Pre-market, Intraday Trading and the Closing Call Auction

Orders from 8:30, trading from 9:00

From 8:30 to 9:00 orders are collected without trading, and at 9:00 a call auction matches them all at once to set the opening price. 13:25–13:30 is the closing auction, and the market closes at 13:30.

Intraday trade-by-trade matching

9:00–13:25 is trade-by-trade matching: each order is matched against the other side as soon as it arrives. In 2020 Taiwan switched from a call auction every few seconds to today's trade-by-trade matching.

Trading continues after the close

14:00–14:30 is after-hours fixed-price trading, where everything trades at the closing price. Odd lots smaller than one lot have their own intraday odd-lot trading session (9:00–13:30) and an after-hours odd-lot session, both matched in batches.

Key takeaways

• From 8:30 to 9:00 orders are collected without trading, and at 9:00 a call auction sets the opening price.
• 9:00–13:25 is intraday trade-by-trade matching: each order is matched against the other side as soon as it arrives (switched from call auctions to trade-by-trade matching in 2020).
• 13:25–13:30 is the closing call auction, which sets the closing price; in after-hours fixed-price trading from 14:00 to 14:30 everything trades at the closing price.
• Odd lots smaller than one lot have their own intraday odd-lot session (9:00–13:30) and an after-hours odd-lot session, matched in batches at intervals rather than one by one.

Try it yourself

You can do these exercises in this lesson's interactive simulation:

1. Press ▶ and stop at 8:45: when would an order placed now fill?
2. Drag to 13:27: which session is this? Can you still cancel? Where does the closing price come from?
3. Drag to 14:10: at what price can you trade now?
4. Set “My time zone” to New York and toggle summer and winter: what time does Taiwan open in New York?

Quiz and explanations

1. How is the Taiwan closing price set?

Answer: The price matched in the 13:25–13:30 closing call auction.From 13:25 trade-by-trade matching stops and a 5-minute closing call auction matches orders at a single price to set the close.

2. You place an order for after-hours fixed-price trading at 14:10. What price will it trade at?

Answer: That day's closing price.After-hours fixed-price trading matches everything at the day's closing price; it's only a question of whether your order gets filled, and you can't set the price.

3. You place a buy order at 8:45. What happens?

Answer: It queues and is matched together with everything else in the 9:00 opening call auction.8:30–9:00 is pre-market order entry: orders are collected without trading, and a call auction at 9:00 sets the opening price.

Terms in this lesson

• after-hours fixed-price trading (After-Hours Fixed-Price Trading): Taiwan accepts orders from 14:00 to 14:30 after the close and matches them all at that day's closing price, for people who just want the closing price without chasing.
• call auction (Call Auction): Orders are collected for a while without trading, then all matched at once at a single price, often used at the open and close.
• closing auction (Closing Auction): For a few minutes before the close, orders are collected without trading, then matched all at once at a single price, which becomes the closing price.
• continuous trading (Continuous Trading): Normal trading after the open: each new order is matched against the order book as soon as it arrives, so the price changes with every trade.
• intraday odd-lot trading (Intraday Odd-Lot Trading): On Taiwan trading days you can trade odd lots smaller than one lot from 9:00 to 13:30; they don't trade one by one but are matched in batches at intervals.