426 businesses in Colchester appear in HMRC customs records for the last six months. That puts it third in Essex for trade activity. Most of that activity sits in machinery and mechanical appliances, electrical machinery and electronics, plastics and plastic articles. Looking ahead, our model expects import activity here to ease back by around 4.3% over the next three months.
Refreshed every 24 hours · last run 05/10/2026 at 06:14HMRC release in view: Aug 26Snapshot: 2026-10-04.1
4,990Import declarations▼ 15.6% on the 6 months before
2,771Export declarations
−4.3%Forecast, next 3 monthsBased on 2 years of data
426Trading businesses
Top 10 businesses by 6-month activity Free tier
Ranked by declaration volume and months active. Hover any bar in the 24-month indicators for that month's figures. Log in for keyword search and HMRC category filters across all 426 businesses.
★ Most active in ColchesterFiled more customs declarations than any other Colchester business over the last six months — roughly 4% of the town's total import activity, mostly in salt, stone, plaster and cement.
Most active business
QUINTA RADDISON LIMITED
178 import declarations591 export declarationsCO4 *Ch. 25Ch. 27Ch. 28Ch. 29Active in 5 of the last 6 months
Recent shipments include medium oils and preparations, of petroleum or bituminous minerals, not containing biodiesel, n.e.s., appliances for pipes, boiler shells, tanks, vats or the like (excl. pressure-reducing valves, valves for the control of pneumatic power transmission, check "non-return" valves and safety or relief valves), parts of: air or vacuum pumps, air or other gas compressors, fans and ventilating or recycling hoods incorporating a fan, and gas-tight biological safety cabinets, n.e.s..
▲ Expected to increase by 0.0% over the next 3 months, based on their last 2 years
Imports — 2 years of monthly activity178 in the last 6 months
Exports — 2 years of monthly activity591 in the last 6 months
Earlier monthsLast 6 monthsOur forecast for the next 3
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Among the most active
MAREL LTD
44 import declarations159 export declarationsCO4 *Ch. 34Ch. 35Ch. 39Ch. 40Active in 5 of the last 6 months
Recent shipments include transmission or conveyor belts or belting, of textile material, whether or not impregnated, coated, covered or laminated with plastics, or reinforced with metal or other material (excl. those of a thickness of < 3 mm and of indeterminate length or cu, parts of machinery for the industrial preparation or manufacture of food or drink, n.e.s., input or output units for automatic data-processing machines, whether or not containing storage units in the same housing.
▼ Expected to slow by 27.5% over the next 3 months, based on their last 2 years
Imports — 2 years of monthly activity44 in the last 6 months
Exports — 2 years of monthly activity159 in the last 6 months
Earlier monthsLast 6 monthsOur forecast for the next 3
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Among the most active
INDASA ABRASIVES (UK) LIMITED
130 import declarations31 export declarationsCO1 *Ch. 27Ch. 28Ch. 29Ch. 32Active in 5 of the last 6 months
Recent shipments include glaziers' putty, grafting putty, resin cements, caulking compounds and other mastics; painters' fillings, natural or artificial abrasive powder or grain, on a base of paper or paperboard only, whether or not cut to shape, sewn or otherwise made up, paints and varnishes, incl. enamels and lacquers, based on acrylic or vinyl polymers, dispersed or dissolved in a non-aqueous medium; solutions based on acrylic or vinyl polymers in volatile organic solvents, containing > 50% solvent by weight.
▲ Expected to increase by 7.0% over the next 3 months, based on their last 2 years
Imports — 2 years of monthly activity130 in the last 6 months
Exports — 2 years of monthly activity31 in the last 6 months
Earlier monthsLast 6 monthsOur forecast for the next 3
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Among the most active
TIME LINE INTERNATIONAL LIMITED
6 import declarations145 export declarationsCO1 *Ch. 28Ch. 32Ch. 34Ch. 38Active in 5 of the last 6 months
Recent shipments include lubricant preparations, incl. cutting-oil preparations, bolt or nut release preparations, anti-rust or anti-corrosion preparations and mould-release preparations, based on lubricants and containing petroleum oil or bituminous mineral oil (excl. prepa, ceramic wares for chemical or other technical uses (excl. of porcelain or china, articles having a hardness equivalent to >= 9 on the mohs scale, millstones, polishing stones, grindstones and the like of heading 6804, refractory ceramic goods, electr, h sections of iron or non-alloy steel, not further worked than hot-rolled, hot-drawn or hot-extruded, of a height >= 80 mm.
▼ Expected to slow by 100.0% over the next 3 months, based on their last 2 years
Imports — 2 years of monthly activity6 in the last 6 months
Exports — 2 years of monthly activity145 in the last 6 months
Earlier monthsLast 6 monthsOur forecast for the next 3
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Among the most active
ESSEX GOVERNOR SERVICES LTD
44 import declarations88 export declarationsCO6 *Ch. 39Ch. 40Ch. 48Ch. 73Active in 5 of the last 6 months
Recent shipments include parts of machinery of chapter 84, not intended for a specific purpose, n.e.s., parts suitable for use solely or principally with compression-ignition internal combustion piston engine "diesel or semi-diesel engine", n.e.s., hydraulic power engines and motors, linear acting "cylinders".
▲ Expected to increase by 0.0% over the next 3 months, based on their last 2 years
Imports — 2 years of monthly activity44 in the last 6 months
Exports — 2 years of monthly activity88 in the last 6 months
Earlier monthsLast 6 monthsOur forecast for the next 3
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416 more Colchester businesses
Every importer and exporter in CO1 / CO2 / CO3 / CO4 with monthly activity, 24-month indicators, forecasts, Companies House records, AI research and validated contact reveals.
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What Colchester trades
The most frequently declared goods across all 426 businesses in the last six months — useful for picking which trade lanes to prospect.
Wine of fresh grapes, incl. fortified wines, and grape must whose fermentation has been arrested by the addition of alcohol, in containers of <= 2 l (excl. sparkling wine)Articles of iron or steel, n.e.s. (excl. cast articles or articles of iron or steel wire)Live plants, incl. their roots, and mushroom spawn (excl. bulbs, tubers, tuberous roots, corms, crowns and rhizomes, incl. chicory plants and roots, unrooted cuttings and slips, fruit and nut trees, rhododendrons, azaleas and roses)Centrifugal pumps, power-driven (excl. those of subheading 8413.11 and 8413.19, fuel, lubricating or cooling medium pumps for internal combustion piston engine and concrete pumps)Food preparations, n.e.s.Appliances for pipes, boiler shells, tanks, vats or the like (excl. pressure-reducing valves, valves for the control of pneumatic power transmission, check "non-return" valves and safety or relief valves)Tricycles, scooters, pedal cars and similar wheeled toys; dolls' carriages; dolls; other toys; reduced-size "scale" recreational models, working or not; puzzles of all kindsMillstones, grindstones, grinding wheels and the like, without frameworks, for sharpening, polishing, trueing or cutting, of agglomerated abrasives or ceramics (excl. of agglomerated synthetic or natural diamond, hand sharpening or polishing stones,
Common questions about trade in Colchester
How many businesses import or export from Colchester?
HMRC customs records show 426 businesses in Colchester (CO1, CO2, CO3, CO4) filed declarations over the last six months — 4,990 import declarations and 2,771 export declarations in total. This page is rebuilt every 24 hours as new HMRC data is published.
What do Colchester businesses import most?
The most common category is machinery and mechanical appliances. Across all Colchester traders the leading goods are wine of fresh grapes, incl. fortified wines, and grape must whose fermentation has been arrested by the addition of alcohol, in containers of <= 2 l (excl. sparkling wine), articles of iron or steel, n.e.s. (excl. cast articles or articles of iron or steel wire), live plants, incl. their roots, and mushroom spawn (excl. bulbs, tubers, tuberous roots, corms, crowns and rhizomes, incl. chicory plants and roots, unrooted cuttings and slips, fruit and nut trees, rhododendrons, azaleas and roses), centrifugal pumps, power-driven (excl. those of subheading 8413.11 and 8413.19, fuel, lubricating or cooling medium pumps for internal combustion piston engine and concrete pumps). You can filter the full list by HMRC category once logged in.
Is trade from Colchester growing?
Import activity is down 15.6% compared with the previous six months. Our model, which reads two years of monthly history, expects the next three months to soften by roughly 4.3%. That figure is our estimate, not an HMRC projection.
How do I get contact details for Colchester importers?
Create an account to see all 426 businesses, open their Companies House records, run AI research on their website and buying signals, and reveal validated email and LinkedIn contacts.
Nearby in Essex
Other Essex locations with active customs entries.