Trading hours (in Korea time)
The US regular session runs 09:30–16:00 New York time. Because the US has daylight saving time (second Sunday of March to first Sunday of November), there are two schedules in Korea time.
| Event | During US daylight saving | Rest of the year |
|---|---|---|
| Regular session | 22:30 – 05:00 next day | 23:30 – 06:00 next day |
| Economic data (08:30 ET) | 21:30 | 22:30 |
| FOMC rate decision (14:00 ET) | 03:00 next day | 04:00 next day |
You can also trade in the pre-market and after-hours sessions, and some Korean brokers even offer US stock trading during the Korean daytime. Outside the regular session trading is thin and prices can jump, and the available hours differ by broker.
How it differs from Korean stocks
- Tickers: stocks are identified by letter codes (Apple AAPL, NVIDIA NVDA). Korean stocks use six-digit numeric codes.
- No daily price limits: a stock can move tens of percent in a day. Instead, trading in a stock pauses briefly if it moves too much in a short time (LULD), and circuit breakers halt the whole market after a big fall.
- Settlement: one trading day later (T+1); Korea is T+2.
- Fractional shares: many brokers let you buy even expensive stocks by amount, like 0.1 share.
- Chart colors: US charts usually show up in green and down in red — the opposite of Korean charts.
The exchange rate is part of your return
US stocks are bought and sold in dollars, so your return in won reflects both the price change and the exchange rate change.
Return in won = (1 + return in dollars) × (1 + change in exchange rate) − 1
For example, if the stock rose 10% but the KRW/USD rate fell 5%, your return in won is about 4.5% (1.10 × 0.95 − 1). Even if the stock price is unchanged, a higher exchange rate raises your value in won. Remember that converting won to dollars and back costs you twice.
Taxes and costs (Korean residents)
- Commission: usually higher than for Korean stocks (online example 0.25%). There is no Korean transaction tax on US stocks, but a very small US regulatory fee applies when you sell.
- Capital gains tax: add up all realized gains on foreign stocks for the year (January–December), subtract ₩2.5 million and file and pay 22% (including local income tax) yourself the following May. Losses and gains across stocks are netted. Foreign stock tax calculator
- Dividends: 15% is withheld in the US. That is above the Korean dividend tax rate, so usually nothing more is due in Korea — but if interest and dividends exceed ₩20 million a year, comprehensive financial income taxation applies. Dividend calculator