New Zealand manufacturing activity eased from a 15-month high in November, while remaining in expansion for the 26th consecutive month, as production and new orders declined in the month.
The BNZ-Business NZ performance of manufacturing index declined 3.7 points to a seasonally adjusted 55.2 in November, slipping from October's reading which was the highest level since July 2013.
The index, where a reading above 50 indicates growing activity, has been in expansion for 26 months.
Manufacturing activity remained above the key 50 reading in all five sub-indices and across all four of the country's regions last month.
Third-quarter manufacturing sales and inventory data, and an assumed rebound for agriculture processing implies a 2.5 per cent increase in manufacturing output for the quarter, aligning with a mid-year pick-up the PMI has recorded, said Bank of New Zealand senior economist Craig Ebert.