Lesson 6 of 12 ยท The Night Shift Course
The European open. Frankfurt and the European futures exchanges open around 2:00 am Eastern; London’s cash market opens at 3:00 am Eastern during US daylight saving time (3:30 am for the few weeks each year when the two regions’ clock changes do not line up). It is the heaviest overnight volume of the night.
I trade the front half of the night and I am honest about that: I usually sleep through London. But the London open is the other great window of the Globex session, and if you are in Europe, or you are a US trader who wakes early, it may be your Tokyo.
What happens
Europe arrives in two steps. Frankfurt and the European derivatives exchanges come in around 2 am Eastern and the book deepens immediately. London follows an hour later and volume peaks. The index futures often make their overnight high or low in this window, or revisit the one made in Asia, and the direction set here frequently carries into the US pre-market.
Why it is different from Tokyo
- More volume, faster moves. European institutions trade the US indices in size. Levels get tested quickly and breaks hold more often than they do in Asia.
- European data. PMIs, inflation prints, central bank speakers. The calendar is busier than Asia’s and lands directly in the window.
- A night of structure to trade against. By 3 am you have the Globex IB, the Asian range, the overnight VWAP with eight hours of data in it, and a clear overnight high and low. London either accepts that structure or rejects it, and both are tradeable.
How I would trade it
- Same rule as always: levels marked in advance, now including the Asian session high and low.
- Watch the first thirty minutes after the London cash open before committing. The first push is often reversed.
- A break of the overnight high or low on London volume that holds is one of the few overnight breakouts I respect. A break that fails and returns inside the range is the other side of the same trade.
- Be flat well before 8:30 am Eastern unless you intend to trade US data, which is a different discipline.
The handoff to New York
Whatever London leaves behind becomes the morning’s starting point: the overnight high and low, the overnight VWAP and where price sits relative to them. Day traders will trade off your levels. Knowing which ones they care about helps you decide which of your overnight positions, if any, deserve to be held into the data.
Lesson 7 is about the hours in between, and why I am almost always flat during them.
Key takeaways
- Europe arrives in two steps: Frankfurt around 2 am ET, London at 3 am ET. It is the heaviest overnight volume.
- By then there is a full night of structure to trade against: Globex IB, Asian range, overnight VWAP, overnight high and low.
- Breaks on London volume that hold are among the few overnight breakouts worth respecting.
- Be flat before the 8:30 am US data unless trading data is your plan.
Questions people ask
What time is the London open for US futures?
London’s cash market opens at 8:00 am UK time, which is 3:00 am Eastern during US daylight saving time. Because the UK and US change their clocks on different dates, it is 3:30 am Eastern for a few weeks each year. European futures exchanges open about an hour earlier.
Is the London open better than the Tokyo open for trading ES?
It brings more volume and faster moves, and breaks hold more often. Whether it is better depends on when you can be awake. I trade Tokyo because it fits my life; a European trader would choose London for the same reason.
Should I hold an overnight trade into the 8:30 data?
Only if trading data is your plan. The data can move price through several levels in seconds against a resting stop. Most of my night trades are flat long before it.
Next lesson: Overnight Areas to Avoid.
Photo: Giammarco Boscaro on Unsplash.
Trade the session your life actually allows.
The night session is a complete market. Learn how it moves, watch me trade it live, read the write-up the next morning, and if you want people who trade the same hours, there is a room for that.
Disclosure. Midnight Futures is an educational site written by Scott West, a private trader. Nothing here is financial advice, and trading futures carries a substantial risk of loss. Some links to the tools and prop firms I use are affiliate links: if you buy through them I may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Full disclosure · Risk disclaimer