Why sweeps cluster around London and New York opens
Sweeps (quick pushes above recent highs or below recent lows) commonly occur near the London and New York opens because liquidity increases as liquidity providers and institutional orders enter the market. These sessions overlap with central-bank desks and large flows, so price is more likely to test and momentarily exceed obvious levels. That said, a sweep is a probability event, not a certainty — treat signals as edges, not guarantees.
Key phrases
- FX London open sweep
- NY open sweep
- pre-session high low
- wick rejection pattern
How to mark pre-session highs and lows
- Pick the relevant pre-session range. For a London open sweep, use the Asian session high/low (typically from 00:00–07:00 GMT). For a New York open sweep, use the London session high/low (07:00–12:00 GMT), adjusted to your broker timezone.
- On your chart, draw two horizontal lines at the session high and session low. Use the full wick extremes, not only bodies, so you capture all tests of the level.
- Label them clearly (eg. "Asian High", "Asian Low") and note the time range. This makes intraday reading faster and reduces mistakes when the market becomes noisy during the open.
- Consider a small buffer (a few pips or the average spread) to avoid false triggers from normal tick noise. The buffer should be consistent and documented in your plan.
Reading wick + rejection patterns
Wick + rejection is a useful micro-structure to confirm a sweep: price briefly pushes beyond a pre-session level creating a long wick, then gets rejected back inside the range. Look for:
- Long tail beyond the high/low followed by a close back inside the range on the chosen timeframe (5–15 minute for intraday work).
- Subsequent price action that fails to re-test the breakout convincingly — a weaker retest increases the probability of a reversal or continuation in the opposite direction.
- Context: volume (or tick activity) increasing at the sweep followed by drying up on follow-through is supportive of a false breakout. If you don't have volume, look at candle size and speed of the rejection.
- A confirmation candle: a bearish engulfing or strong close back inside after a high wick on the top side, and vice versa for downside sweeps.
Execution principles (probability-based)
Use small, consistent position sizes and wait for confirmation. A common tactic is to enter on the first clear rejection candle back inside the range, set a stop beyond the wick extreme plus your buffer, and target nearby support/resistance or a measured move. Always accept that some setups lose — aim for a positive edge over many trades, not perfect entries.
Five common mistakes to avoid
- Overtrading — chasing every sweep fragment lowers edge quality; wait for clean wick+rejection setups during the opens.
- Tight stops — stops placed inside typical spread/noise invite being stopped out; account for spread and intraday volatility.
- Ignoring news — economic releases can create rapid, directional moves that invalidate typical sweep behavior; check the calendar.
- Chasing winners — entering after significant follow-through removes the sweep’s edge and increases risk of late entries.
- Trading without context — ignoring trend, nearby structural levels, or session behavior reduces probability; a sweep against a strong trend behaves differently than one within a range.
Simple checklist before you trade a sweep
- Marked pre-session high and low on the chart
- Buffer set to account for spread and noise
- Clear wick + rejection candle on chosen timeframe
- No high-impact news due at the open
- Defined stop (beyond wick + buffer) and target, with position size set
Use this process to identify higher-probability FX sweeps around London and New York opens. Keep the approach disciplined, treat outcomes probabilistically, and review trades regularly to refine your edge.
