Finishing on a stronger note – PMI 11 Dec 2020 55.3November+2.9Monthly Changeexpandingfaster rate Catherine Beard Executive Director, ExportNZ & ManufacturingNZ View profile New Zealand's manufacturing sector experienced a pick-up in expansion during November, according to the latest BNZ - BusinessNZ Performance of Manufacturing Index (PMI).The seasonally adjusted PMI for November was 55.3 (a PMI reading above 50.0 indicates that manufacturing is generally expanding; below 50.0 that it is declining). This was up 2.9 points from October, and the highest level of expansion since July.BusinessNZ's executive director for manufacturing Catherine Beard said that the sector has now remained in positive territory for the sixth consecutive month, despite swings in the actual activity levels."The key indices of production (55.4) and new orders (57.6) both displayed healthy levels of expansion during November, while employment (51.5) eased back to September levels. Interestingly, finished stocks (59.0) recorded its highest value since the survey began, which may be due to COVID related delayed activity and distribution issues that has plagued 2020.""Overall, the sector is shaping up to end 2020 on a positive note, which would be a considerable contrast to what was seen during the first half of the year." BNZ Senior Economist, Doug Steel said that "as a measure of change, the PMI suggests that the manufacturing sector continues to move in the right direction after getting hit hard earlier in the year by COVID related restrictions."View the Time Series Data Main Indicies Regional Results Doug Steel Senior Economist, BNZ Positive resultsNovember saw the manufacturing sector take a stride forward. The Performance of Manufacturing Index (PMI) lifted to 55.3 from 52.4 in October. It’s the sixth consecutive monthly reading above the breakeven 50 mark. Moreover, the index is now back above its long-term average of 53.0.Read more ButAs positive as the headline PMI results look, there are some areas to monitor. One is deliveries of raw materials. While this measure did rise, to 52.2 from 49.6, it was the only subcomponent sitting below its long-term average. This suggests manufacturers continue to face some challenges sourcing inputs to the production process.Read more Regional differencesWhile it is difficult to know the drivers, there were some clear differences across the major regions. While all regions’ PMIs were on the right side of 50 in November, the Central and Canterbury regions’ results stood out in both being well above their normal readings for November.Read more GDP thoughtsAfter working through the detail of this week’s official manufacturing sales and inventory data for Q3, we estimate the sector staged something like a 20% rebound in production after Q2’s huge disruption. We think this will be part of a huge bounce in overall Q3 GDP when the figures are released next week.Read more View full BNZ Manufacturing Snapshot PMI Time Series TableThe results are seasonally adjusted. National IndiciesNov2019Jul2020Aug2020Sep2020Oct2020Nov2020 BNZ - BusinessNZ PMI 50.259.150.953.752.455.3 Production48.361.951.555.952.055.4 Employment 48.747.249.251.652.451.5 New Orders52.367.754.157.552.857.6 Finished Stocks48.851.850.149.049.259.0 Deliveries50.758.447.649.849.652.2 View the Time Series Data BNZ - BusinessNZ PMI Time Series July 2016 – November 2020 International ResultsJ.P. Morgan Global Manufacturing PMITM 1 Dec 202053.7 In this section Surveys & Statistics Performance of Manufacturing Index Performance of Services Index Compliance Cost Survey Exporters Survey Southern Cross Health Society - BusinessNZ Wellness in the Workplace Survey Reports & Publications BusinessNZ Planning Forecast International Guides & Tools BNZ - BusinessNZ PMI Time Series Data View seasonally adjusted and unadjusted time series data for the BNZ - BusinessNZ PMI BNZ is delighted to be associated with the Performance of Manufacturing Index (PMI) and BusinessNZ.This association brings together the significant experience of leading business advocacy body BusinessNZ, and business finance specialist BNZ.We look forward to continuing our association with BusinessNZ and associated regional organisations, and to playing our part in the ongoing development of the New Zealand manufacturing sector. View website Media Comment For media comment, please contact: Catherine Beard, ExportNZ & ManufacturingNZ 04 496 6560 Doug Steel, BNZ 04 474 6799 Technical Comment For more information or assistance with data interpretation, please contact: Steve Summers 04 496 6564 ssummers@businessnz.org.nz Our Contributors The BNZ - BusinessNZ PMI contains data obtained through BusinessNZ's regional organisations About the PMI The BNZ - BusinessNZ Performance of Manufacturing Index is a monthly survey of the manufacturing sector providing an early indicator of activity levels.A PMI reading above 50 points indicates manufacturing activity is expanding; below 50 indicates it is contracting.The main PMI and sub-index results are seasonally adjusted. Related Articles Blooming good – PMI Steady state – PMI Now hiring – PMI Stretching out – PMI Pumping production – PMI View more