As the Forex market is mostly headquartered in London and New York, Forex traders should be aware of the Christian holiday season of Easter. You do not want to be trading in markets with exceptionally low levels of liquidity and volatility.
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So, let us pick through the daily trading calendar, showing the usual hours most brokers will be shut or closed early, plus some advice about when and what to trade:
Daily Trading Calendar | ||
Date | Typical Early Closing Time (UTC / GMT) | Advice |
Friday 18th April 2025 – GOOD FRIDAY | The NYSE and NASDAQ will close – although it is not a public holiday in the USA - and some Forex / CFD brokers may shut down from approximately 5pm Tokyo time until Monday. Most will remain open, but trading in many equity markets will not be available. | The entire day is a public holiday in Germany, Canada, the UK, Switzerland, Australia, and New Zealand, so trading the GBP, CAD, CHF, AUD, or NZD could be especially pointless. Markets remaining open, including the Forex market, generally tend to move little this day, with low liquidity, so it may be wise to avoid opening any new trades. |
Monday 21st April 2025 – EASTER MONDAY | Almost all Forex / CFD brokers should be open. Several major markets will be closed today on this major holiday, with Japan, China, and Middle Eastern countries as the main notable exceptions. The UK, Switzerland, Australia, France, Germany, and Italy celebrate a public holiday today, so trading in the stock markets of these countries will not be available. | The entire day is a public holiday in the UK, Switzerland, Australia, France, Germany, and Italy, so trading the GBP, CHF or AUD could be especially pointless. Markets remaining open, including the entire Forex market generally tend to move little this day, with low liquidity, so it may be wise to avoid opening any new trades until the US open. |
Bottom Line
If you are celebrating, enjoy the holiday, and if you are not, do not try to enter new trades when major markets are thin. This is the daily calendar covering the holiday period. Even if you are not in a country that celebrates Easter, it is probably a good idea to take advantage of it and forget about trading on Friday 18th March and the first half of Monday 21st April, as strong price movements are unlikely to happen before the start of the US session on Monday 21st April.
