Trading Hours and Liquidity:

With many moving pieces, global markets can be tricky to follow! Different time zones produce different trading hours and liquidity is effected by these. So you don’t have to keep track of all the holidays and opening times, we put together a Macro Calendar for you that contains trading hours, as well as other important macro economic events, such as Central Bank meetings, ETF dates and bond repayments for Chinese Property Developers.

Stock Market Trading Hours

Stock markets around the world trade according to their respective time zones. For example, the Tokyo Stock Exchange is open from 9am to 3pm Japan Standard Time, while the New York Stock Exchange is open from 9:30am to 4pm Eastern Standard Time. However, there are also “pre-market” and “after-hours” trading sessions that take place outside of normal market hours. Pre-market trading occurs between 8am and 9:30am EST, while after-hours trading takes place between 4pm and 8pm EST. During these times, stock prices can be more volatile and volume is typically lower than during normal market hours. As a result, traders should be aware of the different opening hours of stock markets when making investment decisions.

Trading Liquidity

Trading liquidity is defined as the degree to which an asset can be bought or sold in the market without affecting the asset’s price. Liquidity is important because it provides traders with the ability to enter and exit trades quickly and at a fair price. A lack of liquidity can lead to large spreads and slippage, which can eat into profits. The most liquid assets are typically major currency pairs, followed by commodities and then equities. However, when markets are closed for weekends and holidays even the most liquid asset classes can experience more volatility, due to the reduced volume of trading. Essentially, it takes less buying or selling to push the price around.

Crypto Correlation

Although Crypto is in its own asset class that does not have opening or closing times, it still tends to exhibit correlation to traditional markets. As the asset class matures, institutional capital will increasingly flow into Crypto, potentially strengthening the correlation. This is because institutions have rebalancing and risk exposure limits that they must adjust their portfolios for. Inside of longer term trends, region specific trends may appear. For example in 2021, after China banned Crypto mining, there was generally net selling during Asian market hours and net buying from Western markets. Therefore, the best time for long orders to be filled was the open of Asian markets, and for short positions was after the U.S. open. Whilst the general Crypto market trend was sideways, there was still plenty of profit to be made scalp trading through the day.

If a market was closed due to holidays, this pattern would not play out to the same extent. This is why having a reference of market opening times and dates is useful even though the Crypto markets trade continuously!

JST Clock: UTC +9

CST/HKT Clock: UTC +8

IST Clock: UTC +5:30

CEST Clock: UTC +2

GMT Clock

ET Clock: UTC -4

GMT: London Stock Exchange. 8am – 4:30pm

CEST: Euronext. 9am – 5:30pm

ET: NYSE, NASDAQ, Toronto Stock Exchange. 9:30am – 4pm 

JST: Tokyo Stock Exchange. 9am – 11:30am and 12:30pm – 3pm

HKT: Stock Exchange of Hong Kong. 9:30am – 12:00pm and 1pm to 4pm

CST: Shanghai Stock Exchange, Shenzhen Stock Exchange. 9:30am – 11:30am and 1pm to 3pm

IST: National Stock Exchange of India. 9:15am – 3:30pm 

Disclaimer: Nothing within this article should be misconstrued as financial advice. The financial techniques described herein are for educational purposes only. Any financial positions you take on the market are at your own risk and own reward. If you need financial advice or further advice in general, it is recommended that you identify a relevantly qualified individual in your Jurisdiction who can advise you accordingly.