Construction chemicals: Correlation
Prices it moves with, and why
Construction chemicals, including concrete admixtures, waterproofing compounds, grouts and tile adhesives, improve how concrete and mortar perform. Prices follow polymer and petrochemical inputs; demand follows building and infrastructure activity, which is strong in India.
Proxy US PPI: adhesives and sealants index (BLS base period =100) · monthly, Jan 2006 to Sep 2026There is no free public price for construction chemicals 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 linkConstruction chemicals and Cement
Monthly changes 0.18 little or none correlation 12-month changes 0.21 weak correlation Last 5 years 0.26 monthly changes Lead or lag none No clear lead or lag Price function, Jan 2006 to Sep 2026 Construction chemicals ≈ 2.25 × (Cement)0.87 R² 0.83 On this fit, a 10% higher cement price goes with a 8.6% higher construction chemicals price over the long run. Units: index (BLS base period =100) and index, BLS base period.Chart: Construction chemicals and Cement 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: Construction chemicals price against Cement 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.Admixtures are dosed per tonne of cement, so cement and concrete output drives their demand. Against the adhesives proxy, monthly moves correlate at 0.18 and yearly moves at 0.21, a demand link rather than a shared cost.
little or none co-movement month to month · 249 months Show chartsPolycarboxylate ether superplasticisers, now the leading concrete admixture, are made from ethylene oxide based polyether chains and acrylic acid. Against the organic chemicals proxy, monthly moves correlate at 0.24 and yearly moves at 0.61.
weak co-movement month to month · 249 months Show chartsWaterproofing coatings and sealants share acrylic and polyurethane resins with paints, and paint firms are big in this market. The adhesives proxy and the paints index correlate at 0.47 for monthly moves and 0.90 for yearly moves.
moderate co-movement month to month · 249 months Show chartsGypsum plasters and boards use retarders and additives from the same suppliers and are sold into the same building projects. Against the gypsum products proxy, monthly moves correlate at 0.14, and at 0.26 over the last five years.
little or none co-movement month to month · 249 months Show chartsSand and aggregates go into the same concrete and mortar as admixtures, so both follow construction volumes. Monthly moves correlate at 0.07 and yearly moves at 0.44, as aggregate prices are local and adjust slowly.
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.