In the world of forex trading, the daily candle is an important tool that traders use to analyze the market and make informed decisions. The daily candle is essentially a visualization of the price movement of a currency pair over a 24-hour period, from the opening price to the closing price. The question that arises for many traders is when exactly does a new daily candle form in forex?
The answer to this question is not as straightforward as one might think. The formation of a new daily candle in forex depends on a number of factors, including the time zone of the broker and the currency pair being traded. In general, however, a new daily candle is formed at 5:00 PM EST, which is the start of the trading day in New York.
To understand why this is the case, it is important to understand the concept of the forex market hours. The forex market is open 24 hours a day, 5 days a week, with trading sessions in different time zones around the world. Each trading session has its own unique characteristics and trading volume, and traders can take advantage of these differences to profit from currency fluctuations.
The major trading sessions in the forex market are the Tokyo session, the London session, and the New York session. The New York session is the most active and liquid, accounting for over 30% of the daily trading volume in the market. It is also the session during which most economic data releases and major news events occur, which can cause significant price movements in the market.
The start of the New York session at 8:00 AM EST marks the beginning of the trading day for many traders around the world. This is when the trading desks of major financial institutions in New York open for business, and when liquidity in the market begins to increase. As the day progresses, trading activity tends to peak during the overlap of the New York and London sessions, which lasts from 8:00 AM to 12:00 PM EST.
At 5:00 PM EST, the New York session comes to a close, and trading activity begins to wind down as traders in Europe and Asia prepare to close their trading desks for the day. It is at this point that a new daily candle is formed in forex, marking the beginning of a new trading day.
It is worth noting that not all brokers use the New York close as the basis for their daily candles. Some brokers use the London close, which occurs at 12:00 PM EST, as the start of a new daily candle. Others use a different time zone altogether, such as the Australian or Japanese time zones.
For traders, the choice of broker and the time zone used for daily candles can have a significant impact on their trading strategy. Traders who prefer to use the New York close as the basis for their analysis may need to choose a broker that uses this time zone, or adjust their strategy to account for the differences in daily candles.
In conclusion, a new daily candle is formed in forex at 5:00 PM EST, marking the start of a new trading day. This time is significant because it marks the end of the New York session, which is the most active and liquid trading session in the market. However, not all brokers use the New York close as the basis for their daily candles, so traders should be aware of the time zone used by their broker and adjust their trading strategy accordingly.
