Oct 11 (Reuters) - Manufacturing activity in New Zealand remained in contraction for a third straight month in September as production fell to near 7-1/2 year lows, a survey showed on Friday.
The Bank of New Zealand-Business NZ's seasonally adjusted Performance of Manufacturing Index (PMI) was unchanged at 48.4 in September from the previous month.
A reading above 50 indicates an expansion in activity, while anything below that threshold indicates a contraction.
The sub-index of new orders recovered from its decline in August to just keep its head above water, BusinessNZ's executive director for manufacturing Catherine Beard said.
"However, the weak new order results in recent months meant production (46.2) fell to its lowest result since April 2012."