by Ellie Taft
London, New York, and Tokyo are the main financial centers of the world – in that order. But lesser hubs can be found in every corner on earth. Consequently, during the week, there is currency trading going on somewhere at all times, day or night… even on holidays.
Thanksgiving and the Fourth of July are unique to the United States. And Christmas is unique to Christians. So, from a global perspective, trading will be lighter on those days, but for the most part, it’s still business as usual.
On the other hand, everyone on earth celebrates the weekend! Friday night at 5 PM EST, New York officially turns out the lights for a great big TGIF heard around the world. Then, on Sunday afternoon in New York, as financial centers west of the international dateline wake up Monday morning, business slowly resumes.
New Zealand and Australia open first, followed by Tokyo, Hong Kong, and Singapore. Later, as Tokyo’s day is coming to an end, London opens for business. And finally, when it is early afternoon in Europe, trading begins in New York and other US centers.
| Trading Hours for the World’s Largest Financial Centers | |||
| Region | City | Open (EST) | Close (EST) |
| Europe | London | 3:00 am | 12:00 noon |
| Frankfurt | 2:00 am | 11:00 am | |
| America | New York | 8:00 am | 5:00 pm |
| Chicago | 9:00 am | 5:00 pm | |
| Asia | Tokyo | 7:00 pm | 4:00 am |
| Hong Kong | 8:00 pm | 5:00 am | |
| Pacific | Sydney | 5:00 pm | 2:00 am |
| Wellington | 5:00 pm | 1:00 am | |
adjust hours to Daylight Savings Time
The most active time of the day is the London/New York overlap between 8:00 am and noon EST, accounting for 70% – 80% of the daily trading range. For trading success, it’s important that you match your strategy with the time of day. Day traders usually find the greatest rewards during the Tokyo/London “Power Hour”. And the 3 hours during which London, New York, and Frankfurt are all open.
However, rather than getting caught up in the hubbub of London and New York, I prefer a more leisurely system using daily charts. I’ll do my ten minutes of trading after New York closes and before Asia really gets going… sometime between 5 pm and 9 pm EST.
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