Chicago · Denver · Phoenix · Los Angeles · Honolulu · USD
US futures hours in every US time zone
Chicago is 1 hour behind New York all year round, so the US stock market opens at 8:30 a.m. your time and the CME week starts Sunday 5:00 p.m. Below: every CME moment that matters, in Chicago time; the weeks the gap changes; who regulates a broker for US residents; how futures gains are taxed; and how to test an idea before you put money behind it.
- Gap to New York
- −1 h
- all year round
- US stock market opens
- 8:30 a.m.
- Chicago time
- CME week opens
- 5:00 p.m.
- Sunday
- Gap changes
- Never
- Same gap all year
CME hours in your time
Each column is a stretch of the next twelve months with one gap to New York, read from the same time-zone database your phone uses. Exchange holidays shorten some sessions; the market calendar lists them.
| Moment | New YorkEastern time | Chicago−1 h, all year round | Denver−2 h, all year round | Phoenix−3 h, 29 Oct – 31 Oct 2026, 14 Mar – 28 Oct 2027 | Phoenix−2 h, 1 Nov 2026 – 13 Mar 2027 | Los Angeles−3 h, all year round | Honolulu−6 h, 29 Oct – 31 Oct 2026, 14 Mar – 28 Oct 2027 | Honolulu−5 h, 1 Nov 2026 – 13 Mar 2027 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CME Globex week opens | Sunday6:00 p.m. | Sunday5:00 p.m. | Sunday4:00 p.m. | Sunday3:00 p.m. | Sunday4:00 p.m. | Sunday3:00 p.m. | Sundaynoon | Sunday1:00 p.m. |
| US economic dataCPI, the jobs report, GDP, retail sales | 8:30 a.m. | 7:30 a.m. | 6:30 a.m. | 5:30 a.m. | 6:30 a.m. | 5:30 a.m. | 2:30 a.m. | 3:30 a.m. |
| US stock market opensThe index futures' busiest hours begin | 9:30 a.m. | 8:30 a.m. | 7:30 a.m. | 6:30 a.m. | 7:30 a.m. | 6:30 a.m. | 3:30 a.m. | 4:30 a.m. |
| First half-hour closesThe screener's built-in ideas take their first reading here | 10:00 a.m. | 9:00 a.m. | 8:00 a.m. | 7:00 a.m. | 8:00 a.m. | 7:00 a.m. | 4:00 a.m. | 5:00 a.m. |
| EIA energy reportsCrude stocks on Wednesday, gas storage on Thursday | 10:30 a.m. | 9:30 a.m. | 8:30 a.m. | 7:30 a.m. | 8:30 a.m. | 7:30 a.m. | 4:30 a.m. | 5:30 a.m. |
| Gold and silver settle | 1:30 p.m. | 12:30 p.m. | 11:30 a.m. | 10:30 a.m. | 11:30 a.m. | 10:30 a.m. | 7:30 a.m. | 8:30 a.m. |
| Fed decision (FOMC days)Eight scheduled meetings a year | 2:00 p.m. | 1:00 p.m. | noon | 11:00 a.m. | noon | 11:00 a.m. | 8:00 a.m. | 9:00 a.m. |
| Crude oil and natural gas settle | 2:30 p.m. | 1:30 p.m. | 12:30 p.m. | 11:30 a.m. | 12:30 p.m. | 11:30 a.m. | 8:30 a.m. | 9:30 a.m. |
| US stock market closesIndex futures settle; the regular session ends | 4:00 p.m. | 3:00 p.m. | 2:00 p.m. | 1:00 p.m. | 2:00 p.m. | 1:00 p.m. | 10:00 a.m. | 11:00 a.m. |
| Daily halt beginsTrading resumes an hour later | 5:00 p.m. | 4:00 p.m. | 3:00 p.m. | 2:00 p.m. | 3:00 p.m. | 2:00 p.m. | 11:00 a.m. | noon |
| CME Globex week closes | Friday5:00 p.m. | Friday4:00 p.m. | Friday3:00 p.m. | Friday2:00 p.m. | Friday3:00 p.m. | Friday2:00 p.m. | Friday11:00 a.m. | Fridaynoon |
A broker with CME access
Retail traders open futures accounts with a futures commission merchant registered with the CFTC and a member of the NFA, directly or through an introducing broker.
Regulator: CFTC and NFA. Source, checked October 12, 2026.
How futures gains are taxed
Regulated exchange-traded futures are Section 1256 contracts: marked to market at the end of the year, with the net gain or loss treated as 60% long-term and 40% short-term capital gain whatever the holding period, and reported on Form 6781.
General information, not tax advice; rules turn on your own circumstances. IRS, Form 6781, checked October 12, 2026.
Testing an idea from the US
Everything runs in a browser and is priced in US dollars; your card issuer does the conversion. A screen reads the US tape, so a trader in Chicago gets the same tick history, the same gates and the same verdict as one in Chicago. A screen reads the regular session, 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET (8:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. in Chicago), or, on the markets with 24-hour data, the whole Globex session.
- The screenerFree · Pro $29/mo · Pro Max $59/moDescribe an idea in plain English and screen it against tick data. One screen, verdict only free; 10 screens a month on Pro.
- Sierra Chart studies2 free · from $9.99Indicators for your own Sierra Chart charts: free session levels and market internals, smart money concepts, and supply and demand zones.
Trading from the US: questions
- What time do US futures open in Chicago?
- CME Globex opens for the week at 6:00 p.m. ET on Sunday, which is Sunday 5:00 p.m. in Chicago all year round. From then it trades around the clock until Friday, with a one-hour halt every weekday from 5:00 p.m. ET (4:00 p.m. in Chicago).
- What time does the US stock market open in Chicago time?
- The New York cash session opens at 9:30 a.m. ET, 8:30 a.m. in Chicago all year round, and closes at 4:00 p.m. ET (3:00 p.m.). The index futures trade before and after it, but their heaviest volume sits inside it. Most US economic data lands an hour earlier, at 8:30 a.m. ET (7:30 a.m.).
- How are futures gains taxed in the US?
- Regulated exchange-traded futures are Section 1256 contracts: marked to market at the end of the year, with the net gain or loss treated as 60% long-term and 40% short-term capital gain whatever the holding period, and reported on Form 6781. This is general information, not tax advice.
- Can I use Waypoint from the US?
- Yes. The screener and the calculators run in a browser, and everything is priced in US dollars.A screen tests a trading idea against US futures tick history and returns a verdict; it places no trades, and nothing on the site is advice to trade. To trade, the usual route: retail traders open futures accounts with a futures commission merchant registered with the CFTC and a member of the NFA, directly or through an introducing broker.
Screen an idea from Chicago
Write the idea in plain English after the close, 3:00 p.m. your time, and have the verdict before the next session opens. Real per-fill costs, a drift null and a walk-forward, written down before the run.