HS4 subsector intelligence

Printed or illustrated postcards
HS4 4909 trade overview

A focused view of this HS4 subsector: market scale, momentum, leading routes, countries, and the HS6 classifications inside it.

HS4 49091995-2024 coverageDeclining
The numbers at a glanceLatest reported year · 2024
01

Latest trade

$925.6MGlobal subsector value
02

Annual change

+6.1%Latest year on year
03

Exporters

167Active reporting countries
04

Importers

194Active reporting countries
05

HS6 products

1Classifications inside HS4

The subsector read

$925.6M in trade, with -6.6% annualized growth over three years.

Printed or illustrated postcards is recorded across 4,735 active corridors, with 167 exporters and 194 importers.

Annual trend

Subsector momentum over time

Reported global trade from 1995 to 2024. Read the methodology ↗

Annual subsector tradeReported global trade from 1995 to 2024.1995: $546.4M1996: $589.1M1997: $616.6M1998: $590.5M1999: $619.5M2000: $655.9M2001: $656.8M2002: $685.3M2003: $835.4M2004: $927.8M2005: $1.0B2006: $1.1B2007: $1.3B2008: $1.4B2009: $1.1B2010: $1.1B2011: $1.2B2012: $1.1B2013: $1.2B2014: $1.2B2015: $1.2B2016: $1.1B2017: $1.3B2018: $1.3B2019: $1.3B2020: $1.0B2021: $1.1B2022: $1.0B2023: $872.4M2024: $925.6M
Reported global trade by year.

Top trade corridors

Where the subsector moves

Leading exporter-to-importer relationships by latest reported value. See data sources ↗

Latest reported relationshipsTop 10 by trade value
RankExporterImporterTrade valueGrowthHS6DistanceFTA
1ChinaCHNUSA, Puerto Rico and US Virgin IslandsUSA$239.8M-3.3%111,883 kmNo
2ChinaCHNUnited KingdomGBR$66.2M-18.4%19,217 kmNo
3Viet NamVNMUSA, Puerto Rico and US Virgin IslandsUSA$64.3M+22.5%114,306 kmNo
4ChinaCHNCanadaCAN$37.4M-1.5%111,441 kmNo
5USA, Puerto Rico and US Virgin IslandsUSACanadaCAN$34.6M+1.8%1556 kmYes
6ChinaCHNGermanyDEU$22.9M-1.1%18,415 kmNo
7GermanyDEUSwitzerland, LiechtensteinCHE$21.4M-2.2%1674 kmYes
8United KingdomGBRIrelandIRL$17.3M+8.6%1463 kmYes
9ChinaCHNNetherlandsNLD$17.2M+0.2%18,894 kmNo
10ChinaCHNAustraliaAUS$15.9M-11.6%18,024 kmYes

Market structure

Where supply and demand concentrate

Exporter and importer rankings show the two sides of the subsector separately. Check coverage ↗

Top exporters2024 ranking
RankCountryExportsPartnersHS6
1ChinaCHN$499.1M1881
2United KingdomGBR$77.5M1381
3Viet NamVNM$74.5M731
4GermanyDEU$53.4M1191
5USA, Puerto Rico and US Virgin IslandsUSA$43.7M1401
6NetherlandsNLD$34.1M1001
7FranceFRA$20.3M1411
8Republic of KoreaKOR$11.0M1281
9ItalyITA$10.4M1021
10BelgiumBEL$9.5M951
Top importers2024 ranking
RankCountryImportsPartnersHS6
1USA, Puerto Rico and US Virgin IslandsUSA$343.5M861
2United KingdomGBR$79.2M671
3CanadaCAN$78.3M791
4GermanyDEU$68.9M1131
5NetherlandsNLD$34.9M821
6Switzerland, LiechtensteinCHE$30.5M821
7IrelandIRL$25.0M811
8AustraliaAUS$24.3M421
9BelgiumBEL$24.2M601
10FranceFRA$23.8M851

HS6 product coverage

The products inside HS4 4909

Six-digit classifications make the subsector specific. Browse the product workspace ↗

1 classifications shownPrinted or illustrated postcards
01
Printed or illustrated postcards: printed cards bearing personal greetings, messages or announcements, whether or not illustrated, with or without envelopes or trimmingsHS6 490900

Definitions and coverage

Read the numbers with context

Reported observations and calculated indicators should be read with their coverage period. Responsible AI principles ↗

01

Reported values

Trade values describe reported merchandise trade for the HS4 classification, not company-level sales or shipment records.

02

Calculated indicators

Growth, concentration, volatility, and peak comparisons are calculated from reported observations.

03

Missing data

Unavailable observations remain unavailable. They are not filled, interpolated, or presented as forecasts.

Coverage: 1995-2024 · Data refreshed 2026-07-20 09:34:09

Data source

OECD trade statistics with CEPII context

OECD (2025), Balanced international merchandise trade statistics (BIMTS) - HS2017-6D, OECD Data Explorer (accessed on 2026-08-27). OECD BIMTS is the primary trade series for this view. Supporting bilateral trade context uses CEPII BACI bilateral trade flows (202601) under Etalab 2.0 Open Licence. Yugalinks presents derived views of reported observations and calculated indicators. Data terms: OECD Terms & Conditions.