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The first exchange in Warsaw, the Warsaw Mercantile Exchange, was established on 12 May 1817. The first day of trading was on 16 May. Initially, trading sessions were held between 1pm and 2pm. In the 19th century mainly bills and bonds were traded. Share trading on a broader scale developed in the second half of that century. Between 1918 and 1939, the WSE was by far the largest of several bourses in different Polish cities (Katowice, Kraków, Lwów, Łódź, Poznań and Wilno), and accounted for 90% of the volume traded on the Polish market. When the Second World War broke out, the stock exchange was closed.