 |
| Birmingham Airport | 8,242,941 | 10,146,336 | +1,903,395 |
| Dover | 7,021,200 | 8,036,700 | +1,015,500 |
| London Heathrow Airport | 6,350,064 | 4,633,747 | -1,716,317 |
| London Gateway Port | 3,012,740 | 6,408,070 | +3,395,330 |
| East Midlands Airport | 4,025,350 | 4,900,570 | +875,220 |
| Eurotunnel | 2,926,656 | 2,931,326 | +4,670 |
| London | 3,470,884 | 2,074,426 | -1,396,458 |
| London Stansted Airport | 2,266,411 | 3,209,781 | +943,370 |
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
|
488 |
|
Retail trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles
|
252 |
|
Other manufacturing
|
76 |
|
Manufacture of fabricated metal products, except machinery and equipment
|
71 |
|
Office administrative, office support and other business support activities
|
63 |
Importer companies over time
What this shows: Monthly count of unique importing companies.
Latest 5
| Month | Companies |
|---|---|
| 2026-05 | 242 |
| 2026-04 | 231 |
| 2026-03 | 266 |
| 2026-02 | 248 |
| 2026-01 | 255 |
Top importers
What this shows: Companies with the highest number of months traded for this HS code.
| Company | Months traded |
|---|---|
| DRAPER TOOLS LIMITED | 125 |
| GLENAIR UK LIMITED | 125 |
| JACK SEALEY LIMITED | 125 |
| SNAP-ON U.K. HOLDINGS LIMITED | 125 |
| TWEEZERMAN UK LTD | 125 |
| CARL KAMMERLING INTERNATIONAL LIMITED | 124 |
| IDEAL INDUSTRIES LIMITED | 124 |
| THE TOOL CONNECTION LIMITED | 124 |
| TOOLBANK LIMITED | 123 |
| ROLSON TOOLS LIMITED | 123 |
Importer company size by revenue band
What this shows: Distribution of importers across company revenue bands.
Top 5 values
| Revenue | Companies |
|---|---|
| 1m-15m | 521 |
| 54m+ | 407 |
| 15m-54m | 167 |
| 0-1m | 147 |
| Other | 105 |
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 States | 9,114,179 |
| Germany | 6,120,726 |
| France | 5,338,532 |
| Ireland | 3,949,059 |
| Netherlands | 2,798,686 |
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 States | 4,430,964 | 4,683,215 | +252,251 |
| Germany | 3,658,692 | 2,462,034 | -1,196,658 |
| France | 2,678,430 | 2,660,102 | -18,328 |
| Ireland | 2,140,550 | 1,808,509 | -332,041 |
| Netherlands | 1,539,314 | 1,259,372 | -279,942 |
| Belgium | 1,025,257 | 1,017,972 | -7,285 |
| Australia | 1,010,371 | 630,500 | -379,871 |
| Italy | 747,201 | 723,626 | -23,575 |
| China | 577,266 | 671,300 | +94,034 |
| Poland | 569,196 | 466,278 | -102,918 |
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 | £ |
|---|---|
| China | 382,241 |
| Taiwan | 57,385 |
| Ireland | 30,623 |
| Germany | 30,597 |
| XI | 29,123 |
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 £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| China | 197,107 | 185,134 | -11,973 |
| Taiwan | 35,491 | 21,894 | -13,597 |
| Ireland | 14,907 | 15,716 | +809 |
| Germany | 26,321 | 4,276 | -22,045 |
| XI | 11,581 | 17,542 | +5,961 |
| United States | 12,262 | 8,309 | -3,953 |
| India | 7,826 | 5,921 | -1,905 |
| Italy | 8,056 | 569 | -7,487 |
| Sweden | 4,011 | 3,977 | -34 |
| Austria | 4,786 | 709 | -4,077 |
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 | 19,864,502 |
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 18,258,971 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 9,468,615 |
| Other | 842,848 |
| Road transport | 5,408 |
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 | 10,134,093 | 9,730,409 | -403,684 |
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 9,835,073 | 8,423,898 | -1,411,175 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 5,597,894 | 3,870,721 | -1,727,173 |
| Other | 461,080 | 381,768 | -79,312 |
| Road transport | 5,408 | 0 | -5,408 |
Export volume by port
What this shows: Export value handled by each UK port.
Top 5 values
| Port | £ |
|---|---|
| East Midlands Airport | 8,669,413 |
| Dover / Eurotunnel | 8,357,190 |
| London Heathrow Airport | 5,882,331 |
| London Gateway Port | 3,790,216 |
| Dover | 3,371,998 |
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 £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| East Midlands Airport | 4,608,152 | 4,061,261 | -546,891 |
| Dover / Eurotunnel | 4,675,745 | 3,681,445 | -994,300 |
| London Heathrow Airport | 2,410,813 | 3,471,518 | +1,060,705 |
| London Gateway Port | 2,627,368 | 1,162,848 | -1,464,520 |
| Dover | 1,834,703 | 1,537,295 | -297,408 |
| Immingham Docks | 1,181,531 | 1,376,589 | +195,058 |
| ZLC | 1,460,402 | 946,062 | -514,340 |
| Liverpool Docks | 1,598,556 | 661,677 | -936,879 |
| Southampton | 818,603 | 1,418,326 | +599,723 |
| Holyhead | 971,268 | 856,868 | -114,400 |
Related HS codes
What this shows: Sibling or child HS codes in the same classification branch.
Quick facts
HS code: 8203
Coverage: United Kingdom, most metrics for the last 24 months
Description: Common hand tools including files, rasps, pliers, tweezers, metal-cutting shears, and pipe-cutters