FX.co ★ Shares in New Zealand Set to End Week on Muted Note

New Zealand's stock market experienced a modest rise, adding 15 points or 0.1%, to reach 12,776 during Friday's morning trading session. This uptick effectively reversed losses from the prior two days, primarily driven by strong performances in the industrials, communication services, and technology sectors. The NZX 50 followed suit with Wall Street's overnight gains, buoyed by robust corporate earnings reports. Despite this, investor focus remained on the upcoming release of trade data from China, New Zealand's primary trading partner, scheduled for Saturday. This comes amidst ongoing trade negotiations between the U.S. and China, shrouded in uncertainty. Further impacts are anticipated with next week's domestic data releases, covering business services and food inflation metrics. Meanwhile, New Zealand's business PMI showed a slight increase for June, albeit still within contraction territory. For the week, the index's activity was tepid, despite marking its third consecutive weekly gain, largely due to persistent uncertainties regarding U.S. trade tariffs. Early trading saw gains from AFT Pharmaceuticals, up 1.5%, Gentrack Group, rising 1.0%, F&C Investment, increasing by 0.8%, and Mainfreight, advancing 0.6%.