Forex Trading Hours
Knowing when to trade and when not to
The Forex market operates 24 hours a day 365 days a year. It provides a great opportunity for traders to trade any time of the day or at night, and in the comfort of their own home. However, although it seems to be not very important at the beginning, the right time to trade is one of the most crucial points to be successful in trading at the forex market. Monday to Friday office hours sees the peak of Forex transactions and this is ideally the Forex trading hours.
So, when should one consider trading and why?
The best time to trade is when the market is the most active and therefore has the biggest volume of trades. More active currency moves will create a good chance to catch the trade and make some profit. A calm, slow market is literally wasting of time — turns off your computer and don't even bother!
Forex Trading Hours in Eastern Standard Time (EST)
New York opens 8:00 am to 5:00 pm ESTTokyo opens 7:00 pm to 4:00 am EST
Sydney opens 5:00 pm to 2:00 am EST
London opens 3:00 am to 12:00 noon EST
And so, there are hours when two sessions are overlapped:
New York and London — 8:00 am — 12:00 noon EST
Sydney / Tokyo — 7:00 pm — 2:00 am EST
London / Tokyo — 3:00 am — 4:00am EST
For example, trading EUR/USD, GBP/USD currency pairs would give good results between 8:00 am and 12:00 noon EST when two markets for those currencies are active.
At those overlapping trading hours you'll find the highest volume of trades and therefore more chances to win in the foreign currency exchange market.
Are you ready to start forex trading?
TIP: You can open a beginner account for free and start trading using virtual money at etoro. Transition to a real money account when you are confident in your ability to make money trading.
