Indian Stock Market Timings

Trade in the stock market can only be undertaken during a specific time interval in India. Retail customers have to perform such transactions through a brokerage agency between 9.15 a.m. to 3.30 p.m. on weekdays. Most investors undertake the purchase/sale of securities listed on the major stock exchanges in India – Bombay stock exchange (BSE) and National Stock exchange (NSE). Indian stock market timings are the same for both these major stock exchanges.

 

Indian stock market timings for trade is divided into three segments:

Pre-opening Timing

This session lasts from 9.00 a.m. to 9.15 a.m. Orders to purchase or sell any securities can be placed during this time. It can be further classified into three sessions:

• 9:00 a.m. – 9.08 a.m.

During this stock market opening time in India, orders for any transaction can be placed. The order entry is given preference when actual trading begins, as these orders are cleared off in the beginning. Any requests placed during this time can be changed or canceled according to need, which is beneficial to investors, and no orders can be placed after this period of 8 minutes during the pre-opening session.

• 9:08 a.m. – 9.12 a.m.

This segment of Indian share market timing is responsible for the price determination of security. Price matching order is done by corresponding demand and supply prices to ensure accurate transactions among investors who want to purchase or sell a security, respectively.  Determination of final prices at which trading will begin during normal Indian stock market timing is done through a multilateral order matching system.

Price matching order plays a vital role in determining the price at which the security is transacted during a normal session of Indian stock market timing.

However, the benefits of modification of any order already placed in not available during this session.

 

• 9:12 a.m. – 9.15 a.m.

This time acts as a transition period between preopening and normal Indian share market timing. No additional orders for transactions can be placed during this time. Also, existing bets already placed from 9.08 a.m. – 9.12 a.m. cannot be revoked as well.

Normal Session 

This is the primary Indian share market timing lasting from 9.15 a.m. to 3.30 p.m. Any transactions made during this time follow a bilateral order matching system, wherein price determination is done through demand and supply forces. The bilateral order matching system is volatile, thereby inducing several market fluctuations which are ultimately reflected in security prices. To control this volatility, the multi-order system was formulated for the pre-opening session and was incorporated in Indian stock market timings.

Post-closing Session 

Stock market closing time in India is marked at 3.30 p.m. No exchange takes place after this period. However, the determination of closing price is done during this time, which has a significant effect on the following day’s opening security price.

Stock market closing time in India can be divided into two sessions –

• 3:00 p.m. – 3.40 p.m.

The closing price is calculated using a weighted average of prices at securities trading from 3 p.m. – 3.30 p.m. in a stock exchange. For determining the closing prices of benchmark and sector indices such as Nifty, Sensex, S&P Auto, etc. weighted average prices of listed securities are considered.

• 3:40 p.m. – 4 p.m.

This period is post stock market closing time when bids for the following day’s trade can be placed. Bids placed during this time are confirmed, provided adequate buyers and sellers are present in the market. These transactions are completed at a stipulated price, irrespective of changes in opening market price.

Thus, capital gains can be realized if the opening price exceeds the closing price by an investor who has already placed their bids. In case closing price exceeds opening share price, bids can be canceled during the narrow window of 9.00 a.m. – 9.08 a.m.

The overall stock market operating time in India can be demonstrated by the following table:

S. No.	Name	Time
1.	Pre-opening session	9.00 a.m. – 9.15 a.m.
2.	Normal session	9.15 a.m. – 3.30 p.m.
3.	Closing session	3.30 p.m. – 4.00 p.m.

Aftermarket Orders

Post this time frame. No transactions can take place. However, investors can place aftermarket orders, for securities of chosen companies, which would be allocated at opening market price the following day.

‘Muhurat’ Trading 

Indian stock market is generally closed for any transactions on Diwali, as it is a religious festival celebrated all across the country. However, a one-hour trading session is conducted from 5.30 p.m. to 6.40 pm as it is considered to be auspicious.