There are three major trading sessions in which the level of activity heightens. This makes the life easy for the trader too. A trader can attend the market when it is typically volatile and can develop a strategy depending on the market timings.

Three sessions, which are of greatest interest, are the Asian, the European, and the North American. These are also referred by the traders as Tokyo, London, and New York sessions representing the three major financial capitals of the regions.

Let’s start with the Asian or Tokyo session. Being in the east, it is the first market to experience the action as the market opens after a break of one and half days. This starts at 6:00 GMT. Other countries taking active participation are China, Australia, New Zealand, and Russia. The market runs well beyond Tokyo business hours and at times said to be working between 8:00 to 23:00 (GMT).

The next is the European or London session, which starts its action just before the Asian hours coming to a close. Official hours in this session runs between 7:30 and 15:30 (GMT). This also continues after the usual business hours to attend trading in other capitals like Germany and France. Therefore, it is active during 7:00 to 16:00 GMT.

And, finally the North American or New York session starts when the Asian market is already closed, but the European trades are halfway. Other active participating centers are Canada, Mexico, and few countries in South America. Unofficially the session starts at 12:00 GMT. There is a slot when the North American session is closed and the Asian market is not open. The activity is at its minimum during these hours.