Sessions and killzones
The market lives around the clock, but it really moves for a few hours a day — when London and New York are working.
Sessions and killzones — what it is?
The market runs around the clock, but activity isn't spread evenly. The Asian session is usually quiet and narrow, London delivers the bulk of the volume, New York adds sharpness on US news.
A killzone is a narrow window inside a session where a strong move is most likely. In practice that's the first hour or two after the London open and after the New York open, plus the hour where they overlap.
There's no magic in the clock. During those hours the large participants and the peak of retail orders are active at the same time — which means that's exactly when there's something to fill size against.
Sessions and killzones — how it is built?
The Asian session often forms a narrow range that is then used as a liquidity pool: its edges get taken at the London open. Mark the Asian range and watch which side price goes for first.
Sessions and killzones — common mistakes
Trading the dead hours: the spread is wider, the moves are false.
Treating a killzone as a signal. It's a window of raised probability, not a reason to enter.
Forgetting about daylight saving time: the windows shift.
Carrying the forex schedule over to crypto, where sessions are blurred.
Related to
Glossary
- spread
- the difference between bid and ask. Your cost of entering a trade.
- volume
- the number of trades or contracts in a period.
- killzone
- a period of heightened activity inside a trading session.
- open
- the first price of the period.
- range
- movement inside a horizontal corridor with no clear direction.
- liquidity pool
- the zone where pending orders are most concentrated.