TSE to Study Extension of Trading Hours

Tokyo, May 18 (Jiji Press)--The Tokyo Stock Exchange will study an extension of trading hours to increase the convenience of investors, as well as its international competitiveness, TSE officials said Tuesday. The TSE is expected to draw up an extension plan by October after having consultations with brokerage firms and others. The exchange will hold talks with concerned parties primarily on the option of prolonging daily sessions from the current 3 p.m. (6 a.m. GMT). A working group that includes officials from brokerage firms and institutional investors is slated to be set up to discuss specific measures and challenges. The TSE's trading hours, currently from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. with a one-hour lunch break, are shorter than those on U.S., European and Singaporean exchanges. There are persistent calls chiefly from retail investors for longer trading hours on the TSE, partly because many Japanese companies release earnings reports and other important information at 3 p.m. or later. Meanwhile, the Osaka Exchange plans to make trading in stock index and commodity futures available on public holidays, excluding Saturdays and Sundays, from September 2022. The TSE will also consider allowing such holiday trading, after its 10-day closure including for national holidays in April-May 2019 caused worries about possible market turmoil following the closure. Furthermore, the TSE will discuss a system to reopen trading promptly after a glitch-triggered suspension, after the exchange was hit by a major system failure last October. END