New Zealand stocks advanced 53 points, or 0.4%, to 13,973 on Friday, reversing morning losses and erasing the previous session’s losses to hit their highest level since August 5, buoyed by gains in tech sectors, consumer staples, real estate, and communication services.
Positive earnings reports during the peak corporate reporting season continued to support sentiment.
However, losses in energy, materials, and industrials limited gains.
A downbeat session on Wall Street on Thursday also capped the rise amid rising Treasury yields.
Traders were also anticipating the release of US July PMIs and New Zealand's retail sales for Q2 due next week.
On the data front, New Zealand's trade deficit widened in July, as exports rose less than imports.
Among gainers were Scales Corp.
(2.6%), Colonial Motor (1.6%), Fisher & Paykel (1.3%), A2 Milk (1.2%), Chorus (1.2%), and Westpac Banking Corp.
(1.0%).
For the week, the index rose 0.9%, marking the third consecutive weekly gain.