IC Markets
Gold Trading Hours: Sunday Open, Friday Close and the Daily Break
Gold trades from Sunday evening to Friday evening New York time, with a break of about an hour each day. Here are the hours in GMT, WAT, EAT, Cairo and Pakistan time, the busiest windows and how daylight saving shifts them.
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Gold, XAUUSD, trades almost around the clock on weekdays. The week opens on Sunday at 18:00 New York time and closes on Friday at 17:00 New York time, with a daily break of about an hour from 17:00 to 18:00 New York time. Those are the hours of CME Group's gold futures on Globex, the reference market, and most brokers' gold CFDs follow a very similar schedule.
The busiest and cheapest times to trade are the London session and its overlap with New York. This page converts the hours to several time zones, explains how daylight saving moves them, and shows where your broker's own times may differ.
| Weekly open | Sunday 18:00 New York time |
|---|---|
| Weekly close | Friday 17:00 New York time |
| Daily break | About 17:00 to 18:00 New York time |
| Busiest window | London and New York overlap, about 12:00 to 16:00 GMT |
| Check | Sessions in your broker's XAUUSD Specification |
Gold hours in your time zone
| Location | Weekly open (Sunday/Monday) | Daily break | Weekly close (Friday) |
|---|---|---|---|
| New York | Sun 18:00 | 17:00 to 18:00 | Fri 17:00 |
| London (GMT/BST) | Sun 23:00 | 22:00 to 23:00 | Fri 22:00 |
| Lagos (WAT), US winter | Mon 00:00 | 23:00 to 00:00 | Fri 23:00 |
| Nairobi (EAT), US winter | Mon 02:00 | 01:00 to 02:00 | Sat 01:00 |
| Karachi (PKT), US winter | Mon 04:00 | 03:00 to 04:00 | Sat 03:00 |
In US summer time, from the second Sunday in March to the first Sunday in November, the Lagos, Nairobi and Karachi times are all one hour earlier, because those countries do not change their clocks. London and New York usually change together, except for a few weeks in March and late October when their changeover dates differ. Our market hours tool converts automatically.
Broker server time
MetaTrader shows session times in the broker's server time, often GMT+2 in winter and GMT+3 in summer, so the trading day starts at 00:00 on the server. On such a server, gold's daily break usually appears as 00:00 to 01:00, and the week runs from Monday 01:00 to Friday 23:59 server time. Open the XAUUSD Specification to see your broker's exact sessions.
When gold is busiest
| Session (GMT, US winter) | Activity | Typical spreads |
|---|---|---|
| Asia, about 00:00 to 07:00 | Lower, steady | Moderate |
| London open, 07:00 to 09:00 | Rising quickly | Narrowing |
| London and New York overlap, 12:00 to 16:00 | Highest volume and volatility | Tightest |
| Late New York, 17:00 to 21:00 | Fading | Widening |
| Around the break, about 21:45 to 23:30 | Thin | Widest |
Major US data such as payrolls, inflation and Federal Reserve decisions, usually released at 12:30 to 14:00 GMT, bring the largest moves. Our economic calendar lists the times.
Friday close and Sunday open
Gold stops trading on Friday at 17:00 New York time and reopens on Sunday at 18:00. Positions held over the weekend can gap at the reopen if news broke while the market was closed. Spreads are wide for the first part of Sunday evening. Our guide to weekend gaps explains the risk to stop losses.
Holidays
US holidays such as Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year shorten or close gold trading. Brokers send holiday schedules by email and publish them on their websites; the Specification window may not show one-off changes. Our forex holiday calendar lists the main dates.
A trader in Nairobi works 08:00 to 17:00 and can trade only in the evening. Gold's London and New York overlap runs from 15:00 to 19:00 Nairobi time in US winter, so the trader schedules analysis at lunch and trading from 17:30 to 19:00. Trades are closed or left with wide stops before 01:00 Nairobi time, when gold's break arrives.
Trading gold around your work day
Most retail traders cannot watch charts all day. Pick the session that overlaps your free time and learn how gold behaves in it. The Asian session suits traders who want quieter, range-bound conditions; the London open suits those who can trade before or early in their working day in Africa; the overlap suits evening traders in South Asia. Our guide to trading around a day job has practical routines.
Broker differences to check
- Break length: some brokers pause gold for slightly longer than an hour.
- Friday close: a few close gold a little earlier than 17:00 New York time.
- Weekend products: some list separate weekend gold symbols with their own hours and wider spreads.
- Holiday hours: always check the broker's notice for each holiday.
Our broker guides list gold hours in detail, for example IC Markets trading hours and FP Markets trading hours.
Gold hours in Ghana and Egypt
Ghana keeps GMT all year, so gold's daily break falls at 22:00 to 23:00 in US winter and 21:00 to 22:00 in US summer, and the London and New York overlap is about 12:00 to 16:00 in winter. Egypt uses summer time from the last Friday of April to the last Thursday of October, which moves its local times by an hour in those months. Our session-time pages for Ghana and Egypt give full tables.
Planning a gold trading routine
Pick one or two windows that suit your day and stick to them. Traders in West and East Africa often find the London morning or the London and New York overlap fits after work or at lunch. In South Asia, many trade the London open in their afternoon. Avoid the hour around the break, and treat the first hour after the Sunday open with caution.
Put gold's open, break and close in your phone calendar in your own time zone, with reminders. Update them on the daylight-saving dates in March, October and November.
Pending orders and stops can trigger on the wide spreads around the break and the Sunday open. Review them before stepping away in the evening.
Frequently asked
What are gold trading hours?
Sunday 18:00 to Friday 17:00 New York time, with a daily break of about an hour from 17:00 to 18:00. Those are CME gold futures hours; most broker XAUUSD CFDs follow a very similar schedule. Check your broker's Specification for exact times.
What time does gold open on Monday in Nigeria?
Gold reopens on Sunday at 18:00 New York time, which is midnight in Lagos in US winter and 23:00 on Sunday in US summer. Spreads are wide for the first part of the session, so many traders wait before entering.
When is the best time to trade gold?
Usually the London and New York overlap, about 12:00 to 16:00 GMT in US winter, when volume is highest and spreads are tightest. Major US data releases in that window bring the biggest moves, so trade them only with a plan.
Does gold trade on weekends?
Standard XAUUSD and CME gold futures do not. Some brokers offer separate weekend gold products with their own hours and wider spreads. Prices of those products can differ from the main market when it reopens.
Why does my broker show different gold hours?
MetaTrader shows sessions in server time, often GMT+2 or GMT+3, and brokers may set slightly different break lengths or Friday close times. Compare the server time at the top of Market Watch with the Sessions table.
Do gold hours change with daylight saving?
In New York time they stay the same. Countries that do not change clocks, such as Nigeria, Kenya and Pakistan, gold opens and closes an hour earlier during US summer time, from March to November.
Official sources: CME Group: gold futures fact card
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