When Does the London Stock Exchange Open in EST? FTSE 100 Hours in Eastern Time
The short answer: the London Stock Exchange opens at 8:00 a.m. UK time, which is 3:00 AM Eastern Time for most of the year. It closes at 4:30 p.m. UK time, or 11:30 AM ET.
London Stock Exchange hours in Eastern Time
| Session | UK time | In ET (most of the year) | In ET (Oct 25–Nov 1, 2026) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Opening auction | 7:50–8:00 a.m. | 2:50–3:00 AM | 3:50–4:00 AM |
| Continuous trading | 8:00 a.m.–4:30 p.m. | 3:00–11:30 AM | 4:00 AM–12:30 PM |
| Closing auction | 4:30–4:35 p.m. | 11:30–11:35 AM | 12:30–12:35 PM |
The FTSE 100 and FTSE 250 indexes are calculated during continuous trading.
Why London is usually five hours ahead
The UK uses Greenwich Mean Time (GMT, UTC+0) in winter and British Summer Time (BST, UTC+1) in summer. New York uses EST (UTC-5) and EDT (UTC-4). As long as both countries are on the same kind of time, London is five hours ahead.
The UK changes clocks on the last Sunday of March and the last Sunday of October. The US changes on the second Sunday of March and the first Sunday of November. In between, London is only four hours ahead:
- October 25 to November 1, 2026: London opens at 4:00 AM ET.
- March 14 to March 28, 2027: London opens at 4:00 AM ET.
The London–New York overlap
The US market opens at 9:30 AM ET, while London is still trading. The overlap lasts two hours, until London closes at 11:30 AM ET, or three hours during the gap weeks. Many companies are listed in both cities, and their prices are often most closely linked during this window.
Holidays
The exchange closes on English bank holidays, including Good Friday, Easter Monday, Christmas Day and Boxing Day. On Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve, it usually closes early, at about 12:30 p.m. UK time.
Following UK stocks from the US
US-listed funds such as the iShares MSCI United Kingdom ETF (EWU) trade in New York. During the overlap, they trade while London is also open.
For Frankfurt, see when the DAX opens in EST. For more markets, see our World stock market hours in Eastern Time guide.
Published October 19, 2026. Times reflect the exchange's published order book hours as of that date. Educational information only, not investment advice.