New Zealand's manufacturing sector bounced back from a 2-year low last month, expanding for the first time in two months.
The BNZ-BusinessNZ Performance of Services Index rose 5.9 points to 51.9 in December from a month earlier, with four of the five sub-indexes expanding.
Employment expanded for the first time since March, on 52.7, while new orders increased 5.7 points from November to 52. Finished stocks also rose 0.5 points to 51.8 and deliveries improved 1.6 points to 49.8. Production experienced no change for the second time in four months on 50.0.
Stephen Toplis, head of research at Bank of New Zealand, said the figure was not strong and left question marks hanging over the industry's overall management that were raised in the NZ Institute of Economic Research's quarterly survey of business opinion this month.
"The central zone remained the stark laggard, along with mental product and non-metallic mineral manufacturing by way of type, while lesser-scaled firms were struggling to match the very upbeat indications from the big-sized outfits," Toplis said.
