S&P 500 overview
The S&P 500 is the world’s most-followed equity index, tracking 500 large-cap US companies and representing approximately 80% of US equity market capitalisation. As a CFD, it’s available 24/5 on every major broker under tickers like “US500”, “SPX500”, or “SP500”.
What moves S&P 500
- Fed policy — FOMC decisions and Powell speeches dominate
- US inflation + employment — NFP, CPI, PCE move the index 1–2% on surprises
- Mega-cap earnings — Apple, Microsoft, NVIDIA, Amazon, Meta, Alphabet drive 30% of the index
- VIX / risk sentiment — inverse correlation with implied volatility
- Bond yields — rising 10Y yields typically pressure equity multiples
Trading hours
| Session | UTC | Behaviour |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-market | 09:00–13:30 | Light, sets the cash-open tone |
| US cash session | 13:30–20:00 | Peak liquidity + volatility |
| After-hours | 20:00–01:00 | Earnings releases drop here |
| Asian session | 01:00–09:00 | Reactionary to overnight US/Asia data |
Typical spread
S&P 500 CFDs quote at 0.3–0.8 points on ECN-style brokers during US session, widening to 1.0–3.0 points outside US hours.