New Zealand's service sector expanded at the fastest pace in eleven months in May, as activity and new orders rose at sharper rates, survey figures from Business NZ showed on Monday.
The performance of?services?index, or PSI, rose to 55.2 in May from 52.2 in April. A reading above 50 indicates an expansion in the sector.
The latest reading was the highest since June 2021 and showed an upward trend for the fourth straight month.
The sub-index for new orders rose to 62.0 in May from 55.2 in April, and the activity index also rose notably from 53.3 to 59.6.
Employment levels went back to contraction in May, with the corresponding index falling to 48.5 from 51.0. Meanwhile, the sub-index for supplier deliveries recovered from 40.7 to 45.0. ? ?
"While the improvement was far from universal across components, reflecting many ongoing challenges across segments of the service sector, the overall outcome was the first above average result since the outbreak of Delta in August last year," Business NZ chief executive Kirk Hope said.
