Foreign stocks: Top performers from Southern and Eastern Europe

Gold and silver boom boosts commodity stocks

Commodity stocks posted even greater gains. Barrick Mining (CA06849F1080) rose 29 percent since the beginning of August, while Gold Fields Ltd. (US38059T1060) rose by as much as 48 percent. “We are seeing higher trading activity in gold stocks due to the current gold/silver boom,” reports Roland Stadler of Baader Bank AG. Valterra Platinum (US03486T2024) and Impala Platinum Holdings (ZAE000083648) also recorded double-digit gains on a euro basis.

Southern and Eastern Europe shine

The stock markets of Southern and Eastern Europe are leading the performance rankings for 2025. “While the Euro Stoxx 50 has gained just under 10 percent since the beginning of the year, the markets in Greece, Romania, and Slovenia have recorded some exceptional price gains,” explains Marc Richter, Head of Stock Trading at Steubing AG. The trader reports that investors are increasingly turning their attention to attractive foreign markets such as Athens, Bucharest, and Ljubljana, “which have recently shown exceptional performance both in terms of index comparisons and individual stocks.”

Alpha Bank doubles in value

The Greek Athex index has already gained around 40 percent in 2025. According to Richter, the main driver was Alpha Bank (GRS830003000), whose share price more than doubled. A tailwind came from the renewed entry of Italy's UniCredit, which increased its stake to 26 percent and at the same time announced the merger of its Romanian subsidiary UniCredit Romania with Alpha Bank Romania. However, cautionary voices warn that the high national debt of France and other countries poses risks for the European financial sector in the medium term.

Romania with strong banking stocks

The Romanian BET index rose by around 22 percent. According to Richter, Banca Transilvania (ROTLVAACNOR1) is particularly noteworthy: “With a market capitalization of around $7 billion and a price increase of around 20 percent since the beginning of the year, it is cementing its leading role in the Romanian financial system.” DIGI Communications (NL0012294474) also performed well, with a return of around 37 percent.

Slovenia at the top

Slovenia tops the list of winners in Europe: the SBITOPS index has climbed by around 50 percent since the beginning of the year. The driving force behind this was the pharmaceutical company Krka (SI0031102120). “The company benefited from the ongoing pharmaceutical trend and impressed investors not only with a price increase of around 58 percent, but also with a dividend yield of just under 4 percent,” explains Richter. Krka reported an 11 percent increase in net profit for the first half of the year, with a market capitalization of €7.2 billion.

By Thomas Koch, 18 September 2025 © Deutsche Börse AG