Forex Market Hours
The foreign exchange market is open 24-hours a day, except on weekends. As one financial centre closes, another one opens. We'll explain the best times to trade, and new ways to spot trading opportunities.
By Stefan
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Forex trading sessions
Trading hours across financial centres (London time, and New York time):
Financial centre | London time (GMT) | New York time (EDT) |
---|---|---|
London | 7:00 am to 4:00 pm | 3:00 am to Noon |
New York | Noon to 9:00 pm | 8:00 am to 5:00 pm |
Sydney | 9:00 pm to 6:00 am | 5:00 pm to 2:00 am |
Tokyo | 11:00 pm to 8:00 am | 7:00 pm to 4:00 am |
When trading sessions overlap
Foreign exchange markets are most active when sessions overlap across financial centres. For example, trading volumes for the EUR/USD and GBP/USD currency pairs are greatest when London and New York are both open. This is usually when spreads are at their lowest.
Financial centre | London time (GMT) | New York time (EDT) |
---|---|---|
New York and London overlap | 12:00 noon to 4:00 pm | 8:00 am to 12:00 noon |
Sydney and Tokyo overlap | 11:00 pm to 6:00 am | 7:00 pm to 2:00 am |
London and Tokyo overlap | 7:00 am to 8:00 am | 3:00 am to 4:00 am |
You could be asleep when trading opportunities arise. That's why it's a good idea to use a screener, like Trading Central, to surface opportunities. Trading Central screens the markets 24 hours a day, and delivers the best trade ideas directly within MetaTrader.
Trading Central is available free of charge when you open an account with FPMarkets.com. Both brokers support all trading styles, including trading bots known as Expert Advisors. FP Markets goes one step further by offering you a virtual private server if you make a deposit of US$ 1,000 or more (or equivalent) and meet low monthly minimum volume requirements.
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