The New York Stock Exchange runs from 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Eastern. By the time it opens, Tokyo and Hong Kong have finished their day, London is well past its lunch hour, and Mumbai closed hours ago. For anyone holding ADRs or foreign ordinaries, those clocks matter: they determine when prices are discovered, when spreads are tight, and why a stock can open far from where it closed the day before.
Major exchange hours in Eastern Time
The table shows each market's regular continuous trading session in local time and converted to U.S. Eastern Time. Opening and closing auctions, lunch breaks, and after-hours sessions are noted where they matter. Hours change from time to time, so treat this as a reference as of 2026 and confirm with the exchange before trading around an open or close.
| Exchange | Local hours | ET, mid-March to early Nov. | ET, early Nov. to mid-March |
|---|---|---|---|
| London Stock Exchange | 8:00–16:30 (closing auction to about 16:35) | 3:00–11:30 a.m. | 3:00–11:30 a.m. |
| Frankfurt (Xetra) | 9:00–17:30 | 3:00–11:30 a.m. | 3:00–11:30 a.m. |
| Paris (Euronext) | 9:00–17:30 (closing auction to 17:35) | 3:00–11:30 a.m. | 3:00–11:30 a.m. |
| Zurich (SIX) | 9:00–17:30, closing auction from 17:20 | 3:00–11:30 a.m. | 3:00–11:30 a.m. |
| Toronto (TSX) | 9:30–16:00 ET | 9:30 a.m.–4:00 p.m. | 9:30 a.m.–4:00 p.m. |
| Tokyo (TSE) | 9:00–11:30 and 12:30–15:30 | 8:00 p.m.–2:30 a.m. | 7:00 p.m.–1:30 a.m. |
| Hong Kong (HKEX) | 9:30–12:00 and 13:00–16:00 | 9:30 p.m.–4:00 a.m. | 8:30 p.m.–3:00 a.m. |
| Sydney (ASX) | 10:00–16:00 | 8:00 p.m.–2:00 a.m.* | 6:00 p.m.–midnight* |
| São Paulo (B3) | 10:00 to about 17:00–18:00, set seasonally | about 9:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m. | about 8:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m. |
| Mumbai (NSE) | 9:15–15:30 | 11:45 p.m.–6:00 a.m. | 10:45 p.m.–5:00 a.m. |
Evening times for Tokyo, Hong Kong, Sydney and Mumbai fall on the U.S. calendar day before the local trading date. Monday's Tokyo session, for example, begins Sunday evening in New York.
*Australia's daylight-saving season runs opposite to America's, so the Sydney conversion shifts several times a year. See the next section.
Daylight-saving mismatches
The table above assumes both sides of the conversion are in their usual season. Three mismatches move the numbers:
- Europe and the U.S. The U.S. starts daylight time on the second Sunday in March; the U.K. and the European Union start on the last Sunday in March. In autumn, Europe falls back on the last Sunday in October and the U.S. on the first Sunday in November. In those gap weeks, London, Frankfurt, Paris and Zurich open and close one hour later in Eastern Time (for example, 4:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.).
- Australia. Sydney's daylight time runs from early October to early April. The overlaps produce three conversions over a year: 8:00 p.m. to 2:00 a.m. ET in the northern summer, 6:00 p.m. to midnight in the northern winter, and 7:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m. in the transition weeks of October and March.
- Brazil. Brazil does not currently observe daylight time, so B3 adjusts its own trading schedule when the U.S. changes clocks, keeping its session roughly aligned with New York. B3 announces each change by circular.
Japan, Hong Kong and India do not use daylight time, so their Eastern Time hours shift by exactly one hour when the U.S. changes clocks.
Watch out
Holidays differ too. Each exchange keeps its own calendar, and half-days are common around Christmas and, in Hong Kong, the Lunar New Year. An ADR can trade in New York on a day its home market is closed, usually with wider spreads.
Why ADRs move at the U.S. open
An ADR's fair value is the home-market price times the exchange rate, adjusted for the ADR ratio. When news hits during the home session, such as an earnings release in Tokyo or a profit warning in London, the home share reprices immediately. The ADR cannot follow until the U.S. market opens. At 9:30 a.m., it reprices to the new fair value in one step, and the chart shows a gap.
Worked example
A Japanese company's ADR (one ADR equals one share) closes Tuesday in New York at $20.00. That evening, Eastern Time, Tokyo opens Wednesday's session and the company reports weak results. The home share falls 6% and the yen is unchanged. When New York opens Wednesday morning, the ADR's fair value is about $18.80, and it is likely to open near there rather than drift down from $20.00. Use the ADR Price Converter to compute fair value yourself.
Price gaps, overlap and spreads
European ADRs have a useful window. From 9:30 a.m. until about 11:30 a.m. Eastern, both the home market and New York are open, so market makers can hedge against live prices. Spreads in European ADRs and OTC ordinaries are often tightest in that window and widen after Europe closes, when the U.S. price has no live anchor. Asian securities never get that overlap during regular U.S. hours, which is one reason OTC quotes in Japanese and Hong Kong ordinaries can be wide. Our OTC foreign stocks guide covers spreads in more detail.
Gaps also come from currency. Foreign exchange trades nearly around the clock, so a move in the yen or euro between U.S. sessions changes an ADR's fair value even if the home share does not move. See currency risk.
Practical tips
- Use limit orders near the U.S. open for ADRs of companies that reported overnight; the first prints can be volatile.
- If you trade European OTC ordinaries, consider the morning overlap window.
- If you buy directly on a foreign exchange, your order may sit until that market opens, often overnight. See how to buy foreign stocks.
- Country pages such as Japan, the United Kingdom and Australia have market-specific notes.
Common questions
Why did my ADR open sharply higher or lower than yesterday's close?
The home market traded while the U.S. was closed. When New York opens, the ADR reprices to reflect the home market's move and any change in the exchange rate since the prior U.S. close, so it can open at a gap.
Do European market hours in Eastern Time change during the year?
Yes, for a few weeks. The U.S. and Europe both observe daylight saving time but switch on different dates in March and in October or November. During those weeks, European markets open and close one hour later in Eastern Time than usual.
Which foreign markets overlap with U.S. trading hours?
Toronto trades the same hours as New York. São Paulo overlaps most of the U.S. session. London and the major continental European exchanges overlap the first two hours or so of the U.S. morning. Asian and Australian markets have no overlap with regular U.S. hours.
Sources
Educational content only, not investment, tax or legal advice. The Stateside Report does not recommend buying or selling any security. Tax rules depend on your situation; confirm with a qualified tax professional. Full disclosures.