Forex Market Timings in India: Trading Hours and Sessions in IST

Forex market timings in India are 9:00 am to 5:00 pm IST, Monday to Friday, for rupee-pair futures and options on NSE. The RBI-regulated bank market in rupees trades from 9:00 am to 3:30 pm. Globally, forex trades around the clock on weekdays, busiest in the London–New York overlap, 5:30 pm to 9:30 pm IST until late October 2026.

Forex market timings in India: key facts

The RBI’s working group on market timings reviewed the forex market in 2025. In June 2025 the RBI extended call money and repo hours but left the forex market’s hours unchanged.

Currency trading time in India on NSE

Retail traders in India trade currency through a broker on a recognised exchange. On NSE, the currency derivatives segment opens at 9:00 am and closes at 5:00 pm for rupee pairs. Trades can be modified until 5:30 pm. There is no trading on Saturdays, Sundays or exchange holidays.

NSE’s remaining currency derivatives holidays for 2026 that fall on weekdays are:

• 2 October 2026 (Friday): Mahatma Gandhi Jayanti
• 20 October 2026 (Tuesday): Dussehra
• 10 November 2026 (Tuesday): Diwali-Balipratipada
• 24 November 2026 (Tuesday): Prakash Gurpurb Sri Guru Nanak Dev
• 25 December 2026 (Friday): Christmas

Diwali Laxmi Pujan on 8 November 2026 falls on a Sunday. NSE announces any special session for that day separately. Our guide to currency derivatives on NSE explains lot sizes, margins and who can trade.

Global forex sessions in IST

The world forex market has no single exchange. Trading passes from Sydney to Tokyo, London and New York as each centre’s business day starts. The table below assumes each centre trades from about 8 am to 5 pm local time. That is a common market convention, not an official timetable, and big banks deal outside those hours too.

India is 5 hours 30 minutes ahead of GMT and does not change its clocks, so every shift comes from the other centres.

Best time for forex trading in India: when the market is busiest

Activity follows where the trading desks are. The Bank for International Settlements’ 2025 survey found that desks in the UK, the US, Singapore and Hong Kong handled 75% of global forex trading. Turnover averaged $9.6 trillion a day in April 2025, and the US dollar was on one side of 89.2% of all trades.

High volume brings narrower spreads and sharper moves. Neither means a trade will make money. We do not suggest any trading window as a strategy.

Forex trading hours and the law in India

Residents may trade forex only in permitted forms: rupee pairs and approved cross-currency contracts on recognised Indian exchanges, through a registered broker. Rupee derivatives exist to hedge currency risk. Exchanges let you hold positions up to USD 100 million across all rupee pairs without first proving your exposure, but you must still have a genuine exposure that is not hedged elsewhere.

Apps and websites offering round-the-clock trading in dollar, euro or gold pairs with Indian money are a different matter. The RBI’s Alert List names entities that are not authorised to deal in forex under FEMA or to run forex trading platforms. The list was updated on 19 November 2025 and is not exhaustive. Our explainer on whether forex trading is legal in India covers the rules and penalties. If you are unsure about your own case, speak to a qualified adviser.

How to check if the forex market is open

1. Check the day. The global market closes at weekends, and NSE also closes on the holidays listed above.
2. For rupee pairs, confirm the time is between 9:00 am and 5:00 pm IST on a trading day.
3. For other pairs, find which centre is in its business day using the session table.
4. Around 4 October, 25 October and 1 November 2026, recheck the IST times, as clocks change abroad.
5. Look at your broker’s trading screen, which shows the market status for each contract.

To follow where the rupee closed, see our USD to INR rate page.

Frequently asked questions

What are forex market timings in India?

NSE’s currency futures and options on rupee pairs trade from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm IST, Monday to Friday. The RBI-regulated bank market in rupees trades from 9:00 am to 3:30 pm.

What is the currency trading time in India?

9:00 am to 5:00 pm IST on trading days for USD/INR, EUR/INR, GBP/INR and JPY/INR contracts on NSE.

What is the best time for forex trading in India?

For rupee pairs, only NSE hours matter. For major global pairs, volume is usually highest in the London–New York overlap, 5:30 pm to 9:30 pm IST until 24 October 2026. High volume does not make a trade profitable.

What is the forex market closing time in India?

5:00 pm IST for rupee pairs on NSE, with trade modification allowed until 5:30 pm. The OTC bank market closes at 3:30 pm.

Is the forex market open 24 hours?

The global interbank market trades around the clock from Monday to Friday. Indian exchanges do not; they follow fixed hours.

When is the forex market closed?

At weekends worldwide, and on NSE holidays for Indian contracts. The next NSE currency holiday is 2 October 2026.

What are the forex session times in India?

Until the clocks change, roughly Sydney 3:30 am–12:30 pm, Tokyo 4:30 am–1:30 pm, London 12:30–9:30 pm and New York 5:30 pm–2:30 am IST.

Sources

• Market timings — National Stock Exchange of India (checked 17 Sep 2026)
• Contract specifications: futures and options on INR pairs — NSE (checked 17 Sep 2026)
• Contract specifications: cross currency — NSE (checked 17 Sep 2026)
• Market holidays — NSE (checked 17 Sep 2026)
• Revised trading hours for RBI-regulated markets from 12 December 2022 — Reserve Bank of India (checked 17 Sep 2026)
• Recommendations of the Working Group on trading and settlement timings, 25 June 2025 — Reserve Bank of India (checked 17 Sep 2026)
• Alert List of unauthorised forex trading platforms — Reserve Bank of India (checked 17 Sep 2026)
• Master Direction on risk management and inter-bank dealings — Reserve Bank of India (checked 17 Sep 2026)
• OTC foreign exchange turnover in April 2025 — Bank for International Settlements (checked 17 Sep 2026)
• When do the clocks change — GOV.UK (checked 17 Sep 2026)
• Daylight saving time rules — NIST (checked 17 Sep 2026)
• Daylight saving in NSW — NSW Government (checked 17 Sep 2026)