Skipping the first minute of London: a revised rule
Posted: Mon Oct 19, 2026 9:46 am
The first minute after 08:00 UK can be chaotic: spreads widen, prices jump between levels, and stops placed at obvious levels are often taken out before the real direction emerges.
A simple rule many traders adopt is "no entries before 08:01". The revised version that seems to work better on a lot of feeds is a bit more specific:
- No entries until spread on the traded pair has returned to within 1.5x its normal London level.
- No entries until at least one 1-minute candle has closed after 08:00.
- If the first minute moved more than 50% of the Asia range, wait for a second candle to confirm direction.
In quiet weeks, these conditions are usually met by 08:01 or 08:02. On busy days, especially with UK data at 07:00, it might take until 08:05.
The trade-off: occasionally the best move of the day starts in the first 30 seconds and you miss it. Over months, though, the trades avoided in that minute tend to be worse than the ones missed.
Does anyone trade the very first second deliberately? What's your edge there?
A simple rule many traders adopt is "no entries before 08:01". The revised version that seems to work better on a lot of feeds is a bit more specific:
- No entries until spread on the traded pair has returned to within 1.5x its normal London level.
- No entries until at least one 1-minute candle has closed after 08:00.
- If the first minute moved more than 50% of the Asia range, wait for a second candle to confirm direction.
In quiet weeks, these conditions are usually met by 08:01 or 08:02. On busy days, especially with UK data at 07:00, it might take until 08:05.
The trade-off: occasionally the best move of the day starts in the first 30 seconds and you miss it. Over months, though, the trades avoided in that minute tend to be worse than the ones missed.
Does anyone trade the very first second deliberately? What's your edge there?