Bisphenol A: Correlation
Prices it moves with, and why
Bisphenol A is made by reacting two molecules of phenol with one of acetone, so cumene chain costs from benzene and propylene set its price. Nearly all goes into polycarbonate and epoxy resins for electronics, cars and construction.
Proxy US PPI: cyclic intermediate chemicals index (BLS base period) · monthly, Jan 2006 to Sep 2026There is no free public price for bisphenol a itself, so this tab uses the closest public series as a stand-in. Read the numbers as an indication, not as the price of this exact item.
What its price moves with
Selected linkBisphenol A and Benzene
Monthly changes 0.50 moderate correlation 12-month changes 0.73 strong correlation Last 5 years 0.02 monthly changes Lead or lag +1 mo Benzene tends to lead by 1 month (r 0.56) Price function, Jan 2006 to Sep 2026 Bisphenol A ≈ 116.6 × (Benzene)0.10 R² 0.02 On this fit, a 10% higher benzene price goes with a 1.0% higher bisphenol a 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: Bisphenol A and Benzene 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: Bisphenol A price against Benzene 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.Phenol and acetone, made together from cumene, are the only major inputs, so BPA is priced as a margin over them. They share the same proxy index here, so no separate statistics are shown.
Not enough overlapping price history to measure.Benzene is the main raw material behind the phenol in BPA. The petrochemical proxy moves with the cyclic proxy at 0.50 monthly and 0.73 yearly, though that monthly tie has nearly vanished over the last five years.
moderate co-movement month to month · 249 months Show chartsPolycarbonate takes the larger share of BPA, so demand for glazing, car parts and electronics decides BPA run rates. The broad resin index moves with the cyclic proxy at 0.38 monthly and 0.73 yearly.
weak co-movement month to month · 249 months Show chartsEpoxy resins are the second big outlet, used in coatings, laminates and composites. The thermosetting resins proxy moves with the cyclic proxy at 0.22 monthly and 0.74 yearly. Coatings and electronics laminates are the steadiest parts of that demand.
weak co-movement month to month · 249 months Show chartsWind turbine blades use large amounts of epoxy, so wind build-out adds BPA demand. The turbine price proxy does not move with the cyclic proxy, 0.02 monthly, because turbine prices follow steel, contracts and competition.
little or none co-movement month to month · 184 months Show chartsOil sets the cost of the benzene and propylene behind BPA. The tie is moderate, 0.20 monthly and 0.67 yearly, because BPA margins swing with polycarbonate demand and Chinese capacity.
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.