Welcome to NexusFi: the best trading community on the planet, with over 150,000 members Sign Up Now for Free
Genuine reviews from real traders, not fake reviews from stealth vendors
Quality education from leading professional traders
We are a friendly, helpful, and positive community
We do not tolerate rude behavior, trolling, or vendors advertising in posts
We are here to help, just let us know what you need
You'll need to register in order to view the content of the threads and start contributing to our community. It's free for basic access, or support us by becoming an Elite Member -- see if you qualify for a discount below.
-- Big Mike, Site Administrator
(If you already have an account, login at the top of the page)
Not exactly, I have probably indirectly tested it by having breakout systems working overnight though. It can get a little cumbersome depending on the symbol or platform, since the New York time of the London open is different at different times of year, because of the time change dates discrepancy between US and UK.
But it would certainly be worth testing, just do not know what it would yield.
As a swing trader, holding positions through the night and weekend, I can relate to @bobwest’s experience of being wrecked. I set an alarm every night for 3am so I can monitor my trades. I need only a few minutes to do this but frequently I have trouble getting back to sleep. Part of this also is just aging and the stresses of life. I went to my doctor because I was sleeping so bad and he said my mind is in overtime. He likened it to a football game that ends after four quarters but I keep on playing.
I used to not have to do this, but post-covid the volatility is so great in the markets even during the night that if I don’t wake up and check my trades I could miss an important setup or a chance to move a stop and lock in some profit.
A few years ago, before the pandemic, it wasn’t uncommon for the ES to move just 15-20 points a day, less at night. It was a much more relaxed market for overnight trading. The world we live in now is much different and I’ve accepted that losing sleep is what it takes to trade the way I do. But I make up for it by taking a nap each day at 3:15.
I check prices on Sunday but no trading for me. I work a 10 hour shift at an Amazon warehouse starting at 1:20am on Monday morning so I am sleeping Sunday afternoon.
I've tried trading MES/ES on Sundays. If you can catch an opening breakout, it might be worth taking. But my intraday strategy isn't as reliable on Sunday or overnight. I'm relying on Volume and Liquidity; unfortunately, there isn't much volume and liquidity on Sundays.
This time of year, I feel, is less reliable for figuring out a good trading time outside regular CME trading hours.
During our autumn/winter ( where we aren't on daylight savings and you guys are the US are ) RTH open is around 11:30pm with some reliable trades in the preceding hour most days.
Some days, especially during the middle of the week Tues to Thurs, I can get a trade or two in that "opens the account" ready for the night. If I'm not picky and watch my time, I lose it again ( usually in one of those slow death trades when the market slows or gets illiquid) . But I've often commented to my partner how I can hit my daily profit target before U.S. open some days and go to bed early. And if not, many days I'll be done in the first half hour to one hour of open.
This time of year though (beginning around Oct-Nov) . The market overlaps just seem less conducive to getting a reliable time-of-day to trade. This, I'm guessing, is something anyone in our time zone struggles with.
As you mentioned, often a trend can begin around London open. But so often I get sucked into whipsaws there.
Sydney-Tokyo can begin a great trend some days. But as I mentioned in my previous post, you can waste a lot of time sitting there many days where it's just exceedingly boring and slow.
When I first got into day trading ( currencies back in the 2000's ) I eventually spent a month around 2010 "Living New York" where I tried to live the USA hours. The results were amazing. I was getting hit rates in the 90% range with an account gains of around 25% in just that month risking around 0.5% and thought I was some super trader.
...But the social and health costs were bad enough to have me stop trading for years, with the realisation that I live in the wrong place/time zone.
...This realization was profound enough and depressing enough that I didn't start looking at trading again until late 2019.
Those circadian rhythms and how they base themselves around sunlight are incredibly important to our health, eh. I missed my family and friends, and my personality leans towards introvert most of the time,. So that says a lot.
And if not, many days I'll be done in the first half hour to one hour of open.
I missed my family and friends, and my personality leans towards introvert most of the time,. So that says a lot.