Middle East conflict takes a heavy toll on 23 stocks

The General Index on the Athens Stock Exchange fell by more than 11.8% in March amid the military, energy, and geopolitical conflict in the Middle East.

At least 23 listed large- and mid-cap companies came under intense selling pressure, recording double-digit percentage losses during the last month. Shares of energy-intensive companies feature prominently among the main losers, as they are burdened by higher oil and natural gas costs. ElvalHalcor declined by 25.6% on a monthly basis, losing a quarter of its value. Similarly extensive sell-offs were recorded in Viohalco (-25.5%), Cenergy (-19.5%), and Titan Cement (-16.5%).

The combination of higher fuel costs and reduced passenger traffic to and from Middle Eastern destinations accelerated pressure on Aegean Airlines, whose share price dropped by 16.2% compared to the last trading day of February.

Meanwhile, Lamda Development has dropped below 6 euros (a 12-month low) and has lost 18.9% in March. Other shares heavily affected are Allwyn and Intracom Holdings: the former declined by 15.8% amid similar pressures on peer companies abroad, while the latter lost 17.0% due to a decline in the value of its holdings. Coca-Cola HBC fell by 10.8%, while Jumbo declined by 11.5%, pushing its share price to a 1.5-year low (below 22 euros).

As for the banking sector—which acts as a “transmission channel” of imported pressures due to the high participation of foreign investors in shareholding—share prices are set to close March with double-digit losses, including Alpha Bank (-20.2%), Piraeus Bank (-18.3%), Eurobank (-18.2%), Optima Bank (-14.9%), and Bank of Cyprus (-11.9%).

The list of major losers also includes Alter Ego Media (-15.5%), AVAX (-13.5%), Aktor Group (-11.3%), Kri Kri (-11.0%), Thessaloniki Port Authority (-10.9%), and Austriacard (-10.1%), which corrected from their recent highs.

At the same time, Autohellas—potentially vulnerable to a rise in borrowing costs—saw its share price decline by 14.6% in March. Finally, Bally’s Intralot dropped by 10.3%, pressured by the extraordinary taxation of its UK operations, retreating to its lowest level since April 2025.