London Session

Just when Asian market participants are starting to close shop, their European counterparts are just beginning their day.

While there are several financial centers all around Europe, it is London that market participants keep their eyes on.

Historically, London has always been at a center of trade, thanks to its strategic location. It's no wonder that it is considered the forex capital of the world with thousands of businessmen making transactions every single minute. About 30% of all forex transactions happen during the London session.

Below is a table of the London session pip ranges of the major currency pairs.

Pair	London
EUR/USD	114
GBP/USD	127
USD/JPY	66
AUD/USD	83
NZD/USD	72
USD/CAD	96
USD/CHF	102
EUR/JPY	129
GBP/JPY	151
AUD/JPY	107
EUR/GBP	61
EUR/CHF	109

Here are some neat facts about European session:

• Because the London session crosses with the two other major trading sessions--and with London being such a key financial center--a large chunk of forex transactions take place during this time. This leads to high liquidity and potentially lower transaction costs, i.e., lower pip spreads.
• Due to the large amount of transactions that take place, the London trading session is normally the most volatile session.
• Most trends begin during the London session, and they typically will continue until the beginning of the New York session.
• Volatility tends to die down in the middle of the session, as traders often go off to eat lunch before waiting for the New York trading period to begin.
• Trends can sometimes reverse at the end of the London session, as European traders may decide to lock in profits.

Which Pairs Should You Trade?

Because of the volume of transactions that take place, there is so much liquidity during the European session that almost any pair can be traded.

Of course, it may be best to stick with the majors (EUR/USD, GBP/USD, USD/JPY, and USD/CHF), as these normally have the tightest spreads.

Also, it is these pairs that are normally directly influenced by any news reports that come out during the European session.

You can also try the yen crosses (more specifically, EUR/JPY and GBP/JPY), as these tend to be pretty volatile at this time. Because these are cross pairs, the spreads might be a little wider though.