Market Hours Explained

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What You’ll Learn

• Regular market hours and why they matter
• Pre-market trading (4am-9:30am ET)
• After-hours trading (4pm-8pm ET)
• Risks of extended hours trading
• Market holidays and half-days
• Time zones and how they affect you
• When beginners should and shouldn’t trade

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Why This Matters

• 🕐 You want to know when you can buy and sell stocks
• 🤔 You’ve heard about “pre-market” and “after-hours” trading
• 📈 You want to trade but don’t know if market is open
• 😰 You’re confused about time zones and trading hours
• 🎯 You want to avoid mistakes from trading at wrong times

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Regular Market Hours (The Main Session)

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U.S. Stock Market Hours

• Open: 9:30 AM Eastern Time (ET)
• Close: 4:00 PM Eastern Time (ET)
• Duration: 6.5 hours per trading day
• Days: Monday - Friday (except holidays)

• Highest liquidity (most buyers and sellers)
• Tightest bid-ask spreads
• Best prices
• Safest time for beginners to trade

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Converting to Your Time Zone

• You’re in California (Pacific Time)
• Market opens at 6:30 AM your time
• Market closes at 1:00 PM your time
• You can trade stocks between 6:30 AM - 1:00 PM PT

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Why These Hours?

• Aligned with business hours on East Coast (financial center)
• Allows time for news digestion before open
• Gives institutions time to process orders after close

• Most investors don’t trade during all 6.5 hours
• Many people trade in first 30 minutes (9:30-10:00 AM ET) = highest volume
• Last 30 minutes (3:30-4:00 PM ET) = second highest volume (“power hour”)
• Middle of day (11 AM - 3 PM ET) = slower, less volatile

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Pre-Market Trading

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What Is Pre-Market?

• Start: 4:00 AM Eastern Time (ET)
• End: 9:30 AM Eastern Time (ET)
• Duration: 5.5 hours before regular market opens

• Some traders and institutions trade before market officially opens
• Limited number of participants
• Lower volume than regular hours
• News and earnings often released during pre-market

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Who Trades Pre-Market?

• Professional traders
• Hedge funds and institutions
• Day traders reacting to overnight news
• Earnings traders (companies announce before market opens)

• Long-term investors
• Complete beginners
• Casual investors

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Pre-Market Characteristics

• Fewer buyers and sellers
• Harder to find someone to trade with
• Larger price swings on small volume

• Bid-ask spread can be 5-10x wider than regular hours
• Example: Regular hours $0.02 spread → Pre-market$0.20 spread
• You pay significantly more buying, get significantly less selling

• Prices can swing wildly on low volume
• 100-share order might move stock 1%
• Not representative of where stock will trade during regular hours

• Earnings announcements (many companies report before market open)
• International market movements (Europe, Asia)
• Breaking news overnight
• Federal Reserve announcements

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Pre-Market Risks for Beginners

• Pre-market: Stock shows $105
• You place market order thinking that’s the price
• Regular market opens at 9:30 AM at $100
• Your order fills at $100
• You were misled by pre-market price

• Bid: $99.98 / Ask:$100.00
• Spread: $0.02 (0.02%)

• Bid: $99.50 / Ask:$100.50
• Spread: $1.00 (1%)

• Pay $100.50 (the ask)
• Immediately worth $99.50 (the bid)
• Instant 1% loss just from spread!

• Only 500 shares traded in pre-market
• Stock shows as “up 10%”
• Looks like strong momentum
• Regular market opens, floods with volume
• Price returns to normal
• Pre-market move was meaningless

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When to Trade Pre-Market (Advanced Only)

• ✅ You’re an experienced trader
• ✅ You understand extended hours risks
• ✅ There’s legitimate catalyst (earnings, FDA approval, etc.)
• ✅ You use limit orders (never market orders)
• ✅ You accept wider spreads and volatility

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How to Access Pre-Market Trading

• Call or use secure message to enable
• Must acknowledge risks
• Available 7:00 AM - 9:30 AM ET

• Enable in account settings
• Available 8:05 AM - 9:25 AM ET (limited window)

• Available to all users by default
• Extended hours: 9:00 AM - 9:30 AM (pre-market) and 4:00-6:00 PM (after-hours)
• Enable in settings > “Extended Hours Trading”

• Must enable extended hours trading
• Available 7:00 AM - 9:30 AM ET

• Available by default
• Most extensive: 4:00 AM - 9:30 AM ET (full pre-market)

• Available by default
• 4:00 AM - 9:30 AM ET

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After-Hours Trading

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What Is After-Hours?

• Start: 4:00 PM Eastern Time (ET) (right when regular market closes)
• End: 8:00 PM Eastern Time (ET)
• Duration: 4 hours after regular market close

• Continued trading after regular hours close
• Many companies release earnings after market closes (4:00-4:30 PM)
• Allows reaction to late-breaking news
• Similar characteristics to pre-market (low volume, wide spreads)

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After-Hours Characteristics

• Lower liquidity
• Wider bid-ask spreads
• More volatility
• Not representative of next day’s opening price

• Earnings announcements (many companies report after 4 PM)
• Breaking news after business hours
• Federal Reserve announcements (sometimes 2 PM, affects after-hours)
• International developments

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After-Hours Risks

• Wide spreads cost you money
• Low volume = big price swings
• Prices not representative
• Easy to overpay or get bad execution

• Regular market closed at $175.50
• Earnings miss expectations
• After-hours: Stock drops to $165 on low volume (down 6%)
• Panic selling in after-hours
• Next morning (9:30 AM): Stock opens at $170 (recovered 50% of drop)
• After-hours overreacted

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When to Use After-Hours (Advanced)

• ✅ You’re experienced
• ✅ Reacting to earnings on position you own
• ✅ Using limit orders only
• ✅ Accept wide spreads
• ✅ Understand prices may be temporary

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Extended Hours Trading: Complete Timeline

4:00 AM - 9:30 AM  = Pre-Market (5.5 hours)
                     [Low volume, wide spreads, volatile]

9:30 AM - 10:00 AM = Market Open (30 min)
                     [Highest volume, most volatile]

10:00 AM - 3:30 PM = Mid-Day (5.5 hours)
                     [Normal trading, moderate volume]

3:30 PM - 4:00 PM  = Power Hour (30 min)
                     [High volume, increased volatility]

4:00 PM            = Market Close
                     [Regular trading ends]

4:00 PM - 8:00 PM  = After-Hours (4 hours)
                     [Low volume, wide spreads, earnings reactions]

8:00 PM - 4:00 AM  = Market Closed
                     [No trading]

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Best Times to Trade (For Beginners)

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The Safest Window: 10:00 AM - 3:30 PM ET

• ✅ Tight spreads (lowest cost)
• ✅ Good liquidity (easy to buy/sell)
• ✅ Less volatility (calmer price movements)
• ✅ Opening chaos has settled
• ✅ Closing rush hasn’t started

• Long-term investors
• First-time buyers
• Anyone buying index ETFs
• Investors who want fair prices

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Avoid: First 30 Minutes (9:30-10:00 AM ET)

• Extreme volatility (prices swing wildly)
• Professionals dominate this time
• Algorithms and high-frequency traders active
• Hard to get good price
• Easy to get caught in fake moves

• Overnight news gets digested
• Orders built up overnight all execute at once
• Huge volume spike
• Prices can swing 2-5% in minutes
• Then often revert back

• Overnight news: slightly positive
• 9:30 AM open: Stock gaps up to $103 (3% jump)
• Beginners see “momentum” and buy at $103
• By 10:00 AM: Stock settles back to $101
• Beginners overpaid by $2/share (2%)

• Wait 30 minutes for dust to settle
• See where price stabilizes
• Make more informed decision

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Avoid: Last 30 Minutes (3:30-4:00 PM ET)

• “Power Hour” = high volume and volatility
• Institutional rebalancing
• Day traders closing positions
• Prices can swing significantly

• Fund managers adjust portfolios
• Day traders must close positions (can’t hold overnight)
• Algorithms maximize volume
• Price swings can be dramatic

• Avoid trading 3:30-4:00 PM
• If you must, use limit orders
• Don’t chase price movements

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Best Strategy for Beginners

• Place your limit orders
• Buy index ETFs
• Make long-term investments
• Get fair prices

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Market Holidays and Special Days

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When Is the Market Closed?

• 🎊 New Year’s Day (January 1)
• 🎖️ Martin Luther King Jr. Day (3rd Monday in January)
• 👔 Presidents’ Day (3rd Monday in February)
• ✝️ Good Friday (Friday before Easter)
• 🇺🇸 Memorial Day (Last Monday in May)
• 🎆 Juneteenth (June 19)
• 🗽 Independence Day (July 4)
• 👷 Labor Day (1st Monday in September)
• 🦃 Thanksgiving Day (4th Thursday in November)
• 🎄 Christmas Day (December 25)

• Market usually closed Friday (if holiday is Saturday) or Monday (if holiday is Sunday)

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Early Close Days (Half Days)

• Day before Independence Day (July 3, if July 4 falls on weekday)
• Day after Thanksgiving (Black Friday)
• Christmas Eve (December 24, if Christmas falls on weekday)

• Only 3.5 hours of trading (9:30 AM - 1:00 PM ET)
• Lower volume
• Plan accordingly if you want to trade that day

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How to Check If Market Is Open

• Search “is stock market open today”
• Google shows current status

• Most show countdown to open/close
• “Market opens in X hours”

• CNBC, Bloomberg, MarketWatch show current status
• Display market hours prominently

• Official calendars of trading days
• nyse.com/markets/hours-calendars

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Weekend Trading (Crypto vs Stocks)

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Stocks: Weekends = Closed

• ❌ Closed Saturdays and Sundays
• ❌ No trading Friday 8 PM - Monday 4 AM
• ❌ Cannot buy or sell stocks on weekends

• ✅ Research stocks
• ✅ Plan your trades for Monday
• ✅ Paper trade on Ape AI
• ✅ Read earnings reports
• ✅ Set limit orders for Monday open (won’t execute until market opens)

• News can break on weekends
• Affects Monday’s opening price
• Creates “gap” (stock opens higher/lower than Friday close)

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Crypto: 24/7/365

• ✅ Open 24 hours a day
• ✅ Open 7 days a week
• ✅ Open 365 days a year (including holidays)
• Never closes

• Stocks = business days only
• Crypto = every day, all day

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International Markets

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When Other Major Markets Are Open

• 3:00 AM - 11:30 AM Eastern Time
• Overlaps with early U.S. pre-market and morning

• 9:30 PM - 4:00 AM Eastern Time (next day)
• Trades while U.S. sleeps

• 8:00 PM - 2:30 AM Eastern Time (next day)
• Trades while U.S. sleeps

• 3:00 AM - 11:30 AM Eastern Time
• Overlaps with U.S. pre-market

• International news affects U.S. stocks
• If European markets drop 3%, U.S. market often opens lower
• Gives preview of sentiment before U.S. open

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Common Questions

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”Can I place an order when the market is closed?”

1. You place limit order Saturday at noon
2. Order sits in queue
3. Monday 9:30 AM: Market opens, your order becomes active
4. Executes if price reaches your limit

• Stock might gap (open much higher/lower than Friday close)
• Your limit order might fill at worse price than expected
• Or might not fill at all if gap went past your limit

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”What if I try to place a market order after hours?”

• Order queues for next market open
• Executes at 9:30 AM (or next trading day if weekend)

• Order executes in after-hours market
• You’ll pay wider spread
• Get after-hours price

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”Why don’t they keep the market open 24/7 like crypto?”

• Stock market existed before computers
• Needed time to process paper trades
• Participants needed rest

• Circuit breakers and system maintenance happen overnight
• Regulators can review day’s activity
• Prevents non-stop volatility and exhaustion
• Allows fair playing field (everyone gets rest)

• Some have proposed it
• SEC has not approved
• Likely won’t happen soon

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”Can I cancel an order placed when market is closed?”

• You can cancel any limit order anytime before it fills
• Weekend order can be cancelled Sunday night before Monday open
• Go to “Open Orders” and click “Cancel”

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What to Do Outside Market Hours

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Research and Education

• Read earnings reports
• Watch company presentations
• Research industry trends
• Ask Sage for analysis

• Analyze holdings
• Check if rebalancing needed
• Review performance
• Plan next month’s investments

• Paper trade on Ape AI (works 24/7!)
• Read investing books
• Watch educational content
• Complete Ape AI workflows

• Set up limit orders for Monday
• Create watchlist
• Set price alerts
• Prepare shopping list

The market is closed this weekend. What stocks should I
research? I'm interested in [sector/theme].

• Stock recommendations to research
• Key metrics to look at
• Questions to answer about each company
• Resources to read

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Set Limit Orders for Monday

1. Research stocks you want to buy
2. Set limit orders for Monday morning
3. Orders activate when market opens 9:30 AM
4. If price is right, orders fill automatically
5. You don’t have to wake up at market open

• You want to buy Apple
• Current price (Friday close): $175.50
• You set GTC limit order at $175.00
• Monday 9:30 AM: If Apple hits $175.00, you’re filled
• You’re sleeping while your order works for you

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Success Checklist

• ✅ I know regular hours are 9:30 AM - 4:00 PM Eastern
• ✅ I converted market hours to my time zone
• ✅ I understand pre-market (4 AM - 9:30 AM ET)
• ✅ I understand after-hours (4 PM - 8 PM ET)
• ✅ I know the risks of extended hours trading
• ✅ I know when market holidays are

• ✅ As a beginner, I’ll trade during regular hours only
• ✅ I’ll avoid first 30 minutes and last 30 minutes
• ✅ Best window: 10:30 AM - 3:00 PM Eastern
• ✅ I’ll use limit orders, especially near open/close
• ✅ I won’t chase prices in pre-market or after-hours

• ✅ I know market is closed weekends
• ✅ I can research and plan trades on weekends
• ✅ I can set limit orders for Monday (execute when market opens)
• ✅ I’ll check if Monday is a holiday before placing weekend orders
• ✅ I’ll practice on Ape AI paper trading (works 24/7!)

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What’s Next?

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Immediate Next Steps

• Paper Trading: Practice Risk-Free →
• Your First $100 in ETFs →
• Your First $100 in Stocks →

• Investing vs Trading vs Gambling →
• Risk Management 101 →

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Ask Sage for Personalized Timing

I'm in [Your Time Zone]. When is the best time for me to trade
as a beginner? I work [9-5 / night shift / etc.].

• Convert market hours to your timezone
• Recommend best trading windows for your schedule
• Help you plan when to place orders
• Suggest strategies if you can’t trade during optimal hours

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The Bottom Line

• 9:30 AM - 4:00 PM Eastern
• Best window: 10:30 AM - 3:00 PM ET
• Tightest spreads, best liquidity, fairest prices

• Pre-market: 4 AM - 9:30 AM ET
• After-hours: 4 PM - 8 PM ET
• Wide spreads, low volume, volatile = bad for beginners

• Weekends (all day Saturday and Sunday)
• 10 holidays per year
• Can place orders but won’t execute until market opens

1. Only trade during regular market hours
2. Wait 30-60 minutes after open (avoid 9:30-10:00 AM chaos)
3. Avoid last 30 minutes (3:30-4:00 PM)
4. Use mid-day (10:30 AM - 3:00 PM ET) for best prices
5. Never use market orders in pre-market or after-hours