WELLINGTON: New Zealand manufacturing sales activity rose in the third quarter, reflecting a rebound in petroleum and coal products, meat and dairy and chemicals.
The volumes of total manufacturing sales rose 2.1 percent, seasonally adjusted in the September quarter, after a revised 2.2 percent gain three months earlier, Statistics New Zealand said. The value of manufacturing sales rose 0.4 percent, following a 1.8 percent gain three months earlier. Excluding meat and dairy product manufacturing, sales rose 2.3 percent in the latest quarter. New Zealand’s manufacturing sector has almost been in continuous expansion since October 2012, based on the Bank of New Zealand-BusinessNZ performance of manufacturing index. Over the longer-term, manufacturing has declined as a percentage of the economy, from about 26 percent of gross domestic product 40 years ago to about 13 percent in 2009, with a rise in services, now the biggest contributor to GDP. Still, more recently the trend for manufacturing sales volumes has been up since reaching a low point in 2013. “The trend in manufacturing product sales remains fairly robust across most categories,” said Jane Turner, senior economist at ASB Bank.
Turner said the figures reinforce ASB’s prediction of a 1 percent increase in ex-primary manufacturing volumes in its gross domestic product component forecast. ASB is currently expecting a 0.8 percent gain in GDP in the third quarter but will finalise its forecast after the release of third-quarter building work put in place data. Of the 13 manufacturing industries measured, 10 rose and three fell in the latest quarter. Petroleum and coal product manufacturing sales volumes, which are volatile and aren’t seasonally adjusted, rose 8.1 percent, following a 9.5 percent decline in the second quarter. Meat and dairy manufacturing rose 1.6 percent and chemical, polymer and rubber products rose 5.5 percent.
Petroleum and coal product manufacturing also led the gain in the value of manufacturing sales, rising 11 percent in the latest quarter, while meat and dairy fell 2.3 percent and chemicals gained 5 percent. The volume of finished goods stocks, which isn’t seasonally adjusted, rose 5.1 percent from the same quarter of 2015, mainly due to an increase in meat and dairy products.
