Forex basics · Beginner

Currency Pairs and Trading Sessions

A 1-minute lesson from the MarketPro academy, one of 24 in forex basics.

Last reviewed 15 September 2026 by the MarketPro research desk · Editorial policy

Short answer

Forex trades continuously from Monday to Friday, but activity clusters into sessions. The Asian session (Tokyo) is typically quieter, with JPY and AUD pairs most active.

Majors, minors and exotics

Majors pair the US dollar with another top currency: EUR/USD, GBP/USD, USD/JPY, USD/CHF, AUD/USD, USD/CAD, NZD/USD. They have the deepest liquidity and tightest spreads.
Minors (crosses) exclude the dollar: EUR/GBP, GBP/JPY, EUR/JPY and others. Spreads are a little wider and moves can be sharper.
Exotics pair a major currency with an emerging-market one (for example USD/TRY). Spreads are wide, gaps are common, and they are generally unsuitable for beginners.

The three sessions

Forex trades continuously from Monday to Friday, but activity clusters into sessions. The Asian session (Tokyo) is typically quieter, with JPY and AUD pairs most active. The London session is the most liquid period of the day and often sets the day's direction. The New York session overlaps London for several hours — that overlap usually has the highest volume and volatility of the entire day.

Finish this lesson in the MarketPro app

3 more sections of Currency Pairs and Trading Sessions, plus all 320 lessons, the quizzes that check each one landed, and the streak that keeps you coming back. All of it is free on any account, including a free one. There is no paywall inside the academy.

Scan with your phone camera to install MarketPro and open this lesson.

Download on theApp Store Get it onGoogle Play

Free account, no card. The academy has no paywall inside the app.

Not investment advice. Past performance is not indicative of future results.

Why sessions matter

The same strategy can behave very differently at 3am versus during the London/New York overlap. Breakout approaches tend to need active sessions; range approaches often suit quieter hours. Volatility also concentrates around scheduled economic releases, which mostly fall in the London and New York mornings.

Key takeaway: know which session you are trading and what behaviour to expect from it. Time of day is a real variable in your results, and it belongs in your trading journal alongside the pair and setup.

Step 7 of 12 on Forex Foundations

PreviousLeverage and Margin NextHow to Read a Forex Quote

Run the numbers while this is fresh

The arithmetic in this category has a free calculator on this site, no sign-up and nothing leaves your browser: Pip value calculator, Position size calculator, Margin calculator, Leverage calculator.

Written and reviewed by the MarketPro research desk

MarketPro is a trading-signal and trading-education app operated by Harajuku Holdings LTD (Cyprus). Our signal desk publishes and tracks every trade idea in-app, and every page here is checked against the app's live behaviour before publishing. Last reviewed 15 September 2026. How we produce signals and content · About MarketPro

Trade · Learn · Earn

The whole academy is free in the app

All 320 lessons, 12 guided paths, quizzes and a daily streak. Free on every account, with vetted free signals alongside it.

Download on theApp Store Get it onGoogle Play

Not investment advice. Past performance is not indicative of future results.