Forexbeginner

Forex sessions (London, NY, Tokyo)

When liquidity is highest — and when to avoid trading.

TL;DR

Forex trades 24 hours across four overlapping sessions: Sydney, Tokyo, London, and New York. Liquidity, spreads, and volatility shift dramatically between them.

The four sessions (UTC)

Sessions overlap — that's when most volume happens.

→Sydney: 22:00–07:00 UTC
→Tokyo: 00:00–09:00 UTC
→London: 08:00–17:00 UTC
→New York: 13:00–22:00 UTC

When liquidity peaks

Two overlap windows dominate.

→London + NY overlap (13:00–17:00 UTC) — the biggest volume window for EUR/USD, GBP/USD, USD/CAD
→Tokyo + London overlap (08:00–09:00 UTC) — relevant for JPY pairs and EUR/GBP
→Outside major overlaps, spreads widen and ranges contract

What changes between sessions

Each session has its own personality and risk profile.

→Sydney/Tokyo — AUD, NZD, JPY pairs most active. Quieter overall.
→London — highest volume globally; trend days often start here
→New York — US data releases (NFP, CPI, FOMC) create volatility spikes
→Late NY / Pacific gap — illiquidity, wide spreads, avoid

Worked example

Why most retail systems trade the London/NY overlap

Compare typical conditions in EUR/USD across sessions.

1Sydney sessionSpread ~1.2 pips, range ~15 pips
2Tokyo sessionSpread ~0.8 pips, range ~25 pips
3London sessionSpread ~0.4 pips, range ~50 pips
4London/NY overlapSpread ~0.3 pips, range ~80 pips
5Late NYSpread ~1.0 pips, range ~10 pips

Takeaway

The London/NY overlap gives the tightest spreads and largest ranges — best opportunity-to-cost ratio for most strategies.

Common mistakes

What to avoid

!Backtesting on data that ignores session-by-session spread differences
!Trading 'breakouts' during low-liquidity sessions — they fail more often
!Running scalping strategies during the Sydney/Tokyo overlap — spreads eat profits
!Forgetting daylight savings shifts every 6 months change overlap timing

Self-check

Test yourself

Q1Which overlap is typically highest-volume in FX?+

London + New York (13:00–17:00 UTC).

Q2Why are JPY pairs most active in the Tokyo session?+

Japanese banks and corporates are the dominant counterparties during their working hours.

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