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Futures trading hours
CME futures trade from 6 pm ET Sunday to 5 pm ET Friday with a one-hour daily break. Hours for ES, NQ, crude oil and gold, and what prop firm rules add.
What are futures trading hours?
Most CME futures, including the E-mini S&P 500 (ES), E-mini Nasdaq-100 (NQ), crude oil (CL) and gold (GC), trade on CME Globex from 6:00 pm ET on Sunday to 5:00 pm ET on Friday, with a one-hour break every weekday from 5:00 pm to 6:00 pm ET. On the exchange’s own clock that is 5:00 pm to 4:00 pm Central Time.
Futures market hours by contract
Futures market hours by contract
Equity index, energy and metals futures share the same electronic schedule on CME Globex. The session that opens at 6:00 pm ET belongs to the next trading day, so Monday’s trading day starts on Sunday evening.
Market
Contracts
Opens
Closes
Daily break
CME sets its hours in Central Time and moves with US daylight saving, so the Eastern Time hours stay the same all year. Exchange holidays shorten or close sessions.
When does the futures market open?
When does the futures market open?
The week opens at 6:00 pm ET on Sunday. From Monday to Thursday, trading pauses at 5:00 pm ET and reopens at 6:00 pm ET, so futures trade for 23 hours a day. The week ends at 5:00 pm ET on Friday.
Liquidity is not spread evenly. Volume is heaviest during the US stock market’s regular session, 9:30 am to 4:00 pm ET, and thinnest in the late evening and around the daily break.
Holidays
Holidays
Most US holidays bring an early close rather than a full closure, and the exact times differ by product. CME Group publishes a holiday calendar for each year; check it before holding a position into a holiday.
Trading hours at prop firms
Trading hours at prop firms
Futures prop firms add their own time rules on top of the exchange’s. Common ones are a cut-off before the daily close by which positions must be flat, a ban on holding over the weekend, and restrictions around major economic news. The times differ from firm to firm, so read the firm’s rules page before trading late in the session.
FAQs - Futures trading hours
Facts checked 2026-09-15 against CME Group contract specifications.
Nearly. CME futures trade 23 hours a day from Sunday evening to Friday afternoon, pausing for one hour from 5:00 pm to 6:00 pm ET each weekday.
CME Globex futures open at 6:00 pm ET (5:00 pm CT) on Sunday.
CME Globex futures close for the weekend at 5:00 pm ET (4:00 pm CT) on Friday.
Often, but on shortened hours. Most holidays bring an early close rather than a full closure. CME Group’s holiday calendar lists the exact times for each product.
Related reference
More futures reference, and where these rules meet prop firm terms.
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To save money on a funded trading account, traders can use verified prop firm discount codes available on Prop Firm Pal. By applying these promo codes during checkout, traders reduce the cost of evaluation challenges. Combining structured comparisons with active discounts helps traders choose competitive programs while lowering upfront costs.
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The best prop firm for futures trading will offer access to CME or exchange-listed contracts, clear rules around leverage and contract limits, and a payout structure suitable for high-frequency or systematic futures strategies. Futures prop firms often operate differently from forex-focused ones, with different fee structures and account types. Prop Firm Pal includes futures-focused firms in its comparisons so you can evaluate which programs support your preferred instruments and trading approach.
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