Bidding adieu to FY24, the Indian stock market has now entered a new financial year today, April 1, with its first trading session commencing for FY25 on Monday.
In FY25, the market opened its first trading session for the month and the dawn of the financial year in the green, with the Sensex at 74,050.04 and the Nifty at 22,480.65. The nifty bank opened at 47,477.75, up by 353.15 per cent.
As the new financial year begins today, with the first trading day on April 1 falling on Monday, it is important to note the trading holidays scheduled for this month.
Stock Market Holiday in April 2024
According to the list of stock market holidays for 2024, this month (April), the stock market will remain closed on two additional days, in addition to the regular weekend holidays on Saturday and Sunday.
The first holiday for the month falls on April 11, 2024, on the occasion of Eid-Ul-Fitr or Ramadan Eid, which falls on Wednesday. Both the BSE and NSE will remain closed on this day, and trading activities will be suspended.
The second holiday is scheduled on April 17 for the celebration of Ram Navami, which falls on Wednesday of the month.
In addition to this, since April has 30 days in the calendar, there are four Saturdays and four Sundays in this month, and the market will be closed as usual on weekends. With the additional two days of holiday this month, the market will be closed for a total of 10 days. Therefore, trading activity for this month will take place in full form for a total of 20 days.
Indian Stock Market timings
The Indian stock market opens on regular trading hours from 9:15 am IST to 3:30 pm IST. In addition to these regular trading hours, there are two other sessions in the stock market: the pre-opening session before 9:15 am IST and the post-closing session after 3:30 pm IST.
Here's the breakdown:
Pre-opening session
In the pre-opening session, the markets open at 9:00 am IST and continue until 9:15 am IST, just before regular/normal trading starts. The pre-opening session is divided into three slots.
Slot 1: From 9:00 AM IST to 9:08 AM IST
This 8-minute trading session allows participants to place orders to buy or sell various shares in the stock market. During this time, traders can also modify or cancel any orders that they may have placed earlier.
Slot 2: From 9:08 AM IST to 9:12 AM IST
This is a 4-minute trading session where participants cannot make new orders, change existing ones, or cancel any orders. This time is used for price matching, where demand and supply are compared to set final prices for shares when the market opens at 9:15 AM.
Slot 2: From 9:12 AM IST to 9:15 AM IST
This 3-minute window acts as a buffer between the pre-opening session and regular trading hours, for a smooth transition. During this time, no orders can be placed, modified, or cancelled.
Post-closing session
The market closes at 3:30 pm, and the post-trading session continues until 4:00 PM IST. The post-trading session is divided into two slots.
Slot 1: From 3:30 PM IST to 3:40 PM IST
During this 10-minutes after regular trading, stock closing prices are calculated by averaging trades from 3:00 PM to 3:30 PM. Indices like Sensex and Nifty calculate their closing prices based on weighted averages of all securities that are listed.
Slot 2: From 3:40 PM IST to 4:00 PM IST
During these 20 minutes, buy and sell orders can still be placed only if there are enough buyers and sellers available in the market.
Did You Know?
Apart from regular trading hours and holidays, in India, there is a special trading session for one hour on Diwali each year, known as the Muhurat trading. This session opens for one hour on Diwali, as it is considered an auspicious day. The time and date for this session vary annually.
