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New Zealand Shares Flat; KMD Brands Refinances Debt With NZ$208 Million Credit Facilities

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New Zealand shares closed flat with a positive bias on Friday as Asian markets followed Thursday's Wall Street losses.

The S&P/NZX 50 Index was little changed to close at 13,495.24.

On Thursday, the Nasdaq Composite fell about 0.5% as tech giant Apple disclosed price hikes for its MacBook and iPad products.

"Apple's price increases were a reflection of how the big tech may at some point start to feel the pain of these higher component costs, and that can become a broader ecosystem headwind," said Charu Chanana, chief investment strategist at Saxo, as quoted by Reuters.

In domestic news, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) is expected to hold the official cash rate at 2.25% in the July monetary policy decision, with consecutive 25-basis-point cash rate increases forecast from September and the rate peaking at 3.25% by early 2027, ASB Bank said in a report.

Also, New Zealand's house prices have maintained a flat trajectory in recent months, with downward pressure from cautious buyers and sellers pausing activity, ANZ said in a Property Focus report.

In corporate news, KMD Brands (ASX:KMD, NZE:KMD) refinanced its debt through NZ$208 million in syndicated sustainability-linked, multi-currency revolving credit facilities.

Vista Group International (ASX:VGL, NZE:VGL) entered into a new agreement with cinema operator Cineplexx to migrate its entire circuit to Operational Excellence, the company's full cloud-based platform.

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