When gold is open, and when it is closed
Spot XAU/USD trades roughly 24 hours a day, five days a week, from the Sunday evening open to the Friday evening close around the end of the New York session. It is closed over the weekend. Exact local times depend on your timezone and your broker, and there is usually a short daily pause at the broker rollover. If your clock is set to UK time, gold runs from Sunday night through to Friday night with only that brief daily break. So a flat chart on Saturday is the market being shut, not a fault.
The Sunday open and weekend gaps
The market reopens on Sunday evening, and the first hour can be thin and choppy as liquidity returns. If something happened over the weekend, price can gap away from the Friday close rather than continuing smoothly. That is why the Sunday open deserves care, and why the Friday close is worth reading before the weekend. Treat the first hour back as information gathering, not a place to force a trade.
The sessions that actually move gold
Not all open hours are equal. The Asian session is usually quieter and more range-bound, the London session tends to bring expansion, and the New York session carries the US data and the volume. The biggest moves often land in the London and New York overlap. If you only watch part of the day, watch London and New York. For the quiet hours, see the Asian session notes, and for timing overall, the guide on the best time to trade XAUUSD.
Why the chart can look flat even on a weekday
Even when the market is open, there are low-liquidity windows where price barely moves: late in the New York session, the gap before Asia comes in, and around public holidays. A slow chart in those windows is normal, not a data problem. It also pays to know the calendar of the week, since some days trade better than others and month-end flows can distort the tape. If nothing is moving, sometimes the right read is simply that it is not the time to trade.
Watch the calendar, not just the clock
Scheduled US data can move gold hard regardless of the session, so the clock is only half the picture. Keep an eye on CPI, NFP and FOMC using the built-in economic calendar, and plan around them as covered in trading gold around news. The market hours tell you when the chart is live, the calendar tells you when it is likely to come alive. Nothing here is financial advice.
FAQ
Is the gold market open right now?
On weekdays, yes, gold trades roughly 24 hours from the Sunday evening open to the Friday evening close, with a short daily rollover pause. It is closed over the weekend. Your exact local open and close depend on your timezone and broker.
Why is my XAUUSD live chart not moving?
Usually because it is the weekend, a low-liquidity window such as late New York or pre-Asia, or a quiet lull between data. That is normal market behaviour, not a fault with the chart or the feed.
What time does gold open on Sunday?
Gold reopens on Sunday evening, around the start of the New York trading week. The first hour is often thin, and price can gap from the Friday close if news broke over the weekend.
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