Silver Trading Hours
Here's everything you need to know about when the silver market opens, why a one-hour daily pause matters, and which global trading hubs drive price action through the 24-hour cycle. Ot trade XAGUSD on flexible leverage up to 1:500 with this broker.
Silver trading hours
Spot silver trades 23 hours a day, five days a week. Price quoting on most retail platforms begins at 22:00 GMT on Sunday and runs until 21:00 GMT on Friday, with a 60-minute maintenance break every day from 21:00 to 22:00 GMT.
| Time zone | Silver trading hours |
|---|---|
| Los Angeles (PDT) | 3 PM (Sun) - 2 PM (Fri) |
| New York (EDT) | 6 PM (Sun) - 5 PM (Fri) |
| London (GMT) | 10 PM (Sun) - 9 PM (Fri) |
| London (BST) | 11 PM (Sun) - 10 PM (Fri) |
| Dubai (GST) | 3 AM (Mon) - 2 AM (Sat) |
| Hong Kong (HKT) | 6 AM (Mon) - 5 AM (Sat) |
| Sydney (AEST) | 8 AM (Mon) - 7 AM (Sat) |
Why the one-hour pause?
From 21:00-22:00 GMT the CME Globex engine performs end-of-day processes; during this window you can still place, amend or cancel orders, but none will execute(1).
Silver trading hours in MetaTrader
Here's how to see silver's exact quote and trade times in the MetaTrader 4 or 5 platforms:
- Right-click XAGUSD in the Market Watch window.
- Select 'Specifications'.
- Scroll to 'Quotes' (price feed) and 'Trade' (order execution) times.
Some brokers delay trading by a few minutes after the market re-opens, which can matter if you plan on scalping the Sunday gap, as illustrated below:
| GMT | FxPro | FP Markets | AvaTrade |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sun. | 10:00 PM - 11:59 PM | 10:01 PM - 11:59 PM | 10:05 PM - 11:59 PM |
| Mon. - Thu. | 12:00 AM - 8:59 PM, 10:00 PM - 11:59 PM | 12:00 AM - 8:59 PM, 10:01 PM - 11:59 PM | 12:00 AM - 8:59 PM, 10:01 PM - 11:59 PM |
| Fri. | 12:00 AM - 8:59 PM | 12:00 AM - 8:59 PM | 12:00 AM - 8:59 PM |
| Sat. | Closed | Closed | Closed |
FxPro lists Sunday open at 10:00 PM GMT on its metals schedule, but order entry may be enabled a few minutes later. But other factors may sway your choice: FPMarkets.com offers leverage up to 1:500 on silver, while AvaTrade.com caps at 1:200 and FxPro.com at 1:100.
World silver trading sessions
Spot-market quotes shown in your trading platform are a synthetic blend of liquidity from the world's main trading centres.
Asian session
Activity follows the sun, starting with the Asian session. Although volumes are thinner than later in the day, Asia often sets overnight momentum.
- Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) runs an electronic night session 10:00 PM - 02:30 AM GMT and a day session 01:00 AM - 07:00 AM GMT(2). As its night session kicks off three hours before the global spot re-open, it allows Asian traders to position early.
- Shanghai Gold Exchange (SGE), which also benchmarks silver, trades 01:00 AM -07:30 AM GMT with a midday pause(3).
- Hong Kong extends liquidity to 09:00 GMT, overlapping with the European session.
European session
- London remains the hub for OTC loco-London trades. The LBMA Silver Price is fixed daily at 12:00 London time (11:00 AM GMT in winter, 12 noon BST in summer)(4). Its auction still anchors global pricing, but COMEX sets much of the intraday tone thereafter.
- Zurich is an important silver refining centre, with a focus on large bars. Its trading hours mirror London (07:00-16:00 GMT).
North-American session
- COMEX (CME Group) dominates the paper silver market. Globex, its electronic trading platform, runs 23 hours, from 10:00 PM GMT Sunday to 9:15 PM GMT Friday, with a 45-minute technical break at 9:15 PM GMT(1).
- Open-outcry futures pit hours are shorter and run between 1:25 PM and 6:25 PM GMT on week days.
When is the best time to trade silver?
Liquidity peaks, and spreads tighten, when trading sessions overlap.
| Overlap | GMT window | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Asia ↔ Europe | 07:00 AM - 09:00 AM | Final Shanghai trades meet London open; early economic data often sparks volatility. |
| Europe ↔ North America | 01:30 PM - 04:00 PM | LBMA traders, COMEX futures and US data releases all coincide; this is typically the most liquid part of the day. |
Outside these overlaps spreads widen, so position-traders may wait for quieter periods to enter with less noise.
Conclusion
Spot silver trades from 10:00 PM GMT on Sunday to 9:00 PM GMT on Friday, pausing 60 minutes daily. But day-traders favour the Europe-US overlap (1:30 PM - 04:00 PM GMT) because it offers the deepest liquidity.
Armed with these timings, you can plan entries around periods of maximum liquidity - or deliberately avoid them if you prefer quieter moves.
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About the author
I'm Stefan, a trader and an entrepreneur. My mission with TrustedBrokers is to help you find the right broker for you, whether you're a beginner or a pro. I've personally used and tested the brokers mentioned in this article. I started my career in investment banking in London as an FCA-approved person.
- 1. CME Group. Silver Futures and Options. https://www.cmegroup.com/trading/metals/files/fact-card-silver-futures-options.pdf
- 2. Shanghai Futures Exchange. Continuous Trading Session. https://www.shfe.com.cn/content/lxjy/main_en.html
- 3. Shanghai Gold Exchange. Trading Hours. https://en.sge.com.cn/eng_trading_ProductsIntroduce
- 4. LBMA. LBMA Silver Price FAQs. https://www.lbma.org.uk/prices-and-data/lbma-silver-price/lbma-silver-price-faq