# Argon: Correlation Prices it moves with, and why Source page: https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/argon/correlation/ Argon is a minor part of air and is separated with oxygen and nitrogen, so supply depends on oxygen output. It is used for welding, steelmaking, glass and silicon crystals. The series is a US index of argon and hydrogen. Price index **US PPI: argon and hydrogen** index (BLS base period) · monthly, Jun 2009 to Sep 2026 #### What its price moves with Selected link ##### Argon and Oxygen Monthly changes 0.28 weak correlation 12-month changes 0.20 weak correlation Last 5 years 0.28 monthly changes Lead or lag none No clear lead or lag Price function, Jun 2009 to Sep 2026 Argon ≈ 106.4 × (Oxygen)^-0.01 R² 0.00 On this fit, a 10% higher oxygen price goes with a −0.1% lower argon price over the long run. Units: index (BLS base period) and index (BLS base period). The fit is loose, so treat the function as a rough guide. Chart: Argon and Oxygen prices rebased to 100 at Jun 2009, log scale Both prices rebased to 100 at Jun 2009, on a log scale so equal percentage moves look the same size. Chart: Argon price against Oxygen price, monthly, log scales, with fitted line Each dot is one month; paler dots are older (2009), darker dots recent (2026); the ringed dot is the latest month. The dashed line is the fitted price function. Both axes are logarithmic. Chemical [O2 Oxygen](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/oxygen/)Co-product 0.28 Argon is made only as a side stream of oxygen production, so when steel mills cut oxygen use, argon becomes scarce. Monthly moves correlate at 0.28 and yearly moves at 0.20, weak partly because the index includes hydrogen. weak co-movement month to month · 208 months Show charts Chemical [N2 Nitrogen gas](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/nitrogen_gas/)Co-product 0.46 Argon and nitrogen come from the same plants. The nitrogen proxy is the broad industrial gases index; monthly moves correlate at 0.46 but yearly moves at only 0.05, since the argon index also includes hydrogen. moderate co-movement month to month · 208 months Show charts Commodity [St Steel](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/steel/)Main use −0.02 Steelmakers use argon to stir molten steel and make stainless steel, and welders use it as a shielding gas. The steel index shows no link with the argon and hydrogen index: monthly moves correlate at minus 0.02. little or none co-movement month to month · 208 months Show charts Energy [HI Energy-intensive industry](https://www.materialinsights.org/energy/e_heavy_industry/)Energy cost −0.01 Air separation needs a lot of electricity. The proxy is US industrial power; monthly moves correlate at minus 0.01 and yearly moves at 0.29, as long supply contracts delay the pass-through of power costs. little or none co-movement month to month · 208 months Show charts Chemical [pSi Polysilicon](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/polysilicon/)End-use demand Silicon crystals for solar cells and chips are grown under argon, so solar growth adds demand, especially in China. Polysilicon has no public price series here, so the link is shown as text only. Not enough overlapping price history to measure. How 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. ## Other sections - [Summary](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/argon/index.md) - [Overview](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/argon/overview/index.md) - [Production route](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/argon/routes/index.md) - [Production](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/argon/production/index.md) - [Feedstocks](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/argon/feedstocks/index.md) - [Cycles](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/argon/cycles/index.md) - [Trading](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/argon/trading/index.md) - [Movement](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/argon/movement/index.md) - [Regulation](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/argon/regulation/index.md) - [Characteristics](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/argon/characteristics/index.md) - [Emissions](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/argon/emissions/index.md) - [Relationships](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/argon/links/index.md)