Activity in the services sector edged higher to its best level in six months in May, boosted by increased new business and orders.
The BNZ Business New Zealand Performance of Services Index stood at 56.8 in May - up just 0.1 from April. A reading above 50 indicates the sector is expanding.
The index is at its highest level since November and all five sub-indicies expanded, with new orders showing the strongest growth.
Meanwhile, the Performance of Composite Index which monitors activity in the services and manufacturing sectors rose 1.1 points to 56.7 on a GDP-weighted basis - the highest level since March last year.
