NZ manufacturing sector still contracting

NZ manufacturing sector still contracting
The “new orders” sub-index has contracted for 21 months. (Image: Unsplash)
Rebecca Howard
Weak activity in New Zealand’s manufacturing sector doesn’t look like it will pick up anytime soon.The seasonally adjusted performance of manufacturing index (PMI) for May was 47.2, down from 48.8 in April,  and the sector has now been in contraction for 15 consecutive months, according to the monthly survey by BusinessNZ and Bank of New Zealand.“The key sub-index result of new orders (44.4) remains stubbornly in contraction, and a clear impediment to overall expansion in the sector,” BusinessNZ's director of ad...