Montréal Exchange (MX) has extended its trading hours by six hours to coincide with market openings in Hong Kong and Singapore.
Canada’s derivatives exchange now opens at 8:00 p.m. ET — instead of at 2:00 a.m. — and closes at 4:30 p.m. ET, meaning MX will allow trading for 20.5 hours (plus 30 minutes for the pre-open).
The exchange’s plans to extend trading hours to match Asian markets were pushed back from May 30 to Sept. 19, in order to “provide sufficient time” for industry members to conduct technological and operational tests.
Luc Fortin, president and CEO of MX, called the extended trading hours a “new phase” of the exchange’s “globalization strategy.”
“In keeping with the trend of global capital flows, pension funds in Asia have significantly increased their international exposure and we are encouraged by the strong engagement we have seen from investors and participants in the region to date,” Fortin said.
MX first launched its extended trading hours initiative in 2018, when it allowed its trading hours to open at 7 a.m. London time (2 a.m. Montreal time).