US Stock Market Timings

The US has the world's largest stock market, and a growing number of Indian investors hold shares there through the Liberalised Remittance Scheme. The first practical question is when it is open. The answer depends on the time of year, because the US moves its clocks and India does not.

Regular trading hours

The New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq both run a regular session from 9:30 am to 4:00 pm Eastern Time. This is when most volume trades and when the closing price is set. The US does not break for lunch, so the session is six and a half hours straight.

Converting to IST

India is 9 hours 30 minutes ahead of Eastern Daylight Time and 10 hours 30 minutes ahead of Eastern Standard Time. Daylight saving in the US runs from the second Sunday of March to the first Sunday of November. During that period the US market is open from 7:00 pm to 1:30 am IST. From November to March it is open from 8:00 pm to 2:30 am IST. The one-hour shift catches Indian investors out twice a year. An order placed at 7:15 pm IST in December goes into the pre-market, not the regular session.

Pre-market and after-hours

Both exchanges allow trading outside regular hours. The pre-market session starts at 4:00 am ET, which is 1:30 pm or 2:30 pm IST, and the after-hours session runs from 4:00 pm to 8:00 pm ET, ending at 5:30 am or 6:30 am IST. Volumes are thin, spreads are wide and only limit orders are accepted, so prices can move sharply on small trades. Company results are usually released just before or just after the regular session, which is why the biggest moves in a stock often happen in these windows. Not every broker gives Indian clients access to them.

The move to round-the-clock trading

Nasdaq received approval in 2026 to add an overnight session from 9:00 pm to 4:00 am ET, taking its trading day to 23 hours. The launch is planned for December 2026. For an Indian investor that fills the gap between 6:30 am and 1:30 pm IST, which would make US stocks tradeable through the Indian working day. The details and what they mean for order types are in the Nasdaq overnight trading session.

Holidays

The US market closes for nine or ten holidays a year, including New Year's Day, Martin Luther King Jr Day, Presidents' Day, Good Friday, Memorial Day, Juneteenth, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas. It closes early at 1:00 pm ET on the day after Thanksgiving and on Christmas Eve. None of these line up with Indian holidays, so there are days when India is closed and the US is open, and the other way round.

How Indians invest in US stocks

Resident Indians can send up to 250,000 dollars a year abroad under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme, and investing in foreign shares is a permitted purpose. Tax collected at source of 20% applies to remittances above Rs 10 lakh in a financial year, and the amount can be claimed back when filing the return. The investment goes through a broker with a US tie-up, and fractional shares let small amounts buy into high-priced stocks. Gains on US shares are taxed in India as long-term after 24 months at 12.5%, and as short-term at the slab rate before that. Dividends suffer 25% US withholding under the tax treaty, which can be credited against Indian tax. A look at how one of the most widely held US stocks is valued is in Nvidia's share price and P/E ratio.

FAQs

What time does the US market open in India?

7:00 pm IST from mid-March to early November, and 8:00 pm IST the rest of the year.

Is the US market open on Saturday?

No. Regular trading is Monday to Friday only, and the planned Nasdaq overnight session also runs Sunday night to Friday morning.

Can Indians trade US stocks intraday?

Yes, within the regular session. Settlement in the US is T+1, the same as India.

Which is bigger, NYSE or Nasdaq?

NYSE has the larger total market value. Nasdaq has more listed companies and most of the big technology names.