Market evolution: Handheld power tools (CN 846729) — 2015–2025

Introduction

This report examines the evolution of EU trade in handheld electromechanical power tools (excluding saws and drills) classified under Combined Nomenclature code 846729 over the period 2015–2025. The product category covers a wide range of devices — from angle grinders and sanders to hedge trimmers, planers, and an expanding universe of cordless battery-powered tools — that are central to both professional construction and home-improvement markets.

Over the decade, the EU market for these tools has undergone a triple transformation: a technological shift toward cordless, battery-operated products; a structural deepening of import dependency, overwhelmingly sourced from China; and a premiumisation of EU exports, which command unit values several times higher than imported goods. The result is a market that has roughly doubled in total value — imports and exports combined exceeded €3 billion in 2025 — yet whose trade deficit has widened more than fivefold.

The analysis draws exclusively on the trade statistics provided in the dataset. Where production figures (PRODCOM) are available, they supplement the picture of EU domestic manufacturing.

Overview dashboard for CN 846729

1. The Cordless Revolution: Battery-Powered Tools Dominate the Product Mix

The single most striking structural change in the CN 846729 trade flow over the decade has been the explosive growth of cordless, battery-powered tools (sub-heading 84672920). This sub-segment has redefined the product composition of both imports and exports, displacing several traditional corded categories.

Battery-powered tools grew from a niche to the majority of imports

In 2015, cordless tools (84672920) accounted for just €282.0 million of EU imports from outside the bloc, representing 29.9% of total import value (€944.2 M). By 2025, that figure had surged to €1,231.0 million — a +336.6% increase — capturing 61.6% of total import value (€1,999.1 M). In tonnage terms, the shift is even more dramatic: imports of cordless tools rose from 15,888 tonnes to 93,483 tonnes (+488%), while the number of individual items imported grew from 7.8 million to 35.9 million pieces.

This trajectory reflects the broader global transition from mains-powered to battery-powered tools, driven by improvements in lithium-ion battery technology, growing professional demand for jobsite mobility, and the expansion of multi-battery platform ecosystems among major manufacturers.

Traditional corded segments stagnated or declined

In contrast, several historically significant corded sub-segments experienced volume stagnation or outright decline:

Sources: sub-segment product comparison view

Grinders and sanders (84672951), once the second-largest import category by weight, saw volumes fall by 15%. Belt sanders (84672953) collapsed by more than half in tonnage. Hedge trimmers (84672980) also declined, reflecting both the maturity of the category and partial substitution by battery-powered variants classified under the cordless heading.

EU exports mirror the cordless trend but at much higher unit values

On the export side, cordless tools (84672920) likewise became the dominant category, rising from 7,377 tonnes (€234.9 M) in 2015 to 13,102 tonnes (€626.9 M) in 2025. However, EU exporters command substantially higher prices: the export unit value for cordless tools reached €148.53 per piece in 2025, compared to just €34.25 per piece for imports of the same sub-segment — a ratio of more than 4:1. This gap underscores the premium positioning of EU-made cordless tools (e.g., Bosch, Metabo, Festool, Makita's European production) versus the mass-market imports largely originating from China.

Meanwhile, EU exports of traditional corded segments declined sharply. Grinders and sanders exports fell from 11,138 tonnes to 4,844 tonnes (−57%), hedge trimmer exports from 3,270 tonnes to 1,330 tonnes (−59%), and planer exports from 567 tonnes to 155 tonnes (−73%). The EU's export base is consolidating around its competitive strength in high-value cordless systems.

2. Deepening Import Dependency and China's Overwhelming Dominance

The second major dynamic is the structural widening of the EU's trade deficit and its increasing reliance on a single supplier — China — for the bulk of its handheld power tool imports.

The trade deficit quintupled over the decade

Sources: general trade overview, net import reliance, trade intensity

Imports more than doubled in value (+111.7%) while exports grew by only a third (+35.8%), producing a trade deficit that rose from −€157 M to −€931 M. Net import reliance — the share of apparent consumption met by net imports — nearly doubled from 20.9% to 40.4%, meaning the EU now sources roughly two-fifths of its power tool consumption from outside the bloc. Trade intensity (the ratio of trade to production) rose to 92.8%, indicating that the EU market is deeply integrated into global supply chains.

The deficit was at its worst around 2022, when it reached an estimated −€1,186 M, coinciding with peak import volumes in the post-COVID recovery surge and the onset of the energy-price shock.

China accounts for nearly four-fifths of EU imports

Source: top import partners

China's dominance has intensified relentlessly. In 2015, China already supplied 67.4% of EU import value; by 2025, its share had risen to 78.5%. In volume terms, China supplied 185,713 tonnes out of a total of 179,821 tonnes reported for non-EU imports — meaning the "Other" category (including all non-top-7 partners) contributes relatively little. China is not merely the largest supplier; it is, for practical purposes, the source market.

Among other suppliers, Malaysia (the second-largest source) actually saw its import value decline by 15.7%, suggesting that some production previously located in Southeast Asia may have shifted back to mainland China or been absorbed by Chinese-owned factories. Japan and the United States saw moderate growth, likely reflecting imports of higher-end or specialised tools from brands with headquarters in those countries.

Import concentration has risen markedly

The Herfindahl-Hirschman Index (HHI) for imports by value increased from 4,722 to 6,229 (+31.9%), a significant rise indicating that the import base has become more concentrated — essentially, more dependent on China. The volume-based HHI tells a similar story, rising from 5,402 to 8,029.

By contrast, the export HHI remained low (920 → 1,136), confirming that EU exports are diversified across a wide range of destination markets — a structural advantage for resilience.

Sources: concentration HHI

Within the EU, import gateways shifted

Among EU Member States, the most dramatic import growth occurred in the Netherlands (+244.3%, reaching €319 M), Poland (+338.2%, reaching €194 M), and Austria (+179.7%, reaching €162 M). Germany remains the largest single importer (€462 M) but grew more modestly (+23.6%). These shifts reflect evolving logistics patterns — with Rotterdam and Gdańsk/Antwerp increasingly serving as entry points for Chinese goods destined for Central and Eastern European markets — as well as the growing role of Poland as both a consumption market and a re-distribution hub.

Source: top EU reporter imports

3. Premium Exports, Geopolitical Realignment, and Production Resilience

While the import story is one of growing dependency, the EU's export profile reveals a more nuanced picture: European manufacturers have moved up the value chain, maintained diversified market access, and — crucially — had to absorb a complete loss of the Russian market.

EU exporters command unit values far above import prices

Source: general trade overview

EU export unit values have risen steeply — +68% per tonne, +63% per piece — while import unit values have barely moved (+11% and +8% respectively). The export-to-import price ratio per piece widened from 3.1:1 to 4.7:1, indicating that EU manufacturers have successfully shifted toward higher-specification, higher-margin products (professional-grade cordless systems, brushless motors, smart-connected tools) while imports remain concentrated in the value and mid-range segments.

EU production data reinforce this premiumisation narrative. Domestic production value rose from €493.8 M to €1,208.7 M (+144.8%), while production volume grew only 26.0% (from 7.8 M to 9.8 M pieces). The implied production unit value nearly doubled, from €63.5 to €123.3 per item — consistent with a strategy of producing fewer but more expensive tools within the EU.

Sources: EU production volumes

EU export specialisation is concentrated in Nordic and Central European economies

Using the Revealed Symmetric Comparative Advantage (RSCA) index for 2025, the most specialised EU exporters in CN 846729 are:

Source: specialisation view

Sweden and Austria — home to brands such as Husqvarna, Atlas Copco, and certain Bosch/Makita facilities — show the highest specialisation. Romania and Hungary, which have attracted significant manufacturing investment from major tool companies seeking EU-based production at competitive costs, also stand out. Germany, despite being the largest absolute exporter (€464 M in 2025), has a lower RSCA because its broader economy exports a vast range of other machinery products.

Notably, Romania's export growth was the most spectacular: from €9.9 M in 2015 to €51.9 M in 2025 (+425%), reflecting its emergence as a key production base within the EU.

Russia's collapse reshaped trade routes

Perhaps the most dramatic geopolitical event visible in the data is the complete cessation of EU-Russia trade in this product category:

Both flows dropped to essentially zero by 2025, reflecting the progressive tightening of EU sanctions following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The export loss was significant — Russia was the EU's fourth-largest export market in 2015, absorbing €60 M annually. Its disappearance forced EU exporters to redirect volumes toward other markets.

The United States and Türkiye absorbed redirected exports

The markets that most visibly compensated for the loss of Russia were the United States and Türkiye:

Source: top export partners

The United States became the EU's single largest export destination, growing from €160 M to €272 M (+70%). Combined with the United Kingdom (€172 M) and Switzerland (€99 M), the top three markets alone accounted for over half of EU exports. Türkiye's rise of +51.2% is noteworthy and may partly reflect its role as a re-export hub to markets in the Middle East and Central Asia.

The volatility analysis confirms that EU export flows to major Western markets are relatively stable (coefficient of variation below 0.20 for the UK, US, and Switzerland), while the Russia trade exhibited the highest pre-sanctions volatility (CV of 0.64), foreshadowing its eventual collapse.

Source: volatility bars

Conclusion

The EU market for handheld electromechanical power tools (CN 846729) has been reshaped over the 2015–2025 period by three converging forces: the technological pivot to cordless battery-powered platforms, an accelerating concentration of import sourcing in China, and a geopolitical realignment triggered by the sanctions on Russia.

The cordless revolution is the dominant product-level story. Battery-powered tools (84672920) grew from under 30% to over 60% of import value, absorbing growth that in previous decades would have been spread across multiple corded sub-categories. This shift has been favourable to Chinese exporters, who dominate the mass-market cordless segment, but has also created space for EU manufacturers to compete at the premium end of the same category.

The trade deficit has widened dramatically — from €157 M in 2015 to €931 M in 2025 — and the EU's net import reliance has nearly doubled to 40.4%. With China accounting for 78.5% of imports and the import-side HHI rising to over 6,200, the EU faces a structural supply-chain concentration risk in this product category. Any disruption to Chinese production or logistics (tariffs, port closures, geopolitical tension) would have immediate and significant consequences for the European tools market.

On the positive side, EU exporters have demonstrated remarkable value resilience. Despite exporting fewer tonnes and fewer pieces than in 2015, they generated 36% more revenue — a textbook sign of premiumisation. The export-to-import unit-value ratio has widened to 4.7:1, confirming that the EU occupies a distinct, high-margin segment of the global market. The complete loss of the Russian market, while painful in absolute terms, was absorbed through growth in the US, UK, Switzerland, and Türkiye. EU production value more than doubled, reaching €1.2 billion, with Central and Eastern European members (Romania, Hungary, Poland) playing an increasingly important role in the manufacturing base.

Looking ahead, the key risks lie in import concentration and the pace of the cordless transition. The key opportunities lie in further leveraging the EU's brand premium, battery-platform ecosystems, and diversified export geography to offset the structural trade deficit.