New Delhi, Aug 2 (NVI) Trading timings for India’s stock markets will change from tomorrow as the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) is rolling out a Closing Auction Session (CAS) for Futures & Options (F&O)-eligible stocks and extends trading hours for the equity derivatives segment by 10 minutes.
Under the revised framework, the cash market will continue to operate between 9:15 am and 3:30 pm, while the equity derivatives segment will now remain open until 3:40 pm, compared with the earlier closing time of 3:30 pm.
The key change under the new framework is the extension of trading hours for the equity F&O segment.
The normal market session will continue to begin at 9:15 am, but trading will conclude at 3:40 pm, providing market participants with an additional 10 minutes to trade derivatives contracts. Trade modification requests will continue until 4:15 pm.
The extension is expected to offer traders greater flexibility while aligning the derivatives market with the new closing auction process in the cash segment.
Another significant reform is the introduction of a Closing Auction Session for stocks that are part of the F&O segment. The auction mechanism is intended to improve the accuracy of closing prices by aggregating buy and sell orders in the final minutes of trading, thereby reducing volatility and strengthening price discovery.
Market regulators believe the revised process will ensure that closing prices more accurately reflect prevailing market demand and supply, benefiting both institutional and retail investors.
While changes have been introduced for derivatives and the closing auction, the equity cash market timings remain unchanged, with the pre-open session continuing from 9:00 am to 9:08 am and regular trading from 9:15 am to 3:30 pm.
The changes are being implemented across stock exchanges in line with Sebi’s efforts to modernise market infrastructure and improve the efficiency of India’s capital markets. (NVI)
