Wellington - New Zealand's APN News and Media Limited, publisher of the country's biggest newspaper, the New Zealand Herald, told staff Wednesday that it was reviewing its operations in reaction to flow-on effects of the economic downturn, a news report said.

The company, which also publishes seven provincial newspapers, the New Zealand Women's Weekly and The Listener, made the announcement to staff, Radio New Zealand reported.

Chief executive Martin Simons said the review and consultation process would affect a small number of staff across the whole company, the report said.

Last year, APN laid off about 70 staff when it outsourced sub-editing to an Australian firm and now produces 90 per cent of its newspapers from a centralised facility in Auckland.

The statement came as APN's share price on New Zealand Stock Exchange fell to 3.15 New Zealand dollars (1.90 US dollars) from a high of 6.32 New Zealand dollars earlier this year and 
4.00 New Zealand dollars on October 1. (dpa)