KRX opens independently run after-hours trading session for derivatives

The view of the Korea Exchange's (KRX) Seoul office in financial district of Yeouido / Courtesy of KRX

The Korea Exchange (KRX) opened an after-hours trading session for derivatives, Monday, in a bid to enhance its global competitiveness and improve convenience for investors.

The country’s sole bourse operator said the session runs from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m., after the regular session that runs from 8:45 a.m. to 3:45 p.m.

The combined 19-hour trading session is part of the KRX’s broader plan for around-the-clock operations in selling and buying all tradable financial assets, such as stocks, bonds and derivatives.

The KRX’s new after-hours trading session marks a departure from the one offered in partnership with Eurex, a leading European derivatives exchange.

The derivatives linked the benchmark KOSPI and secondary bourse Kosdaq were traded at Eurex from 6 p.m. to 5 a.m., before the Eurex-based trading service ended last Thursday.

“With the new system in place, investors will be able to engage in after-hours trading more easily than before,” the KRX said.

It said its independent trading service is more simplified than the Eurex-based one.

The KRX underlined its plan to expand its offerings in derivatives, noting a total of 10 products, up from five, are available during its after-hours trading session.

The 10 are KOSPI 200 Futures, Mini KOSPI 200 Futures, KOSDAQ 150 Futures, KOSPI 200 Options, Mini KOSPI 200 Options, KOSPI 200 Weekly Options, KOSDAQ 150 Options, U.S. Dollar Futures, 3-Year Treasury Bond Futures and 10-Year Treasury Bond Futures.

The KRX said its after-hours trading session is noteworthy for overlapping with operation hours of the U.S. stock market. “We believe it will help investors to manage relevant risks more efficiently," it said.