New Zealand Business NZ Performance of Manufacturing Index rose 3.4 to 53.2 in February. Executive director for manufacturing Catherine Beard said, “while the sector has not been hit hard by Covid-19 as yet, offshore experiences show how rapidly the situation can change, especially for those manufacturers who source materials offshore and cater for particular markets”.
BNZ Senior Economist, Craig Ebert said that “The most encouraging aspect of the PMI – considering the global ructions beginning to emerge in February – was arguably its new orders.  These gained to 55.3, from 50.9 in January. And with widespread reports of supply-chain disruptions around the world, it was also interesting to see the PMI’s Deliveries of Raw Materials index had picked up to 53.1, from 47.7”.
