NZX50 climbs for a second week as reweightings drive heavy Friday trading

New Zealand’s S&P/NZX 50 index rose for a second week in a heavy trading day on Friday as institutional investors tweaked their portfolios to reflect changes in various FTSE and NZX indices, with $103 million of Infratil shares changing hands.

SkyCity Entertainment Group led the benchmark higher on Friday after reaching a smaller settlement with South Australia’s gambling regulator than investors had expected, taking its weekly rally to 25%.

Stock markets across Asia were more muted, with miners weaker on the other side of the Tasman as the prospect of the US Federal Reserve hiking interest rates weighed on commodity prices and as investors mull over whether the US and Iran will reach a durable peace deal.

And it was a busy day for mergers and acquisitions, with more consolidation among fund managers as Devon Funds Management acquired Castle Point Funds and SPH Wealth Holdings agreed to buy Octagon Asset Management and the Summer KiwiSaver scheme.