I am completely baffled by Forex hours

Yes, I have read the market hours for Forex and I have yet to find an answer for what I am looking for. I find that (I am Eastern time in USA) the NY hours are 7:30am. Someone please explain to me what “opens?” Is there a building on Wall St. called “Forex” that flips the sign from “closed” to “open?” I keep hearing how it is a 24 hour market and yet there are hours posted all over the internet for every pair and then they close for the weekend.

Can someone please explain what exactly opens?

Businesses, financial institutions and trading-floors in various different parts of the world, according to their own time-zones.

The forex market itself is 24/5, as you rightly observe.

The Euro is [I]most[/I] traded in Europe and in the US, so the volume/activity picks up hugely at 2.00am EST when Frankfurt opens, and more when London opens at 3.00am EST, and even more still a few hours later when New York also opens and Europe/London are still both open.

It relates to market activity and volumes traded, in other words.

There’s a “one-hour candle” 24 times per day, but if you’re trading EUR/USD or GBP/USD, the one-hour candle that starts at 9.00am EST represents [I]huge[/I] volume (and arguably “significance”) compared with a one-hour candle just before the “Asian session” opens, after New York has closed. You [U]can[/U] trade currencies then, as well, if you want to, because it’s a 24/5 market … but I’d normally rather not, myself.

[B]Forex Market Hours[/B]

Thank you!

I’m curious why wouldn’t you trade forex? What do you trade instead and why ?

Thanks Again Lexys

I think Lexys is talking about the time, rather than trading FX in general.

Yes, sorry … I didn’t realise my wording was ambiguous, there (am only a foreign chick, I miss these English niceties, sometimes). :8:

I didn’t mean that I’d trade something else then (and I wouldn’t), just that that period of the day, after NY closes and before NZ/Asia open, isn’t when I’d trade. To be honest, I don’t trade the Asian session either, but that’s as much to do with my own time-zone and working hours as anything else. I do all my trading well within the London open and the NY close (that’s about 13 hours or whatever … which is more than enough, anyway).

I saved this photo to help me with the hours. You can use it too.