NAS100 hours in South African time
NAS100 is the usual CFD name for the Nasdaq 100 index. Its price follows US stocks, so its busiest hours follow New York time. South Africa stays on South Africa Standard Time (UTC+2) all year, but New York moves its clocks in March and November. The same New York hour therefore lands one hour later in South Africa for roughly four months of the year.
The US cash market runs from 09:30 to 16:00 New York time, which is 15:30 to 22:00 in South Africa during US daylight saving time and 16:30 to 23:00 the rest of the year. Index futures, which most CFD prices follow, trade almost around the clock on weekdays with a one-hour pause at 17:00 New York time (23:00 or 00:00 South African time), and reopen on Sunday at 18:00 New York time (00:00 Monday in South Africa during US daylight time, 01:00 the rest of the year). Your broker's own NAS100 schedule can differ, so read its contract specifications.
Which hours does the Nasdaq 100 move most?
We measured the median range (high minus low, as a percentage of price) of every one-hour Nasdaq 100 futures bar from June 2024 to October 2026, Monday to Friday: about 13,000 hours. Each row below is the hour that starts at the time shown. A bigger range means bigger moves in both directions. It measures activity, not direction.
| New York hour starts | South Africa, Mar–Nov (US daylight time) | South Africa, rest of year | Median hourly range | What happens |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 03:00 | 09:00 | 10:00 | 0.25% | European morning, a small early bump |
| 08:00 | 14:00 | 15:00 | 0.30% | US economic data at 08:30 and pre-market trading |
| 09:00 | 15:00 | 16:00 | 0.62% | US stock market opens at 09:30: busiest hour |
| 10:00 | 16:00 | 17:00 | 0.60% | First full hour of US trading |
| 11:00 | 17:00 | 18:00 | 0.45% | Activity starts to fade |
| 12:00 | 18:00 | 19:00 | 0.37% | US lunchtime |
| 15:00 | 21:00 | 22:00 | 0.36% | Last hour of the US cash session, a second bump |
| 16:00 | 22:00 | 23:00 | 0.20% | After the US close |
| 17:00 | 23:00 | 00:00 | closed | Daily pause of the futures market |
| 00:00 | 06:00 | 07:00 | 0.13% | Quietest hour in our data |
How to use this, and what not to read into it
- The 09:00 and 10:00 New York hours, which straddle the US open, are the busiest in our data: a median range near 0.6%, against 0.1% to 0.45% for most other hours. Expect fast price changes and wider spreads.
- Fast markets make losses larger and stop-losses less reliable, since a price can jump past your level. Bigger moves are a risk as much as an opportunity.
- Check the date of the clock change: if you set alerts in South African time, they move by one hour in March and November. Our South Africa guide and market hours page show the current times.
- This is a description of past activity, not a trading signal. Past ranges do not predict future direction. To see how we judge strategies, read how we test.
Same method, other markets
The hourly file also covers gold, the Dow Jones and the S&P 500, and is open for anyone to download: hourly-volatility.json. For a worked example in another time zone, see our gold hours for Nigeria.