The NZX 50 rose 54 points, or 0.4%, to 13,256 in Friday morning trade, wiping out the previous session’s losses and rebounding from a more than two‑week low hit on Thursday. The move followed overnight gains on Wall Street, supported by easing tensions in the Middle East and a rally in technology stocks.
Nearly all sectors traded higher, including financials, energy, and materials. Upside was limited, however, by fresh data showing New Zealand’s manufacturing sector contracted for the first time in 11 months, against a backdrop of rising oil prices linked to the Middle East conflict.
Investors also looked ahead to the release of New Zealand’s Q1 GDP and May trade balance figures, as well as next week’s US Federal Reserve policy decision. Early notable gainers included Infratil (up 1.6%), Contact Energy (1.1%), A2 Milk (0.8%), Ebos Group (0.7%), and Mainfreight (0.4%). For the week, the index advanced 0.3%, partially recovering from a decline in the prior week.
