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TradingView time zone settings for UK and Dubai traders: sessions, daily candles and the week the clocks disagree

SystemlySystemly Team
·18 October 2026
TradingView time zone settings for UK and Dubai traders: sessions, daily candles and the week the clocks disagree

On Wednesday 28 October 2026 the US Federal Reserve will publish its decision at 18:00 in London. For most of the year it lands at 19:00. A UK trader who has set a reminder from memory will be an hour late, and a trader in Dubai, where it lands at 22:00 as it has all summer, will be fine.

That one hour is the whole subject of this guide. The UK, the US and the UAE run three different clock rules, and TradingView's settings can hide that or expose it depending on how you set them.

The short answer: set TradingView's chart time zone to your own city so the labels match your watch, but know that it does not move any candles. Build session boxes with named zones such as "America/New_York", never fixed offsets such as "GMT-4". And check whose clock ends your daily candle before you trust "yesterday's high".

Quick answer: TradingView's time zone setting only relabels the time axis; it does not move candles or change where the daily candle closes. UK traders should pick London, and Dubai traders a UTC+4 zone, then draw sessions with named zones such as America/New_York so they follow daylight saving. Watch the out-of-sync week from 25 to 31 October 2026, when US data lands at 12:30 UK instead of 13:30, while Dubai stays at 16:30. TradingView is the better tool if you want full control over every session and zone. Systemly is the simpler tool if you want sessions drawn in your local time automatically, with a plan on the same chart.

Systemly publishes this comparison. We have tried to be fair, and every TradingView fact below is sourced and dated 13 October 2026.

Why time zones trip up UK and Dubai traders

Three clock rules run underneath every forex chart.

  • The UK uses GMT in winter and BST (UTC+1) in summer. In 2026 the clocks went forward on 29 March and go back on 25 October (GOV.UK).
  • New York uses EST (UTC-5) and EDT (UTC-4). In 2026 summer time began on 8 March and ends on 1 November (timeanddate.com, US).
  • Dubai stays on Gulf Standard Time, UTC+4, all year, with no daylight saving (timeanddate.com, Dubai).

Because the UK and US change on different dates, there are weeks when London and New York are four hours apart instead of five. The next one runs from 25 to 31 October 2026, and the one after that from 14 to 27 March 2027. IG's UK help pages confirm that in the October window "US and Canadian markets open one hour earlier in UK time" (IG seasonal trading hours).

A Dubai trader's clock never moves, so every shift comes from outside: London events move on the UK date, New York events on the US date. Our search research found "new york session forex time in dubai" and "forex market open time uae" among UAE searches, and Google's UK autocomplete for "tradingview time zone" includes "tradingview time zone mobile" and "tradingview app time zone".

What TradingView's time zone setting does, and what it does not do

The common mistake is to think that switching TradingView to your local time zone changes the chart. The consequence is a trader who switches from New York to London, sees the same daily candles, and assumes either the setting is broken or the candles must already be London candles. Think of it like changing the language on a train timetable. The departure times are printed in a different format, but the trains still leave when they always did.

A third-party TradingView guide puts it plainly: changing the chart time zone "only changes the time labels on the horizontal axis" and "does not shift candles". The "Exchange" option syncs the chart to the exchange's own hours (FriendOfTheTrend guide).

So the setting is cosmetic, and that is useful. You want the axis to read in your clock so that a 13:30 UK data release appears at 13:30 on the chart. But a daily candle still begins and ends where the data feed says it does.

Step by step: setting up TradingView for UK time or Dubai time

TradingView moves its menus between versions and between web and app, so we describe what to set rather than exact clicks.

  1. Set the chart time zone to your clock. Choose London if you are in the UK. In Dubai, choose a zone at UTC+4. Check the result by hovering over the latest candle and comparing it with your phone's clock.
  2. Repeat the check on the app. Searches such as "tradingview app time zone" suggest that many people struggle with the setting on their phone. After changing the setting, confirm that the time axis on your phone shows your local time.
  3. Build session boxes with named zones. TradingView's session tool accepts GMT offsets or IANA zone names. A fixed "GMT-4" matches New York only while New York is on summer time, whereas "America/New_York" stays aligned all year. If you leave the zone field empty, the exchange's own zone is used (TradingView support on trading sessions). Use "America/New_York" for New York, "Europe/London" for London and "Asia/Tokyo" for Tokyo.
  4. Find out where your feed ends the day. Compare the last few daily candles on your TradingView symbol with your broker's platform. If the highs and lows disagree by a candle's worth, you are looking at two different day boundaries, not a broken chart.
  5. Put the out-of-sync dates in your diary. From 25 to 31 October 2026, UK traders should expect US events an hour early. From 1 November, Dubai traders should expect them an hour late.

Worked example: the session box that is an hour out from 1 November

Here is what happens if you draw a New York session box with a fixed offset instead of a named zone.

Say you set the box to 08:00 to 17:00 at "GMT-4". In the summer that is correct. New York is on EDT (UTC-4), so 08:00 New York is 12:00 UTC, which is 13:00 UK on BST and 16:00 Dubai.

On 1 November 2026 New York moves to EST (UTC-5). The real New York open is now 08:00 EST, which is 13:00 UTC: 13:00 UK on GMT and 17:00 Dubai. Your fixed box still starts at 08:00 UTC-4, which is 12:00 UTC: 12:00 UK and 16:00 Dubai.

So from 1 November the box opens one hour too early, every day, until March. Anything you measure inside it, such as the session's high and low, is measured over the wrong hour. The named zone "America/New_York" avoids this because it carries New York's daylight-saving rule with it.

The trading day in three seasons, in UK and Dubai time

These times use the BabyPips convention: Sydney 07:00 to 16:00, Tokyo 09:00 to 18:00, and London and New York 08:00 to 17:00, each in local time (BabyPips sessions guide). Forex has no central exchange, so other sources differ by an hour here and there. US data times come from the BLS schedules and the FOMC statement time from the Fed's long-standing 14:00 New York convention.

  • Sydney: Summer (to 24 Oct 2026): UK / Dubai: 21:00 to 06:00 / 00:00 to 09:00; Out-of-sync (25 to 31 Oct 2026): UK / Dubai: 20:00 to 05:00 / 00:00 to 09:00; Winter (1 Nov 2026 to 13 Mar 2027): UK / Dubai: 20:00 to 05:00 / 00:00 to 09:00
  • Tokyo: Summer (to 24 Oct 2026): UK / Dubai: 01:00 to 10:00 / 04:00 to 13:00; Out-of-sync (25 to 31 Oct 2026): UK / Dubai: 00:00 to 09:00 / 04:00 to 13:00; Winter (1 Nov 2026 to 13 Mar 2027): UK / Dubai: 00:00 to 09:00 / 04:00 to 13:00
  • London: Summer (to 24 Oct 2026): UK / Dubai: 08:00 to 17:00 / 11:00 to 20:00; Out-of-sync (25 to 31 Oct 2026): UK / Dubai: 08:00 to 17:00 / 12:00 to 21:00; Winter (1 Nov 2026 to 13 Mar 2027): UK / Dubai: 08:00 to 17:00 / 12:00 to 21:00
  • New York: Summer (to 24 Oct 2026): UK / Dubai: 13:00 to 22:00 / 16:00 to 01:00; Out-of-sync (25 to 31 Oct 2026): UK / Dubai: 12:00 to 21:00 / 16:00 to 01:00; Winter (1 Nov 2026 to 13 Mar 2027): UK / Dubai: 13:00 to 22:00 / 17:00 to 02:00
  • London and New York overlap: Summer (to 24 Oct 2026): UK / Dubai: 13:00 to 17:00 / 16:00 to 20:00; Out-of-sync (25 to 31 Oct 2026): UK / Dubai: 12:00 to 17:00 / 16:00 to 21:00; Winter (1 Nov 2026 to 13 Mar 2027): UK / Dubai: 13:00 to 17:00 / 17:00 to 21:00
  • US CPI or NFP (08:30 New York): Summer (to 24 Oct 2026): UK / Dubai: 13:30 / 16:30; Out-of-sync (25 to 31 Oct 2026): UK / Dubai: 12:30 / 16:30; Winter (1 Nov 2026 to 13 Mar 2027): UK / Dubai: 13:30 / 17:30
  • FOMC statement (14:00 New York): Summer (to 24 Oct 2026): UK / Dubai: 19:00 / 22:00; Out-of-sync (25 to 31 Oct 2026): UK / Dubai: 18:00 / 22:00; Winter (1 Nov 2026 to 13 Mar 2027): UK / Dubai: 19:00 / 23:00
  • Daily roll (17:00 New York): Summer (to 24 Oct 2026): UK / Dubai: 22:00 / 01:00; Out-of-sync (25 to 31 Oct 2026): UK / Dubai: 21:00 / 01:00; Winter (1 Nov 2026 to 13 Mar 2027): UK / Dubai: 22:00 / 02:00

Times that cross midnight end on the next day. The Sydney row in summer assumes Sydney is on its own summer time, which began on 4 October 2026.

Here is the arithmetic for the date most likely to catch people out. The FOMC meets on 27 and 28 October 2026 (Federal Reserve FOMC calendar). The statement is due at 14:00 New York. New York is still on EDT (UTC-4), so that is 18:00 UTC. The UK has just moved to GMT (UTC+0), so it is 18:00 UK. Dubai is UTC+4, so it is 22:00 Dubai.

A week later the picture flips. The first jobs report after the US change is on Friday 6 November 2026 (BLS schedule). At 08:30 EST (UTC-5) that is 13:30 UTC: 13:30 UK, the usual time, and 17:30 Dubai, an hour later than all summer.

For the session-by-session explainer behind this table, see our guide to forex trading sessions and market hours.

Why your daily candle on TradingView differs from your broker's

The time zone setting does not move candles, but the feed's day boundary does. Different platforms end the day at different moments, and that changes the daily high, low and close.

A BabyPips member wrote that "Tradingview has NY close so you can compare broker charts to that", while another said "Its common for UK-based brokers to close their daily charts at about 2200hrs UK time" (BabyPips forum on daily closes). Those are forum posts from 2020, not official statements, so check your own symbol. A third user put the confusion simply: "I noticed that Tradingview and Metatrader use different closing times" (BabyPips forum).

Many MetaTrader brokers set server time to GMT+2 in winter and GMT+3 in summer, so that server midnight equals 17:00 New York. VT Markets says this makes "your Daily Close matches the New York 5:00 PM EST close" and gives "exactly five 24-hour candles per week" (VT Markets on server time). Brokers that follow New York switch on the US dates, not the UK ones. Which brokers switch on European dates instead was not confirmed in our research.

That gives each reader a different gap between the clock on the wall and the clock on the platform.

  • Summer (to 24 Oct 2026): Server time (GMT+2/+3 convention): UTC+3; Server vs UK clock: 2 hours ahead; Server vs Dubai clock: 1 hour behind; Server midnight in UK / Dubai: 22:00 / 01:00
  • Out-of-sync (25 to 31 Oct 2026): Server time (GMT+2/+3 convention): UTC+3; Server vs UK clock: 3 hours ahead; Server vs Dubai clock: 1 hour behind; Server midnight in UK / Dubai: 21:00 / 01:00
  • Winter (from 1 Nov 2026): Server time (GMT+2/+3 convention): UTC+2; Server vs UK clock: 2 hours ahead; Server vs Dubai clock: 2 hours behind; Server midnight in UK / Dubai: 22:00 / 02:00

A Dubai trader's gap to the server changes only on the US dates, in March and November, even though Dubai's own clock never moves. A UK trader's gap changes twice within a week each autumn, on 25 October and 1 November in 2026, and twice again each spring. Some feeds also show a short Sunday candle, which creates six daily candles a week and shifts every daily moving average, as well as any indicator that resets each day, such as VWAP. If a strategy depends on daily opens and closes, a Forex.com user found in 2024 that it can break between TradingView and MT4 on the same broker (BabyPips forum). Our explainer on why broker charts and charting platforms show different prices covers the other causes.

What the sessions mean for a Dubai working day

The UAE federal government works 07:30 to 15:30 Monday to Thursday, although private firms may set their own hours and weekend (Khaleej Times). Read against the table, the London open falls inside that working day, while the overlap and US data start after it, and the Fed is a late-evening event. That matters most for short-term styles such as scalping, which depend on the busiest hours. On the 17:00 New York convention, the forex week opens at about 01:00 Monday Dubai time in summer and 02:00 in winter, not on Sunday evening, though some brokers open earlier.

Where TradingView is the better choice

TradingView gives you more control over time than any tool most retail traders will use. You can set any zone, build custom sessions with any IANA name, compare several feeds and their day boundaries on one screen, and use up to 16 charts per screen on the top plan (TradingView features). If you trade an unusual session, such as the Tokyo fix, or you want to test a strategy across several day boundaries, TradingView is the right tool. Systemly draws its sessions automatically and is not built for defining your own.

How Systemly handles time

Systemly (systemly.ai) is a UK-built forex and gold trade-planning app that turns live price data into a complete trade plan, with entry, stop, targets, position size and plain-English reasoning, and teaches the terms in a built-in academy of 32 courses.

On time, its approach is the opposite of TradingView's. There is nothing to set. Times show in the viewer's own time zone, and the London and New York sessions follow their own daylight saving, so a trader in London or Dubai sees the sessions in the right place all year, including the out-of-sync week. Session shading is one of the chart layers, which are on Starter and above.

The plan also uses time directly. The current step on the numbered moves card has a countdown ring to the next useful moment, such as the next candle close, a session open or the end of the entry window, and it turns amber under 30 minutes. If a major economic release for either currency lands inside the trade's life, the plan carries a news warning. On a closed forex week, the chart says the last price is Friday's close instead of drawing weekend bars.

If you prefer to keep TradingView as your main chart, Starter and above can export the plan to TradingView as a Pine Script, so the levels sit on your own layout. Our guide to using TradingView and Systemly together walks through it.

How we compared

We read TradingView's support page on sessions, a third-party guide to its time zone setting, broker server-time pages and BabyPips forum threads, all checked on 13 October 2026. All session and data times come from our UK and UAE research tables, which were calculated with the IANA time-zone database, and each conversion in this article was rechecked against them. Systemly's behaviour comes from its October 2026 product notes. Menus and broker settings change, so check yours after any update.

FAQ

Does changing the time zone on TradingView change the candles?

No. Changing the chart time zone only relabels the times along the bottom axis. It does not move candles or change when the daily candle opens and closes, which is set by the data feed. To see a different day boundary, you need a different feed or symbol, not a different time zone setting. Compare your symbol with your broker's chart to check.

What time zone should I use on TradingView in Dubai?

Use a zone at UTC+4, which matches Gulf Standard Time all year because the UAE has no daylight saving. Then hover over the latest candle and check the axis against your phone's clock. Remember that this only changes labels. New York and London events still move by an hour when those cities change their clocks, so a Dubai trader sees US data at 16:30 in summer and 17:30 in winter.

Why is my New York session box an hour out on TradingView?

The most likely cause is a fixed offset such as "GMT-4", which matches New York only during US summer time. From 1 November 2026, when New York returns to UTC-5, a GMT-4 box starts an hour early. TradingView's session tool accepts IANA names, so use "America/New_York", which follows New York's daylight saving automatically.

What time is the New York session in Dubai?

On the BabyPips convention of 08:00 to 17:00 New York time, the New York session runs from 16:00 to 01:00 Dubai time while the US is on summer time, and from 17:00 to 02:00 Dubai time in winter, from 1 November 2026. The London and New York overlap runs 16:00 to 20:00 Dubai in summer and 17:00 to 21:00 in winter.

What happens between 25 and 31 October 2026?

The UK leaves summer time on 25 October but the US waits until 1 November. For that week, London and New York are four hours apart. US data lands at 12:30 UK instead of 13:30, and the Fed's 28 October decision lands at 18:00 UK. Dubai times for US events do not change that week; they move on 1 November instead.

Does Systemly show sessions in my local time?

Yes. Systemly shows times in the viewer's own time zone, and the London and New York sessions follow their own daylight saving, so they sit in the right place all year without any setting. Session shading is a chart layer on Starter and above. The plan's countdown ring also counts to the next candle close, session open or end of the entry window.

See the sessions drawn for you

If you spend more time fixing session boxes than reading them, open a real plan in the community feed of Systemly scans and see the sessions already in your local time, or start for free at Systemly. For alerts that suit these hours, read our guide to TradingView alerts and plan alerts.

Sources

Trading forex and CFDs carries a high risk of losing money, and most retail accounts do. Systemly is an educational and trade-planning tool. It does not provide financial advice or personal recommendations, and it is not authorised by the FCA or licensed in the UAE to do so. Past outcomes do not predict future results.