Session Times in WAT, Season by Season
By the IANA time zone database, Lagos has kept UTC+1 since September 1919, so every move in these tables comes from London, New York or Sydney changing their clocks. In July London's session reads the same on both clocks.
A Week in July
The UK and the US on summer time, Sydney on standard time.
| Session, by its own clock | In WAT |
|---|---|
| Sydney08:00 to 17:00 (UTC+10) | 23:00 (-1) to 08:00 |
| Tokyo08:00 to 17:00 (UTC+9) | 00:00 to 09:00 |
| London08:00 to 17:00 (UTC+1) | 08:00 to 17:00 |
| New York08:00 to 17:00 (UTC-4) | 13:00 to 22:00 |
| CME Globex17:00 to 16:00 the next day, break 16:00 to 17:00 (UTC-5) | Break 22:00 to 23:00, open the other 23 hours |
| London + New York13:00 to 17:00 in London | 13:00 to 17:00 (4 h) |
A Week in January
The UK and the US on standard time, Sydney on summer time.
| Session, by its own clock | In WAT |
|---|---|
| Sydney08:00 to 17:00 (UTC+11) | 22:00 (-1) to 07:00 |
| Tokyo08:00 to 17:00 (UTC+9) | 00:00 to 09:00 |
| London08:00 to 17:00 (UTC) | 09:00 to 18:00 |
| New York08:00 to 17:00 (UTC-5) | 14:00 to 23:00 |
| CME Globex17:00 to 16:00 the next day, break 16:00 to 17:00 (UTC-6) | Break 23:00 to 00:00, open the other 23 hours |
| London + New York13:00 to 17:00 in London | 14:00 to 18:00 (4 h) |
An Out-of-Step Week
The US on summer time, the UK still or already on standard time, Sydney on summer time.
| Session, by its own clock | In WAT |
|---|---|
| Sydney08:00 to 17:00 (UTC+11) | 22:00 (-1) to 07:00 |
| Tokyo08:00 to 17:00 (UTC+9) | 00:00 to 09:00 |
| London08:00 to 17:00 (UTC) | 09:00 to 18:00 |
| New York08:00 to 17:00 (UTC-4) | 13:00 to 22:00 |
| CME Globex17:00 to 16:00 the next day, break 16:00 to 17:00 (UTC-5) | Break 22:00 to 23:00, open the other 23 hours |
| London + New York12:00 to 17:00 in London | 13:00 to 18:00 (5 h) |
(-1) is the day before the city's own date, (+1) the day after. The shaded box is the London and New York overlap.
When the Hours Shift in WAT
London and New York change their clocks on different Sundays, and Nigeria on none. From this page's date, about a year ahead:
25 October to 1 November 2026
Out of step: the US on summer time, the UK on standard time
London 09:00–18:00New York 13:00–22:00Both open 13:00–18:00 · 5 h
1 November 2026 to 14 March 2027
The UK and the US on standard time
London 09:00–18:00New York 14:00–23:00Both open 14:00–18:00 · 4 h
14 to 28 March 2027
Out of step: the US on summer time, the UK on standard time
London 09:00–18:00New York 13:00–22:00Both open 13:00–18:00 · 5 h
28 March to 31 October 2027
The UK and the US on summer time
London 08:00–17:00New York 13:00–22:00Both open 13:00–17:00 · 4 h
31 October to 7 November 2027
Out of step: the US on summer time, the UK on standard time
London 09:00–18:00New York 13:00–22:00Both open 13:00–18:00 · 5 h
7 November 2027 to 12 March 2028
The UK and the US on standard time
London 09:00–18:00New York 14:00–23:00Both open 14:00–18:00 · 4 h
In the out-of-step weeks, 25 October to 1 November 2026 and 14 to 28 March 2027, London is on its winter hours, 09:00 to 18:00 WAT, and New York on its summer hours, 13:00 to 22:00. They overlap 5 h, 13:00 to 18:00 WAT, an hour longer than usual.
The Weekly Open and Close in WAT
Nigeria sees the week open on Sunday night: 22:00 WAT while New York is on summer time and 23:00 in its winter, 17:00 New York time. It closes on Friday at 22:00 or 23:00 WAT.
| New York on summer time | New York on standard time | |
|---|---|---|
| Currency market opens | Sunday 22:00 | Sunday 23:00 |
| Currency market closes | Friday 22:00 | Friday 23:00 |
| CME Globex opens | Sunday 23:00 | Monday 00:00 |
| CME Globex closes | Friday 22:00 | Friday 23:00 |
The open and close are a convention many MetaTrader servers follow, not an official time: the currency market has no central exchange. Your broker's hours are the ones that count for your orders.
Broker Server Time in WAT
MetaTrader shows your broker's server time, not WAT. Many servers run at UTC+2, and at UTC+3 while New York is on summer time, so their midnight is 17:00 in New York all year: late evening in Nigeria.
While New York Is on Summer Time
Server 00:00 = 22:00 WAT
WAT is 2 h behind the server (UTC+3).
| Server | WAT | |
|---|---|---|
| Daily candle closes | 00:00 | 22:00 |
| London opens | 10:00 | 08:00 |
| New York opens | 15:00 | 13:00 |
While New York Is on Standard Time
Server 00:00 = 23:00 WAT
WAT is 1 h behind the server (UTC+2).
| Server | WAT | |
|---|---|---|
| Daily candle closes | 00:00 | 23:00 |
| London opens | 10:00 | 09:00 |
| New York opens | 15:00 | 14:00 |
Not every broker does this: some servers run on UTC or on their own city's time. Compare the Market Watch clock with WAT once and note the gap.
In MetaTrader, the panel minds the hours. Both editions, Stopline Trade Manager and Stopline Trade Manager EZ, have a session check that keeps orders out of a symbol's closed trading hours, and the full edition's Trade Time Manager opens or closes at a set time, for example before the news or the weekend.
Questions
What Time Does the London Session Open in Nigeria?
At 08:00 WAT while the UK is on summer time, from the last Sunday of March to the last Sunday of October, and at 09:00 WAT the rest of the year. It closes at 17:00 or 18:00.
What Time Does the New York Session Open in Lagos?
At 13:00 WAT while the US is on summer time and 14:00 in the US winter; it closes at 22:00 or 23:00. London and New York are open together 13:00 to 17:00 WAT, or 14:00 to 18:00 in winter: the afternoon in Nigeria.
Is Nigeria on the Same Time as London?
Only while the UK is on summer time, from the last Sunday of March to the last Sunday of October: London is then UTC+1, like WAT. The rest of the year London is on UTC and Nigeria is an hour ahead. By the IANA time zone database, Lagos has kept UTC+1 since September 1919.
What Time Does the Market Close on Friday in Nigeria?
At 22:00 WAT on Friday while New York is on summer time and 23:00 in its winter: the week closes at 17:00 New York time. It opens again at 22:00 or 23:00 WAT on Sunday.
Each city's session is 08:00 to 17:00 by its own clock and the week runs from Sunday 17:00 to Friday 17:00 New York time, as on the Trading Sessions page. Offsets and clock changes come from the IANA time zone database, read through your browser. CME Globex hours from CME Group's contract specifications for Euro FX, Gold and E-mini S&P 500 futures, read 20 October 2026; holiday hours differ.