The New Zealand sharemarket defied global trends and closed up 0.5% on Friday, boosted by a strong performance in the brokers’ matching session. Despite this late rally, the S&P/NZX 50 Index finished the week down 0.6%. The positive close occurred despite weakness in offshore markets, driven by a sell-off in technology stocks. The index closed at 13,694.68, a gain of 79.90 points, recovering from an intraday low of 13,574.82. This demonstrates a resilience within the New Zealand market amid broader global concerns. Investors seemingly absorbed the international negative pressures and drove a local recovery.