NZ Manufacturing Activity Hits 3-Year High in December

2026-01-15 21:38 By Mojdeh Kazemi 1 min. read

The BusinessNZ Performance of Manufacturing Index (PMI) in New Zealand rose to 56.1 in December, up from 51.4 in November, marking the highest level of activity since December 2021.

The result capped a year in which eight of the twelve months showed expansion, highlighting steady growth in the sector.

All five sub-indexes were in expansion, led by New Orders at 59.8, the strongest reading since July 2021, while Production climbed to 57.4 and Employment recovered to 53.8.

Positive sentiment among manufacturers also improved, with 57.1% of respondents reporting favorable conditions, up from 54.4% in November and 45.9% in October.

Growth was largely supported by seasonal Christmas demand, boosting domestic sales, orders, and short-term workloads.

Additional factors included stronger business and consumer confidence, higher export and forward orders, and gains from new customers, products, and infrastructure projects.



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