WELLINGTON, April 14 Reuters Manufacturing activity in New Zealand in March improved a tad due to strong new orders and positive employment, a survey showed on Thursday.

The Bank of New ZealandBusiness NZ39;s seasonally adjusted Performance of Manufacturing Index PMI rose to 53.8 from 53.6 the previous month.

A reading above 50 indicates an expansion in activity, while anything below that threshold indicates a contraction.

However, the survey notes that negative comments outweighed positive comments in March by a factor of two to one with businesses frustrated with supply side troubles and worried about cost inflation.

Reporting by Lucy Craymer;

Source Reuters