The 24 Hour Forex MarkeT

In the last article we talked about how the foreign exchange market went around the clock for 24 hours of trading activity each and every day. As the forex market moves around the world, it follows three markets: Tokyo, New York, and London. In the following article, we’ll explain how you can benefit by trading each market.

The table below shows how the forex market opens and closes around the world:

Market	Open (EST)	Close (EST)
Tokyo	6:00 PM	3:00 AM
London	3:00 AM	12:00 PM
New York	8:00 AM	5:00PM

While the market is considered a 24/7 market, many traders like to take the weekends off. Generally, the weekends are very quiet, since traders step away from their trading desks to take some time to relax before another 5 days of active trading.

The Tokyo market opens to begin a week of non-stop currency trading on Monday, 0:00 GMT time. In the United States, the time is 7PM Eastern on a Sunday night. In Tokyo, it is 9AM. The markets then cycle around the world with some overlap between the closure of one market, and the opening of another market.

Geographical Significance

As you might expect, local currencies become the most active when the local market opens. In Tokyo, for example, the Yen is bought and sold faster than other currencies.

However, when the US market opens, the US dollar and other North American currencies like the Canadian Dollar and Mexican Peso become most active. When London opens, the Great British Pound, the Euro, and other currencies rise in trading volume.

Observing the movements of currency during these trading times will allow you to determine exactly when it is that you’d like to trade for yourself. If you find the USDJPY to be an attractive pair to trade, you might want to trade during the Tokyo or US session. A trader interested in the EURUSD might want to trade during the four hours in which the US and London markets overlap