Fastmarkets launches UK CBAM calculator to help importers estimate carbon costs ahead of January 2027. London, October 22, 2026 - Fastmarkets, a leading cross-commodity price reporting agency (PRA), today announced the launch of its UK CBAM Cost Calculator, designed to help importers estimate potential carbon costs under the UK's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) ahead of its implementation on 1 January 2027. October 22, 2026 Fastmarkets has launched a UK Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) Cost Calculator to help importers estimate potential carbon costs on goods entering the UK ahead of the regime's implementation on 1 January 2027. The calculator includes the default emissions and free allocation values HMRC published on 16 October 2026. Users can estimate costs by import volume and CN code, using one of three emissions intensity inputs: * UK default values: HMRC's published emissions intensity values for each CN code. * Custom emissions data: the user's own emissions intensity values. * Fastmarkets regional estimates: Fastmarkets' estimates of average emissions intensity by country of origin and CN code, for use where supplier-specific data isn't available. "The UK CBAM is a distinct regime, and the same import can carry a very different cost here than under the EU's. With 1 January approaching, businesses need a clear, shipment-level view of their UK exposure. Our calculator gives them that certainty so they can plan, price and negotiate with confidence." Ben Crick, Senior Economist, Fastmarkets A UK-specific view of costs. The UK and EU CBAM regimes operate under different rules. The UK applies sector-specific rates to calculate carbon costs, while the EU uses tradable CBAM certificates. As a result, the cost of importing the same product can differ between the two markets. Fastmarkets developed the UK calculator as a standalone tool with UK-specific data and calculations. Importers can assess potential costs under each regime separately and test how different market and policy assumptions affect their forecasts. The UK calculator complements Fastmarkets' EU CBAM cost calculator and its daily EU CBAM Certificate Index and Certificate Builder, launched in June 2026. Plan ahead of UK CBAM The calculator helps importers estimate their potential UK CBAM costs, compare exposure across suppliers and factor expected carbon costs into pricing and budgets ahead of the regime's implementation on 1 January 2027. To find out more, contact [email protected] or speak to your Fastmarkets Customer Success Manager. Compare your UK CBAM costs. See how UK CBAM costs vary by product and sourcing country. Plan ahead of the 1 January 2027 start.

AI, data-center expansion intensifies competition for power, equipment: Climate Week NYC panel. Grid expansion, transmission investment and power availability may become bigger obstacles to decarbonization, rather than steelmaking technology itself, steel producers, utilities and energy experts said during an event co-hosted by Fastmarkets and the Global Steel Climate Council (GSCC) during Climate Week NYC. October 16, 2026 Steel industry representatives and energy experts said increasing demand for electricity from artificial intelligence (AI), data centers and industrial electrification is putting unprecedented pressure on the US power system. Transmission infrastructure emerges as key bottleneck. A recurring theme through the panel discussion - titled "The Race for Power: Can steel decarbonize in an era of surging demand?" - was that transmission infrastructure has become a big bottleneck, both for AI expansion and traditional large producers such as steel producers. "We can build as many new generation plants as we can support, but if you don't have a way to move those electrons, it's a moot point," Jacob Keany, economic development consultant at FirstEnergy, said during the panel discussion held on September 24. Chris Bataille, global fellow at the Center on Global Energy Policy, echoed that view, identifying transmission expansion and shortages of transformers, breakers and other grid equipment as key challenges. Garrett Kent, director of energy at Commercial Metals Company (CMC), told attendees that transformers for the company's new West Virginia steel mill had to be ordered about two and a half years in advance because of extended lead times. The panel also discussed how rapidly growing AI-related power demand is changing utility planning and project development. While Kent said steelmakers are not directly competing with data centers for electricity, utilities are increasingly managing large requests from both sectors. Low-emission steel routes need more electricity. During the discussion, moderated by Fastmarkets' senior steel price reporter Rijuta Dey, Bataille argued that expanding power supply must occur before deeper decarbonization goals can be met. "The mantra has to be electrify first, decarbonize later," Bataille said. According to Bataille, future low-emission steel technologies such as hydrogen-based direct-reduced iron (DRI) and iron ore electrolysis could require significantly more electricity than current steelmaking routes. Panelists ultimately favored an "all-of-the-above" approach to power generation, combining renewables, battery storage, natural gas, nuclear and existing generation sources while accelerating investment in transmission infrastructure. "The question is no longer simply whether we know how to produce steel with lower emissions," GSCC executive director Adena Renee Adler said in her opening remarks. "Increasingly, it is whether the energy system can support those solutions on a commercial scale." AI scrutiny dominates Climate Week NYC. The rise and dominance of AI and its impact on industry and humanity overall were key themes at this year's Climate Week NYC, with members of Congress calling for more transparency. Brian Schatz, US senator from the state of Hawaii, called the rate of AI development an "emergency," urging independent third-party review before frontier models are released. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, the ranking member of the US Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, said that data center builders have not behaved "like good citizens," noting that there should be more transparency, and predicting that the US Congress will "step in a bipartisan way" to regulate the burgeoning sector. US steelmakers face a "robust opportunity" in the data center construction boom, driven by rapid implementation of AI software, Barry Zekelman, executive chairman and chief executive officer of Zekelman Industries, has previously told Fastmarkets. President Donald Trump, who refers to AI as "super intelligence" or SI, established the Super Intelligence Force (SIF) in early October. The task force is an interagency federal task force designed to coordinate technology policy, oversee AI development, and engage with industry leaders. Is data center demand lifting steel? Daily price assessments and forecasts show what demand means for steel prices

Fastmarkets launches Russian Baltic wheat price assessments amid shifting export flows. Fastmarkets has introduced new price assessments for Russian wheat exported through Baltic ports, reflecting the region's growing role in Russian grain exports amid disruptions to traditional shipping routes in the Azov-Black Sea basin. October 14, 2026 Logistical constraints in southern ports have accelerated the redirection of wheat shipments toward the Baltic Sea, while weak domestic prices and accumulating grain supplies have increased pressure to maintain export volumes. Russian grain shipments through Baltic ports could exceed 1.5 million tonnes in October, according to Maxim Borovoy, Russian Deputy Agriculture Minister, matching the volume handled during the entire previous marketing year. The projected increase highlights the region's growing importance in Russia's grain export network. Government support encourages export diversification. Russian authorities have introduced measures to support grain exports and ease pressure from accumulating domestic supplies, including rail freight subsidies for alternative export routes and plans for state grain purchases. Weak producer profitability has also raised concerns about wheat planting decisions for the next growing season, increasing the importance of maintaining export demand. But higher inland transportation costs and limited rail capacity continue to constrain Russian wheat exports through Baltic ports, affecting their competitiveness in international markets. Shifting export flows. Russian grain export flows shifted sharply in September 2026 as severe disruptions to Black Sea shipping forced exporters to redirect shipments toward alternative routes. According to data from the Institute for Agricultural Market Studies (IKAR), shipments through Black Sea ports fell to around 280,000 tonnes in September from 1.54 million tonnes in August, reducing their share of total exports from 48% to just 9%. Meanwhile, Baltic shipments surged to approximately 1.35 million tonnes in September, up from 340,000 tonnes in August and just 40,000 tonnes in July. The region's share of total grain exports climbed to around 43% in September, making the Baltic Sea the largest export corridor. Shipments through the Caspian and Caucasus routes, Central Asia and the Far East also increased, reflecting a broader redistribution of export flows away from the Black Sea. Beyond the Baltic Sea. Russia reportedly shipped its first 40,000-tonne wheat cargo through the city of Murmansk in October, highlighting broader efforts to develop northern maritime export routes and reduce reliance on southern port infrastructure. Although Murmansk lies outside the Baltic region, the shipment reflects Russia's wider push to diversify grain export logistics. Further expansion of northern routes will depend on transportation costs, infrastructure capacity and competitiveness in destination markets. Growing need for Baltic wheat price transparency. Growing Russian wheat export flows through Baltic ports, combined with different freight costs and inland logistics compared with traditional Black Sea routes, have increased the need for dedicated regional price references. Fastmarkets' new assessments aim to provide greater price transparency and independent benchmarks for trade through the region. Fastmarkets assessed wheat 12.5%, fob Russian Baltic at $268 per tonne and wheat 11.5%, fob Russian Baltic at $260 per tonne on Monday October 12. In addition, Fastmarkets has launched a freight rate assessment for Handy-sized cargoes loading at Russian Baltic ports and destined for Egypt - Freight Russian Baltic-Egypt - providing a reference for transportation costs along the route. Understand the forces shaping the global wheat market. Get started with Fastmarkets' wheat price data and commentary, covering benchmarks across Europe, the US, Australia and Argentina.