The Warsaw Stock Exchange's broad-market WIG index set a new all-time closing record on October 6, surpassing the peak established two weeks earlier, whilst the blue-chip WIG20 also reached its highest-ever closing level, falling just short of its intraday record.

At the close of trading, the WIG stood at 159,012.3 pts, up 1.58% on the day and 35.63% year-to-date. The WIG20 closed at 4,222.36 points, up 1.61% on the day and 32.61% ytd. Both indices had previously set their closing records on September 22, when the WIG20 also reached an intraday high of 4,241.58 points - a level it did not breach on October 6, falling short by around 8 points, or 0.2%.

"The surge in demand was driven, amongst other things, by an improvement in the zloty's performance, as it strengthened against the dollar. Buyers were supported by the positive performance of the underlying markets, which reacted to falling oil prices and declining bond yields," said Adam Stańczak, analyst at brokerage DM BOŚ, in an article published by the Stooq.pl portal.

The banking sector was a key driver of the rally, with the WIG-Banks index gaining 2.93% on the day. "A combination of greater risk appetite and a stronger zloty laid the foundations for a strong bullish rally in the banking sector. The WIG-Banks index gained 2.93% today, which, combined with yesterday's rise of 1.44%, means it has recouped the entirety of last week's 5.24% decline," Stańczak added. The banks' gains came a day before the Monetary Policy Council is due to announce its decision on interest rates, with market consensus pointing to rates being left unchanged.

Breadth across the WIG20 was overwhelmingly positive: 18 of the index's 20 constituents rose, with only copper producer KGHM and power group PGE ending in the red. The mid-cap mWIG40 outperformed the main indices, closing up 1.82%. Across the broader market, 176 companies recorded gains, 158 fell and 33 were unchanged.

"Today's rally has pushed the WIG20 index to around 4,222.36 points, marking a new bull market record and an all-time high at the close of trading, whilst it fell just 8 pts, or 0.2%, short of breaking the record on an intraday basis. Given the recent volatility, a new intraday all-time high seems likely to be achieved during tomorrow's session," Stańczak concluded.