Crushed stone: Trading
How every quarry rules its own small market
What this tab covers How and where it is bought and sold: who buys and sells, exchanges and benchmarks, contract types, the big trading houses and how prices are discovered.There is no exchange or global benchmark. Prices are set quarry by quarry, often posted per tonne at the gate, with delivery charged by distance. Trucking costs climb quickly with distance, so each quarry has a local market. Large buyers such as state transport departments and concrete producers tender contracts. The industry has consolidated into regional groups owning hundreds of quarries. Their pricing power is local and rests on permits that are hard to replicate.
Where it is bought (buyers)
- Asphalt and ready-mix plants, road contractors and cement kilns near each quarry
- Importers of stone by sea: US (10.7% of world import value for HS 2517, 2024), Netherlands (9.4%), Singapore (8.6%), Germany (8.0%), Hong Kong (5.9%), Kuwait (4.7%) (Comtrade)
Where it is sold (sellers)
- Local quarry operators and integrated groups
- Seaborne exporters: Norway (11.0% of world export value, 2024), China (9.5%), Germany (9.3%), Belgium (6.1%), France (5.9%), Canada (5.1%) (Comtrade)
Exchanges and benchmarks
| Venue | Contract | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| None | No futures | Local price lists and project bids |
Contract types
- Annual price lists with mid-year increases
- Project bids for highway contracts
- Long-term supply from coastal superquarries (e.g. Norway) by ship
Top trading houses
- None of note; integrated producers sell directly
How prices are discovered
- USGS annual average unit value
- Listed producers' reported average selling prices
- State highway department bid tabulations