The last hour of London: more than a quiet period
Posted: Thu Oct 29, 2026 4:33 am
The final hour before London closes is often described as quiet, but it has its own character. Traders close out positions, banks square their books, and reference fixes pull flows into specific minutes.
Price action in this window can be choppy. Trends fade, spikes appear and vanish, and spreads may widen slightly as liquidity providers manage their end-of-day risk. Some pairs show a predictable pause, while others have a burst of activity just before the close.
A scalper who treats this hour as a continuation of the morning may be surprised. Setups that worked at 9am London might behave differently at 4pm, because the participants are different and the goals are different.
Reviewing trades by hour of the day is a quick way to see the difference. A simple table showing win rate and average result per hour often reveals a clear weak spot that nobody noticed.
Which hour of the trading day is the weakest for your strategy, and what do you think explains it?
Price action in this window can be choppy. Trends fade, spikes appear and vanish, and spreads may widen slightly as liquidity providers manage their end-of-day risk. Some pairs show a predictable pause, while others have a burst of activity just before the close.
A scalper who treats this hour as a continuation of the morning may be surprised. Setups that worked at 9am London might behave differently at 4pm, because the participants are different and the goals are different.
Reviewing trades by hour of the day is a quick way to see the difference. A simple table showing win rate and average result per hour often reveals a clear weak spot that nobody noticed.
Which hour of the trading day is the weakest for your strategy, and what do you think explains it?