The European Union imported 111.23 billion euros of merchandise covered by the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) in 2025, including an estimated 94.74 billion euros from non-exempt origins. An extraction of EU merchandise-trade data compiled in October 2026 shows the scale of goods entering the bloc, but the customs values are not the sum of CBAM certificates payable.
About 16.5 billion euros of imports came from origins exempt under the regulation. Iron and steel products classified under relevant Chapter 72 and 73 codes accounted for 60.95 billion euros, while aluminium imports were valued at 30.34 billion euros, according to the data.
Electricity imports came to 8.43 billion euros and fertiliser imports to 8.33 billion euros. The totals also included 2.10 billion euros of agglomerated iron ore and 1.08 billion euros of cement and clinker; hydrogen remained marginal in merchandise statistics.
China was the largest external supplier to the EU, with imports valued at 17.09 billion euros. Türkiye ranked second, at 10.83 billion euros, followed by Britain at 7.28 billion euros.
Customs values do not determine CBAM liability
CBAM entered its definitive period on 1 January 2026, attaching financial and reporting obligations to eligible imports based on their embedded emissions. The adjustments account for the EU free-allocation phase-out and any qualifying carbon price already paid abroad. The certificate price for 2026 is published quarterly and reached 82.32 euros per tonne of carbon dioxide equivalent in the third quarter.
The certificate price is not a flat tax on an imported product’s customs value. Assessing actual liability requires businesses to connect the eight-digit customs code, country of origin, producing installation, quantity, emissions methodology, importer and contractual buyer. That information can help companies assess supplier competitiveness and consider whether carbon evidence, alternative materials or changes to purchase contracts could improve margins.
Customs statistics do not identify liable importers or verified emissions, and cannot show the full route metal takes through customs representatives, warehouses, service centres, rolling or extrusion plants and component suppliers before reaching vehicle, construction or machinery manufacturers. Imports declared in one EU member state may be resold elsewhere in the single market. The trade scale exposes European industry’s dependence on foreign metals and materials, while leaving supply-chain information as a challenge alongside CBAM’s border-pricing measure.