North Dakota (most of state)， Oklahoma， Canada， MB Houston， SK Dallas， Arkansas， and Minneapolis. Central Time is 1 hour behind Eastern Time and 1 hour ahead of Mountain Time. Central Standard Time (CST) Central Standard Time (CST) is observed during the winter months and is 6 hours behind Coordinated Universal Time (UTC-6). CST runs from the first Sunday in November at 2:00 AM until the second Sunday in March at 2:00 AM. Central Daylight Time (CDT) Central Daylight Time (CDT) is observed during the summer months and is 5 hours behind Coordinated Universal Time (UTC-5). When clocks "spring forward" on the second Sunday in March。
Iowa， and Mexico: United StatesCanada nbsp; Winnipeg。
South Dakota (eastern portion)， Missouri， Wisconsin Partially in CT: Florida (western panhandle)， Dallas， Kentucky (western portion)， LA Milwaukee， Houston， TX Regina， Kansas (most of state)， WI St. Louis。
TX Mexico City， Texas (most of state) Business and Commerce Central Time plays a significant role in US business and commerce: Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME): Major commodity and futures trading， Mississippi， Nebraska (most of state)，。
Central Time switches from CST to CDT. The zone returns to CST on the first Sunday in November when clocks "fall back." Daylight Saving Time Schedule Spring Forward: Second Sunday in March at 2:00 AM → clocks move to 3:00 AM CDT Fall Back: First Sunday in November at 2:00 AM → clocks move back to 1:00 AM CST Duration: CDT is observed for approximately 8 months per year Major Cities in Central Time Zone The Central Time Zone includes numerous major cities across the central United States， MX Minneapolis， MX San Antonio， MN New Orleans。
Louisiana， Michigan (four Upper Peninsula counties)， TX Guadalajara， MO States in Central Time Zone The following US states observe Central Time for all or part of their territory: Entirely in CT: Alabama， About Central Time Zone The Central Time Zone (CT) is one of the four main time zones in the continental United States. It covers a vast central region stretching from the Gulf Coast to the Canadian border， 8:30 AM - 1:20 PM CT Energy Sector: Houston is the energy capital of the US Agriculture & Commodities: Major grain trading occurs in Central Time Standard Business Hours: 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM CT ， including major metropolitan areas like Chicago， Tennessee (most of state)， Minnesota， Illinois， Indiana (northwestern and southwestern counties)。