Crushed stone: Cycles
Why prices rose 40% while tonnage stood still
What this tab covers Price history and what drives booms and busts, including this commodity's super-cycles, the drivers behind them and the metrics to track. It charts monthly prices (World Bank) with a switch to inflation-adjusted annual prices; where there is no World Bank series it uses USGS US prices.There is no World Bank price. The US average unit value rose every year, from $13.26/t in 2021 to an estimated $18.50/t in 2025, about 40% in four years. Tonnage was flat, so this reflects costs, local scarcity and pricing power rather than volume. Demand is tied to the construction cycle and public budgets. US highway funding under the 2021 infrastructure law runs to the end of FY 2026. USGS expects higher-than-average price rises near cities, where shortages and fuel costs bite.
US price, Crushed stone, average unit value
2021 13.3 2022 14.3 2023 15.9 2024 17.5 2025 18.5 dollars per metric ton. USGS MCS 2026; 2025 is an estimate.Super-cycles in crushed stone
Crushed stone has no global super-cycle. Markets are regional or even local: within the US there are many separate crushed stone markets with different prices (Tilton and Guzman 2016). Prices tend to rise steadily because new quarries are hard to permit near cities, so incumbents have pricing power. Volumes follow construction and road budgets. Since 2021, prices have risen faster than general inflation even as volumes were flat, and the industry is consolidating.
- 2021-2025
Inflation, fuel and labour costs and US infrastructure funding pushed prices up while volumes were flat.
US average value rose from $13.26/t (2021) to $18.50/t (2025), +40%, as output stayed at about 1.5 Gt (USGS MCS 2026)
- 2023-2025
Leading producers expanded margins through price increases.
Vulcan's aggregates cash gross profit rose from $9.46 to $11.33 per short ton (+20%); its 2025 freight-adjusted price was $21.98/short t, +4.2% (Vulcan 10-K; Pit & Quarry)
- 2025-2026
Consolidation: CRH bought Arcosa and other quarries, and Martin Marietta combined with Lhoist North America; Martin Marietta's Q4 price kept rising.
Martin Marietta Q4 2025 average selling price $23.11/t, +5.3% (Pit & Quarry, Apr 2026)
What drives the cycle
- Public infrastructure budgets. Roads take most aggregate; US federal highway funding under the 2021 law expires at the end of FY2026 (USGS).
- Housing and non-residential construction. Data centres, factories and energy projects supported demand in 2026 (USGS).
- Permitting and zoning. Limits new quarries near cities, giving existing quarries pricing power.
- Diesel and explosives costs. Major production and haulage inputs.
Metrics to track
| Metric | Why it matters | Where to track it |
|---|---|---|
| US quarterly crushed stone shipments | Volume trend by state | USGS Mineral Industry Surveys |
| Producer price per ton | Pricing power | Vulcan, Martin Marietta, CRH quarterly results |
| Highway construction spending | Largest end market | US Census Bureau (monthly) |
| India cement output | Limestone and aggregate demand proxy | Office of the Economic Adviser core sector index |