Overlap — 16:30 – 19:30
London and New York trading at the same time: usually the largest volume of the day, the tightest spreads, and most US releases. The meter shows which currency is carrying the move while it runs.
Every time on this page is computed as you load it, from each market's own clock converted to Dubai time — not read off a fixed table. That is the difference that makes most published session tables wrong for half the year: London and New York change clocks, and yours does not.
The market is open. It closes Saturday at 01:00 Dubai time — in 9h 43m. Your local time is now 15:16.
Session open: London.
An open market is not an invitation, and a high-liquidity hour is not a signal — measurement, not advice. These figures describe market conditions; what you do with them is your decision alone.
| Session | Dubai time | Most active currencies |
|---|---|---|
| Asian (Tokyo) | 04:00 – 12:00 | JPY · AUD · NZD |
| London open now | 11:00 – 19:30 | EUR · GBP · CHF |
| New York | 16:30 – 00:00 | USD · CAD |
| Overlap — deepest liquidity | 16:30 – 19:30 | All |
| Dead zone | 00:00 – 04:00 | — |
The UAE does not observe daylight saving time — the clock stays on UTC+4 all year. London and New York do shift, so your session times move by an hour twice a year. You are one hour ahead of Riyadh, so every window below falls an hour later than its Saudi equivalent.
London and New York trading at the same time: usually the largest volume of the day, the tightest spreads, and most US releases. The meter shows which currency is carrying the move while it runs.
Between the New York close and the Tokyo open. Volume falls and spreads usually widen, so the cost of entering is higher. That is a description of conditions, not a rule about them.
Since January 2022 the federal government and schools have rested Friday afternoon, Saturday and Sunday, and the Sharjah government works a four-day week. The labour law left private employers free to choose, so practice varies by company. What matters for trading: the forex week opens on Sunday evening, which may fall on your weekend rather than your working day — the opposite of Saudi Arabia.
The UAE has more than one regulator, and a licence from one is not a licence from another. The federal authority sits at uaecma.gov.ae (the former Securities and Commodities Authority redirects there). The DFSA regulates firms inside the Dubai International Financial Centre, and the FSRA those inside Abu Dhabi Global Market. The Central Bank applies depending on the activity. Each keeps a separate public register — search the company name and licence number in the one that covers what you are being offered, before you deposit anything.
We are a measurement tool — not a broker, not a financial adviser, not a legal authority. We do not recommend brokers and take no commission from any. General information, not legal advice. More on the registers and how to search them.
The trading week opens on Monday at 01:00 Dubai time, as the Asian session starts in Wellington and Sydney ahead of Tokyo. The time is computed from the New York week rather than written down, so it shifts by an hour when US daylight saving changes while your own clock stays put.
It closes on Saturday at 01:00 Dubai time, with the New York session. Between the close and the next open most retail brokers do not offer trading, and the exact hours vary by broker. The first hour back is usually the thinnest of the week: spreads are wider and price gaps are common.
London runs 11:00 – 19:30 Dubai time today. Session hours are a market convention rather than a central exchange's opening bell. London is usually the deepest of the three in euro, sterling and Swiss franc pairs.
New York runs 16:30 – 00:00 Dubai time today, and carries most US economic releases — the ones that move the dollar and the Canadian dollar.
Liquidity is usually deepest while London and New York overlap, which today falls between 16:30 – 19:30 Dubai time. Spreads are typically tighter in that window and ranges wider, though the detail varies by pair, by news and by broker. The quietest stretch is the dead zone between the New York close and the Tokyo open, 00:00 – 04:00 Dubai time. This describes market conditions; it is not advice on when to enter or exit.
The Asian (Tokyo) session runs 04:00 – 12:00 Dubai time. It is the most active for the yen, Australian and New Zealand dollars, and the quietest of the three for European pairs.
Regulation is a question for a licensing authority, not an opinion: the federal SCA/CMA, DFSA, FSRA, and the Central Bank depending on the activity. The practical rule is to search the company name and licence number in the regulator's own public register before depositing anything, rather than trusting a licence badge printed on a broker's website. This is general information, not legal advice.