Oil Trading Hours
WTI futures trade on CME Globex from 6:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. ET, Sunday evening to Friday afternoon, with a one-hour daily break. ICE Brent futures trade from 01:00 to 23:00 London time on weekdays, opening at 23:00 London time on Sunday. Between them, oil trades almost 24 hours a day, five days a week.
| Contract | Exchange | Session (exchange time) | Daily settlement window |
|---|---|---|---|
| WTI Light Sweet Crude (CL), Micro WTI (MCL) | CME Globex (NYMEX) | Sun–Fri 18:00 to 17:00 ET next day; break 17:00–18:00 ET | 14:28–14:30 ET |
| Brent Crude (B) | ICE Futures Europe | Mon–Fri 01:00 to 23:00 London; Sunday open 23:00 London | 19:28–19:30 London |
Sources: CME Group contract specifications for CL and MCL; ICE Futures Europe Brent Crude Futures specifications (accessed October 2026).
Trading hours in your time zone
Exchange hours are fixed in local time: New York time for CME and London time for ICE. Because the US, UK and other countries change their clocks on different dates, the hours shift for traders in Dubai, Mumbai and Singapore, which do not use daylight saving time. The tables below show both seasons.
| Season | New York (ET) | London | Dubai | Mumbai | Singapore |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Summer (US and UK daylight time) | 18:00–17:00 | 23:00–22:00 | 02:00–01:00 | 03:30–02:30 | 06:00–05:00 |
| Winter (standard time) | 18:00–17:00 | 23:00–22:00 | 03:00–02:00 | 04:30–03:30 | 07:00–06:00 |
| Season | London | New York (ET) | Dubai | Mumbai | Singapore |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Summer (BST / EDT) | 01:00–23:00 | 20:00–18:00 | 04:00–02:00 | 05:30–03:30 | 08:00–06:00 |
| Winter (GMT / EST) | 01:00–23:00 | 20:00–18:00 | 05:00–03:00 | 06:30–04:30 | 09:00–07:00 |
Times are the session open to the close on the following calendar day. In 2026 US daylight time runs from 8 March to 1 November and UK summer time from 29 March to 25 October. In the gap weeks (8–28 March and 25–31 October 2026) London is only four hours ahead of New York, so the CME session opens and closes one hour earlier in London time, and the ICE Brent session runs 21:00–19:00 ET.
When oil is most liquid
Although the market is open nearly around the clock, volume is concentrated in a few windows:
- London morning (roughly 08:00–12:00 London): European refiners, traders and the physical North Sea market are active, and Brent volume rises.
- US morning to settlement (roughly 09:00–14:30 ET): the busiest period for WTI. The overlap with the London afternoon is the most liquid part of the day for both contracts.
- Data releases: the EIA Weekly Petroleum Status Report on Wednesdays at 10:30 a.m. ET and the API report on Tuesdays at 4:30 p.m. ET regularly move prices.
- Asian hours: thinner trading, wider spreads. Weekend news, such as the conflict events that drove oil in 2026, is priced in when CME and ICE reopen on Sunday evening, which can cause opening gaps.
Settlement windows and why they matter
The daily settlement price is the official closing price used for margin calls, ETF valuations and many physical contracts. For WTI, CME uses the volume-weighted average price of trades between 14:28 and 14:30 ET. For Brent, ICE uses the weighted average of trades in the two minutes starting at 19:28 London time. Trading continues after both windows, which is why the "last price" on a live quote can differ from the reported settlement.
On the last trading day of a contract, these windows decide the final price. Expiry dates for every month are in the oil futures expiry calendar.
Holidays
CME and ICE publish holiday calendars each year. As a rule:
- Christmas Day and New Year's Day: both markets are closed, and trading is usually shortened on the days before.
- Good Friday: both markets are normally closed.
- US federal holidays (such as Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Presidents' Day, Memorial Day, Juneteenth, Independence Day, Labor Day and Thanksgiving): CME Globex often runs a shortened session with no settlement that day. ICE Brent usually trades, sometimes with early closes.
- UK bank holidays: ICE Brent normally trades, but these days are not business days for calculating Brent expiry.
Always check the official CME and ICE holiday notices before trading around a holiday. Brokers may also set their own shorter hours for CFDs and ETFs.
ETF and CFD hours
Oil ETFs such as USO and BNO trade only during US stock market hours, 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET, although some brokers offer extended sessions. CFD providers generally follow the futures sessions but may add their own daily break. See oil ETFs and oil CFDs for how those products track the futures price.
Related reading
For the contracts themselves, see WTI crude oil futures and Brent crude oil futures. For live prices during the session, use the crude oil price chart.
Oil trading hours FAQ
What time does oil trading open on Sunday?
WTI futures open on CME Globex at 6:00 p.m. ET on Sunday. ICE Brent opens at 23:00 London time on Sunday, which is 6:00 p.m. ET for most of the year. Prices often gap at the Sunday open if there was major news over the weekend.
Is oil traded 24 hours a day?
Almost. CME Globex trades WTI for 23 hours a day, Sunday to Friday, with a break from 5:00 to 6:00 p.m. ET. ICE Brent trades 22 hours a day, from 01:00 to 23:00 London time. The markets are closed from Friday afternoon to Sunday evening.
What time is the WTI settlement?
The official WTI settlement price is based on trading between 2:28 and 2:30 p.m. ET. This price is used for margin, fund valuations and most published closing prices. Trading continues on Globex after the settlement until 5:00 p.m. ET.
What time does Brent crude close?
ICE Brent futures stop trading at 23:00 London time on weekdays. The daily settlement price is set from trades in the two-minute window starting at 19:28 London time, so most published "closing" Brent prices refer to that settlement.
What are oil trading hours in India?
For Indian traders, WTI on CME Globex runs from 03:30 to 02:30 IST in the northern summer and 04:30 to 03:30 IST in winter. Brent on ICE runs from 05:30 to 03:30 IST in summer and 06:30 to 04:30 IST in winter. MCX crude oil follows its own exchange hours.
Related pages
Oil Futures Expiry Calendar
Expiry dates for Brent and WTI crude oil futures in 2026 and 2027, how each last trading day is calculated, and when quote services roll.
How to Trade Crude Oil
A practical guide to trading crude oil: futures, options, ETFs and CFDs compared, contract sizes, margin, costs, risk management and common mistakes.
WTI Futures
WTI crude oil futures (NYMEX CL): live price, contract specs, last trading day rule, Cushing delivery, Micro WTI and the futures curve.
Brent Futures
Brent crude oil futures explained: live front-month price, ICE contract specs, expiry rules, month codes and contango vs backwardation.