when do oil markets open

Oil markets trade almost 24 hours a day during the work week, but they “open” for the new week on Sunday evening in major financial time zones.

Core opening times

For the main crude oil benchmarks, you can use these rough guides:

• WTI crude (NYMEX futures, electronic) : Opens for the new week around Sunday 6:00 p.m. U.S. Eastern Time and then trades nearly 24 hours a day until Friday afternoon, with a short daily maintenance pause.

• Brent crude (ICE Futures Europe, electronic) : Also begins trading Sunday evening (around 11:00 p.m. UK time) and runs nearly continuously Monday–Friday, with brief daily breaks depending on your broker/platform.

Because of these near‑24‑hour electronic sessions, many retail brokers list oil as tradable:

• From Sunday evening (around 11:00 p.m. UK time) straight through to Friday evening (around 10:00 p.m. UK time) for spot oil contracts, with a 1‑hour daily break.

Practical takeaway

• If you are in the U.S., expect oil markets to “open” for the new week on Sunday around 6 p.m. Eastern and to stay open almost continuously until Friday afternoon.
• If you use a specific broker or app, always check its contract specifications or “trading hours” page, because exact open/close minutes and daily pauses can differ by platform and by product (spot vs futures vs options).