Adhesives and sealants: Correlation
Prices it moves with, and why
Adhesives and sealants are made from polymers such as vinyl acetate emulsions, polyurethanes, acrylics and styrene block copolymers. Prices follow these petrochemical inputs with a lag; demand comes from packaging, construction, wood products and vehicles.
Price index US PPI: adhesives and sealants index (BLS base period) · monthly, Jan 2006 to Sep 2026What its price moves with
Selected linkAdhesives and sealants and Acetic acid
Monthly changes 0.24 weak correlation 12-month changes 0.61 moderate correlation Last 5 years 0.14 monthly changes Lead or lag +2 mo Acetic acid tends to lead by 2 months (r 0.38) Price function, Jan 2006 to Sep 2026 Adhesives and sealants ≈ 0.602 × (Acetic acid)1.11 R² 0.85 On this fit, a 10% higher acetic acid price goes with a 11.2% higher adhesives and sealants price over the long run. Units: index (BLS base period) and index (BLS base period).Chart: Adhesives and sealants and Acetic acid prices rebased to 100 at Jan 2006, log scale
Both prices rebased to 100 at Jan 2006, on a log scale so equal percentage moves look the same size.Chart: Adhesives and sealants price against Acetic acid price, monthly, log scales, with fitted line
Each dot is one month; paler dots are older (2006), darker dots recent (2026); the ringed dot is the latest month. The dashed line is the fitted price function. Both axes are logarithmic.Vinyl acetate, made from acetic acid and ethylene, is the basis of white glues and many packaging adhesives. Against the organic chemicals proxy, monthly moves correlate at 0.24 and yearly moves at 0.61, with the proxy leading by about 2 months.
weak co-movement month to month · 249 months Show chartsPolyurethane adhesives and sealants are used in construction, footwear and car assembly. Against the thermosetting resins proxy, monthly moves correlate at 0.17 and yearly moves at 0.69, consistent with shared isocyanate and polyol costs.
little or none co-movement month to month · 249 months Show chartsStyrene block copolymers are the backbone of hot-melt and pressure-sensitive adhesives for tapes, labels and nappies. Against the cyclic intermediates proxy, monthly moves correlate at 0.13 and yearly moves at 0.46.
little or none co-movement month to month · 249 months Show chartsPaints and adhesives share resins, solvents and customers in construction and industry, and many firms make both. The indexes correlate at 0.47 for monthly moves and 0.90 for yearly moves, the yearly figure among the closest in this data.
moderate co-movement month to month · 249 months Show chartsRefineries supply the propylene, aromatics and solvents that end up in adhesive polymers. The refinery index correlates weakly, at 0.02 for monthly moves and 0.29 for yearly moves, as several processing steps and contracts intervene.
little or none co-movement month to month · 249 months Show chartsHow to read these numbers
Correlation of monthly changes (the number in the coloured pill) compares how much each price moved, month by month, since 2006 or the first month both series exist. It runs from −1 to +1: near +1 the two usually rise and fall in the same months, near 0 there is no link, and a negative number means they tend to move in opposite directions. Above 0.7 is strong, 0.4 to 0.7 moderate, 0.2 to 0.4 weak.
12-month changes compare year-on-year moves, which shows whether two prices share the same cycles even when the month-to-month noise differs.
Price function is a straight-line fit of the two prices on logarithmic scales: price ≈ k × (partner price)β. β is how much this price moves, in per cent, for a 1% move in the partner over the whole period, and R² is the share of the variation the fit explains. Two prices that both drift up with inflation can fit well without any real link, so read it together with the monthly correlation.
Lead or lag checks whether the monthly correlation is clearly higher when one price is shifted by 1 to 6 months.
Correlation is not cause. The reasons on each card explain the economic link; the numbers show how strongly it has shown up in prices. Proxy series are US producer price indexes or related prices and can blur the real link.
Data: World Bank Commodity Price Data (Pink Sheet), October 2026; US Bureau of Labor Statistics producer price indexes, IMF primary commodity prices and US EIA prices via FRED, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, retrieved November 2026. Calculations by this site.