Private sector business activity in the North's economy expanded for the 39th month in succession in June, boosted by increased new business wins and higher levels of employment, the Ulster Bank Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) showed.
However, concern still remains about the rising cost of input prices, with energy, raw materials and wage costs all reported to have risen since the previous month.
While overall inflation eased to a three-month low, the rate of cost inflation was still substantial, according to the report, which is compiled for Ulster Bank by NTC Economics.
Pat McArdle, chief economist at Ulster Bank, welcomed the expansion but expressed disappointment that the North had failed to catch up with the rest of the UK as had been signalled by the May PMI figures.
In June, activity in the North stood at 56.2, compared with 58 in the UK as a whole. Any reading above 50 signals an improvement while figures below that threshold signal a contraction.
In May, the two regions were much closer, with the North standing at 57.4, while the UK was at 57.8. Employment stood at 51.9 in the North, compared with 53.1 in the UK as a whole.
:quality(70)/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/irishtimes/VR3765MFOBH2NMV2QNICYDF67M.png)