After an optimistic end of the week, Monday brought a cooling of moods on the Warsaw trading floor. The ongoing conflict between Washington and Tehran has effectively deprived investors of their desire to break records. As usual in recent weeks, while oil prices were rising and risk appetite was decreasing, banks and KGHM became market laggards.
From the morning on, Monday's session on the WSE was dominated by supply. The WIG broad market index fell by 0.83%, while the WIG20 index grouping the largest entities lost 0.91%. The medium-cap index also experienced negative sentiment – mWIG40 dropped by 0.72%. sWIG80 showed relative strength, with a cosmetic increase of 0.06%. The total turnover on the market amounted to nearly PLN 2.1 billion, of which almost PLN 1.7 billion concerned WIG20 companies.
Europe and the USA under pressure from the conflict in the Middle East
Warsaw was not alone in its declines, as the sentiment on global markets deteriorated significantly after weekend reports of the detention of an Iranian ship by the US Navy. At the close of trading on the Vistula River, the German DAX was losing 1.2%, just like the French CAC40 (-1.2%). The British FTSE100 fell by 0.7%, and an even stronger sell-off of -1.4% was observed on the stock exchanges in Madrid and Milan.
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The opening of trade overseas did not help much, because although the declines were smaller, they confirmed fears about the fate of the war in the Middle East. The S&P500 index lost 0.4% and the technological Nasdaq fell by 0.7% as the session in Warsaw ended. Just a moment ago, stock markets were fed by an optimistic vision of unblocking the strategic Strait of Hormuz and a diplomatic reset between Washington and Tehran. However, the idyll did not last long. The weekend brought a sharp turn of events that pushed the indexes down, and Brent oil prices rose by 6% to around USD 96 per barrel.
The incident at sea became the flashpoint. Donald Trump confirmed that the US Navy intercepted and damaged an Iranian freighter trying to break the blockade. Tehran's reaction was immediate. The spokesman for the Iranian Foreign Ministry announced that there was no question of returning to negotiations, accusing the US of violating the ceasefire. Despite the tense atmosphere, Donald Trump leaves the door ajar. In an interview for the New York Post published on Monday, he declared his readiness to meet with Iranian leaders, provided that there is a real chance for a breakthrough on the horizon.
Banks and KGHM are dragging WIG20 down, Orlen is the growth leader
Weak moods dictated by external sentiment were visible in WIG20. The greatest burden for WIG20 was the financial, construction and raw materials sectors. Banks performed terribly: mBank fell by 2.49%, Alior Bank lost 1.96%, PKO BP gave back 1.35% and Pekao dropped by 1.61%. Santander's price fell even more (-1.71%). The strongest decline was recorded by Budimex (-2.95%).
In turn, KGHM lost 1.84% at the highest turnover on the market (PLN 257 million) in direct response to declines in copper and silver prices on commodity markets. CD Projekt underwent a correction after previous increases (-2.18%), although at the worst moment of the day the declines reached up to 5%.
On the other side of the barricade was Orlen (2.79%), whose turnover exceeded PLN 238.8 million. Orlen, which after a poor Friday, turned out to be the best company in WIG20 this time. In this group, only the Żabka Group's share price was still positive (0.36%).
Record results of Newag and Digital Network and a quantum rally
On the broad market, Cyfrowy Polsat recorded a rebound (3.51%), rising to PLN 12,105, despite the lack of new announcements and the postponement of the annual report to the end of April. Despite the overall market weakness, there was a lot going on at the mWIG40 and sWIG80 levels due to the publication of financial results. The absolute star of the session was Newag (7.5%). The manufacturer of rolling stock boasted an impressive net profit for 2025 of PLN 356.5 million, which means an increase of nearly 191% y/y.
Inter Cars also stood out positively (3.33%), while Text (-2.82%) and Mirbud (-2.76%) were under pressure, despite the latter company publishing an estimated net profit for 2025 of PLN 112 million. Digital Network shined in the sWIG80 index (5.61%). For the first quarter of 2026, the company reported revenues higher by 179% year-on-year.
On the second day of trading on the WSE, Creotech Quantum performed exceptionally well, gaining 18.16% on Monday, and compared to the reference price at the debut, the dust has already grown by 111%. The debut of Creotech Quantum is not only a local event, but an element of a broader, continental trend called “Quantum Spring”. European companies, encouraged by the incredible growth of their counterparts overseas, are increasingly boldly seeking capital from stock exchange floors.
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