Courtes of the WSE

Some 140 firms listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange have shared their profits with shareholders so far in 2012, paying out more than zł.22 billion in dividends, reported Rzeczpospolita.

The majority of that sum went to respective majority stakeholders of large listed companies, but even small market investors saw gains. In fact, the average rate of return across the WSE is 4.6 percent, the highest percentage in the history of the bourse.

Still, some analysts believe the high dividend payouts are related to high cash reserves at blue-chip companies; this in turn is understood as a lack of willingness to invest at a time when domestic growth is slowing and Europe as a whole is still in an economic crisis.

Poland A.M.