Market Hours (UTC +1)
Forex Session Times South Africa
The following forex session times have been adjusted for daylight savings and converted into UTC+2 which is the South African time zone.
| 🌐Session | 🏁Open | 🛑Close |
|---|---|---|
| Wellington | 12 midnight | 7 am |
| Sydney | 1 am | 7 am |
| Tokyo | 2 am | 8 am |
| Singapore | 3 am | 10 am |
| Frankfurt | 8 am | 4 pm |
| London | 9 am | 5 pm |
| New York | 2 pm | 10 pm |
When To Trade Forex South Africa (by asset class)
Depending on the asset class you want to trade, these are the best times to trade in ZA:
| 🛒Asset | 🌎Session |
|---|---|
| Currencies | Frankfurt, London, New York |
| U.S. Stocks & Indices (NAS100, US30, etc.) | New York |
| U.K Stocks & Indices | London |
| Asian Stocks & Indices | Tokyo, Singapore, Sydney, Wellington |
| Crypto | All sessions |
What is the Frankfurt Session in Forex?
The Frankfurt trading session refers to the time when liquidity providers (such as banks, stock exchanges etc.) in Germany, are open for business.
Frankfurt is the financial capital of Germany, hence most big banks and exchanges are seated there. During the Frankfurt session, these banks provide liquidity to brokers which translates to tighter spread and faster trade execution.
The Frankfurt session starts by 8 am which is one-hour before the London session starts.
The Frankfurt session is great for trading European currencies.
What is the meaning of London session in forex?
The London session is the time when London based liquidity providers such as banks, stock exchanges etc. are open for business.
These liquidity providers are the source of the exchange rates & prices you trade in the market, so when they are open you get tighter spreads and faster price movement.
The London session is best for trading FX pairs that contain the GBP and Euro currencies (such as EUR/USD, GBP/USD, etc.)
If you trade GBP & European pairs outside the London session, most of these liquidity providers will be closed for business, meaning your broker will have to take on the role of providing liquidity which leads to wider spreads.
The London session opens by 9:00 am in South Africa and it closes by 5:00 pm.
What is the meaning of New York Session in forex?
The New York session is the time when liquidity providers such as banks, stock exchanges etc. operating in the USA are open for business. The New York session s also called the North-American session.
The liquidity providers help provide live exchange rates and price to brokers and this is why brokers are able to offer tight spreads. However, when the session is over, the brokers may have to widen the spreads since the liquidity providers would have closed for business.
The best pairs to trade during the New York session, are those that contain the us dollar (such as USD/CAD, EUR/USD, USD/JPY, etc.).
The New York session opens by 2:00 pm in South Africa and it closes by 10:00 pm.