Sessions and killzones
Gold trades almost 24 hours, from Sunday evening to Friday evening New York time, with a daily break from 17:00 to 18:00 New York time. Most volume comes in the London and New York sessions.
Key points
- The London and New York overlap usually brings the deepest liquidity and the tightest spreads.
- Major US data at 08:30 New York time can move gold sharply.
- Spreads widen around the daily break and at the Sunday open.
- The UK and US change clocks on different dates, so for a week or two in spring and autumn the gap between sessions shifts by an hour.
- Killzone hours vary between educators. Write down the version you use and keep it fixed.
| Tokyo session | 09:00–18:00 Tokyo time |
|---|---|
| London session | 08:00–17:00 London time |
| New York session | 08:00–17:00 New York time |
| Daily break | 17:00–18:00 New York time |
| London killzone (ICT) | 02:00–05:00 New York time |
| New York AM killzone (ICT) | 07:00–10:00 New York time |
How traders use it
- Pick the one session you can actually sit for.
- Mark the Asian range before London opens.
- Trade only inside your window and log the session of every trade.
Watch out
- Trading the thin hour around the daily break.
- Forgetting the clock-change weeks.
- Tight-target strategies in quiet Asian hours.
Key line: Pick one session you can really sit for, and trade only that.