Sunshine is in the forecast for the Tauranga area this weekend as a visiting anticyclone brings more fine weather to the Bay of Plenty district.

An active trough cleared earlier this week, making room from the fine weather.

MetService media and communications meteorologist Daniel Corbett says the trough had good upper level support and brought with it active thunderstorms and heavy rain in places.

The entire trough shifted away to the east of the country on Tuesday, allowing an anticyclone from the Tasman Sea to build across New Zealand from the middle of the week.

'The visiting anticyclone should bring a fine spell of weather to most places through the middle and later part of this week, with perhaps some overnight frosts.”