Session overlap as a global trader
Identify when the London and New York session overlap creates the highest liquidity for a non-US trader.
Lesson path
Market Foundations + Forex Mechanics
Global Trader Path
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Identify when the London and New York session overlap creates the highest liquidity for a non-US trader.
The window that does most of the work
Forex never closes during the week, but it does not trade evenly. Most of the meaningful price action happens during two large windows: the London session and the New York session. London runs roughly 3am to 12pm New York time. New York runs roughly 8am to 5pm New York time. The hours where both desks are open at the same time, around 8am to 12pm New York, hold the most liquidity of the entire trading day.
Translate the overlap into your local clock. For a trader in London, it is roughly 1pm to 5pm. For Lagos, it is 2pm to 6pm. For Dubai, it is 5pm to 9pm. For Mumbai, it is 6:30pm to 10:30pm. For Sydney, it is around midnight to 4am. None of these times are wrong. They are just the same global hours dressed in your local time zone.
Why does the overlap matter for a $500 account? Two reasons. First, spreads on major pairs like EUR/USD or GBP/USD tighten during the overlap, so your cost of entry shrinks. Second, real participation means cleaner candle structure. Outside the overlap, you often get drift, fake breakouts, and thin moves that get reversed. Inside the overlap, when price commits, it tends to mean something.
Recap: forex is 24-hour, but the London-New York overlap is where most real moves happen. Convert it to your local clock and protect that window.
Knowledge check
Answer before moving on.
1. When is the London-New York overlap, in New York time?
2. Why do major pairs often have tighter spreads during the overlap?
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