Employment intentions decline to 15%
Business confidence in New Zealand jumped to 58% in October, its highest level since February, according to the latest ANZ Business Outlook.
The report revealed an increase of eight percentage points in business confidence, up from 49.6% in September.
Businesses' outlook for their own activity went up to 44.6%, with the retail sector lifting this strongly with 54%. Construction, on the other hand, lagged at 42%.
Employment intentions, however, declined to 15%, down from 16.4% in the previous month.
"Green shoots are emerging, particularly for interest-rate sensitive sectors such as retail and construction," the report read.
"The question is, will firms trust them to thrive and not to wither, as they did earlier this year? The pieces are in place for a cyclical recovery, though we are expecting growth to be modest; recovery takes time."
According to the outlook, reported past employment remains negative for every sector except agriculture. However, the overall decline has "found a floor in aggregate."
The findings come despite a report from the New Zealand Institute of Economic Research (NZIER) earlier this month showing business confidence dropped in the September quarter.
It revealed that 23% of firms cut staff headcount during the quarter. Retailers reduced staff during the period, but they remained the most optimistic sector amid cost pressures.
"The continued disappointing nature of the recovery in demand, combined with the volatile global backdrop, is driving heightened caution among firms," the NZIER report read.
