India's commodity derivatives segments trade from 9:00 AM until late in the evening on weekdays. On both MCX and NSE's commodity derivatives segment (NSE Commodities), non-agri commodities (bullion, energy, base metals) trade until 11:30 PM IST while US daylight saving is in effect, and until 11:55 PM IST for the rest of the year. That is a far longer day than the equity market's roughly 9:15 AM to 3:30 PM session.
Why do commodity markets stay open so late?
Because Indian commodity prices don't originate in India. Gold tracks the international bullion market, crude oil tracks global benchmarks, and base metals follow the big international metal exchanges. Those markets are most active when Europe and the US are awake — which is evening and night in India.
If MCX closed at 3:30 PM like the equity exchanges, Indian traders would spend every night watching global prices move with no way to react, and every morning would open with a large gap. The late session lets the Indian price track the world price in real time. In practice, the evening session is often the busiest part of the MCX day, especially for crude oil and natural gas around US data releases.
How does a typical trading day look?
All sessions start at 9:00 AM IST on both exchanges. The close depends on the commodity category and on whether US daylight saving is in effect:
MCX
| Commodity category | Close (US daylight saving on)* | Close (US daylight saving off)* |
|---|---|---|
| Non-agri (bullion, metals, energy) | 11:30 PM | 11:55 PM |
| Internationally referenceable agri | 9:00 PM | 9:00 PM (cotton: 9:30 PM) |
| Other agri contracts | 5:00 PM | 5:00 PM |
MCX also runs a short Special Session from 8:45 to 8:59 AM — an order-cancellation window to clear pending orders before the market opens; no trading happens in it.
NSE Commodities
| Commodity category | Close (US daylight saving on)* | Close (US daylight saving off)* |
|---|---|---|
| Non-agri | 11:30 PM | 11:55 PM |
| Internationally referenceable agri | 9:00 PM | 9:00 PM |
US daylight saving is "on" roughly March to November — Indian summer — and "off" between November and March, when the session runs to its later close.
On NSE Commodities, two supporting cut-offs sit after the close: trade modification and position limit / collateral value set-up both end at 11:45 PM (daylight-saving on) or 11:59 PM (off). These matter to active traders tidying up after the close, not to a first order.
Two wrinkles worth knowing:
- The non-agri closing time shifts with US daylight saving — when US clocks move, the Indian session close moves with them, so the world's market hours stay aligned.
- Agri contracts close much earlier than non-agri because their price discovery is largely domestic — mandi arrivals, monsoon, government policy. The exception is the internationally referenceable agri category on both exchanges, which runs to 9:00 PM because those prices track global markets.
Rahul, who trades crude oil, plans around this rhythm: he checks global cues in the morning, but keeps his real attention for the evening, when US inventory data lands and crude often makes its biggest move of the day.
How is this different from equity market hours?
The equity market runs a compact daytime session — see what are the equity market trading hours. MCX's day is more than half as long again. That changes how you trade:
- Your position needs watching (or protective orders) deep into the evening.
- News that hits equities after their close can still be traded on MCX the same night.
- A "day" on MCX is a marathon — few traders can genuinely watch all of it, so alerts and stop-loss orders matter more, not less.
Are commodity markets open on weekends and holidays?
No regular sessions on Saturdays and Sundays. Commodity holidays follow the commodity segment's own calendar, which does not fully match the equity holiday list — and on some holidays the commodity market has historically held only an evening session while the morning stayed shut. MCX and NSE Commodities stay open or closed together — just as NSE and BSE do in equities — so one commodity holiday calendar covers both. Check it rather than assuming the equity list applies.
Things to keep in mind
- Session timings are exchange-set and revised periodically; the evening close moves with US daylight saving. Verify current hours before relying on them.
- An open overnight position keeps moving until nearly midnight — size it so that an evening spike doesn't force a panic exit.
- Agri and non-agri contracts run on different clocks; don't carry one segment's habits into the other.
- Holiday sessions on MCX can be partial (evening-only); confirm before planning a trade on an equity holiday.
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