Certainly! The forex market operates 24 hours a day, five days a week, and here’s a simple breakdown of its hours in easy-to-understand language:
Monday to Friday: Forex trading takes place from Monday to Friday.
Starts in Asia: It all begins in Asia, particularly in countries like Japan and Australia. Trading starts early Monday morning in these regions.
It begins around 8:00 AM local time and lasts until about 4:00 PM local time. This session is known for trading the Japanese Yen (JPY) and the Australian Dollar (AUD).
Moves to Europe: As the day progresses, trading activity moves to Europe, with major financial centers like London getting busy.
It begins at 8:00 AM GMT (Greenwich Mean Time) and ends around 4:00 PM GMT. This session is the busiest and most important in terms of trading volume and includes major currency pairs like EUR/USD and GBP/USD.
Ends in North America: Finally, the forex market wraps up its day in North America, particularly in cities like New York. This is where the market closes on Friday evening.
It begins around 8:00 AM Eastern Time (ET) and ends around 4:00 PM ET. The US Dollar (USD) is the primary focus during this session.
Overlap Periods: There are times during the day when two sessions overlap. The most significant overlap occurs between the European and North American sessions, from about 8:00 AM to 12:00 PM ET.
This is often considered the best time for trading as it has higher liquidity and price movement.
24-Hour Cycle: The interesting thing is that as one part of the world closes for the day, another one is just starting. This creates a continuous 24-hour cycle from Monday to Friday.
Weekend Break: However, it’s important to note that the forex market takes a break over the weekend, from Friday evening until Sunday evening. During this time, trading is closed.
So, in summary, the forex market is like a global relay race, with different parts of the world taking their turn to trade currencies, ensuring that it operates nearly non-stop throughout the working week.
This 24-hour availability is one of the reasons why forex is so popular and dynamic.
