Alan McDonald: EMA Head of Advocacy, Finance and Strategy on the increased revenue and profitability in the manufacturing sector

Positive news from the manufacturing sector. 

Data from inventory management software company Unleashed shows that both revenue and profitability is up. 

In the first quarter of the year, revenue across the sector was up 7.5%, and profitability was up 30% compared to the same time last year. 

Food, beverage, and the building industry are the big winners. 

Alan McDonald, EMA Head of Advocacy, Finance and Strategy, told Mike Hosking this latest survey just reinforces the trend we’re seeing about growing confidence in the sector. 

He says all signs indicate things are looking much better down the track. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
More good news on the economy in our manufacturing sector,
so we see revenue and profitability is up for the
first quarter of this year. So we got revenue up
seven and a half percent, profitability up thirty Food and
beverage and building industry, they're the big winners. EMA has
had a advocacy, finance and strategy. Allan McDonald is back
with this Ellen. Very good morning to you.

Speaker 2 (00:16):
Morning, my king co Great's on another award.

Speaker 1 (00:18):
You're very kind, thank you very much. So when I
look at the PMI, as I do, is that reflective
of what's actually going on along with things like the
confidence measures that seem to be all over the place.

Speaker 2 (00:29):
Yeah, I think that that corner that would keep turning. Well,
it's still some way off. All the indicators are heading
in the right direction, and this latest survey kind of
it just reinforces the trend. I think that you're seeing
in the PMI and you're seeing in some of the
other confidence indicators, which we're all saying that a bit
further down the track things go looking much better. But

(00:50):
I think the key to that is a bit further
down the track.

Speaker 1 (00:52):
Okay, do we have a trend at this point? Because
I know the PMI is are up at least four
months in a row, isn't it.

Speaker 2 (00:58):
Yeah, coming off a low based Unfortunately, I think that
the confidence is returning. It's still pretty patchy. And I
think in the latest survey at highlights, for example, the
food and beverage industry, and when you look at say that,
you know, Apple and Peer returns had a billion for
the first time, dairy record prices, red meat going strongly
vesper with a record crop and high prices as well,

(01:21):
you would expect some confidence in that sector. It also
happened to be at a celebration of the space industry
earlier week and Peterbecks reporting a six hundred percent boost
in revenue year on year. It's amazing, amazing number.

Speaker 1 (01:35):
It's good to be able to talk in a country
of five million people of a space industry. A couple
of numbers at you. Beverage manufacturing revenue doubled to two
hundred and forty five thousand for the quarter, Food manufacturing
up one hundred and thirteen percent. So what you're saying is, yeah,
those headline numbers look good, but they're off low bass.
Is that what you're saying?

Speaker 2 (01:51):
Yeah, And I'm not quite sure on the sample size
because that particular study has done over three countries and
fifteen hundred businesses. So I think it's more important that
it reinforces the trend night rather than.

Speaker 1 (02:02):
The content, because here's the text, and this will give
you some context. Morning, Mike. You're saying manufacturing New Zealand's booming.
What drugs are you taking managing a sizeable manufacturing plant,
which is one of five in New Zealand. I can
assure you it's in survival mode. It's not likely to
end well for several hundred people at one plant. Is
that real or not?

Speaker 2 (02:20):
That's very real, And that's what we're seeing on the
ground still is that, as I said earlier, it's still
quite patchy. And I know a lot of our manufacturers
are keeping a very wary eye on the energy pricing
because another winter with those massive spikes. Now we've gone
from energy pricing it was internationally competitive to actually shutting
our own businesses. And when we're paying large manufacturers to

(02:43):
feed energy back into the system instead of actually making stuff,
so they're feeding back into the system to keep other
people afloat, that does say things are badly wrongly.

Speaker 1 (02:53):
Oh, I don't want to make it too political, but
I mean Ty was in the news for that very
reason this week. But when you cut off exploration of
gas as they did as a prevent government did, I
mean that's bought. It's not only negligent, but it's treasonous,
isn't it? Because you must know that this is the
outcome we are going to live through.

Speaker 2 (03:11):
Well, no economies cope with sudden shocks like that, were
any sudden shock very well? And you've only got to
look at the uncertainty that the White House is creating
around the world to see that.

Speaker 1 (03:20):
All right, mate, you have a good weekend. Preciator Alan McDonald,
the EMA head of Advocacy, Finance and Strategy. Do you
think anyone's going to hold Hipkins to account for that
because he's the last one left. Of course, you would
ask Syndra if she could be bothered leaving Boston, or
you'd ask granted be came out of his cloistered environs
of a tago. But Hipkins is the last one left
standing watching the coal pile into the country, and Ty

(03:41):
was in the news. Didn't get covered enough this week.
T Y was allowed to go back and do regular
business because they couldn't do regular business because the deal
they have with Meridian means they have to curtail their
production because we don't have enough power to run this country.

Speaker 2 (03:56):
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