What are the typical trading hours for US stocks, including possible sessions?

• A. 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Eastern, with pre-market and after-hours sessions available.
• B. 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Pacific, no after-hours.
• C. 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Eastern only.
• D. 12:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Eastern with global market overlap.

Answer: (A)

Trading hours for US stocks include both the regular session and extended hours. The standard period when most trading occurs is 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time, during which the major exchanges (like NYSE and Nasdaq) are open and liquidity tends to be highest. Many brokers also offer extended hours: a pre-market window before the regular session and an after-hours window after it. Pre-market can start as early as 4:00 a.m. ET and run up to 9:30 a.m. ET, while after-hours commonly runs from 4:00 p.m. ET to around 8:00 p.m. ET. Exact times vary by broker and venue, and liquidity is usually lower and price moves can be more volatile during these periods.

The other options don’t fit because they either shift to a different time zone, propose a shorter window, or omit the extended sessions altogether.