NZ manufacturing activity rises in April led by new orders, production

NZ manufacturing activity rises in April led by new orders, production
Jonathan Underhill
By Jonathan Underhill May 12 (BusinessDesk) - New Zealand manufacturing activity rose in April, after two months of slowing growth, led by new orders and production, while employment contracted for a third month. The BNZ-BusinessNZ performance of manufacturing index rose to a seasonally adjusted 56.5 last month from 54.7 in March. A reading of 50 separates expansion from contraction. The nation's manufacturing sector has been expanding since October 2012 and has held above its long-term average for the past 11 months, which Bank of New...