Sessions, news and the calendar
This lesson shows which hours those are in Kenyan time, and how a scheduled release such as a United States jobs report or an interest rate decision can widen the spread on your account.
Compare a quiet-hour stop with an overlap stop
A stop is a standing instruction to close your position when the price reaches a chosen level. It does not close at that exact level. It closes at the best price available once triggered. In a quiet hour, few orders are competing, so the price often moves in small steps. Your stop may be filled close to the level you set.
In the London and New York overlap, many orders compete at once. The price can jump several pips between one trade and the next. A stop placed 25 pips away may be filled 27 pips away, or further. The difference is your slippage. On 0.20 lots of EUR/USD, one extra pip costs about KSh 258, so two pips of slippage adds KSh 516 to your loss.
Compare the two cases. Quiet hour: stop at 25 pips, fill at 25 pips, loss KSh 6,450. Overlap hour: stop at 25 pips, fill at 27 pips, loss KSh 6,966. The second case is not a worse stop. It is the same stop in a faster market. This is why the hour you choose changes the money you risk.
Map the Kenyan clock to the three sessions
Forex runs in three main sessions: Sydney, Tokyo, London and New York. In Kenyan time, Sydney opens around 01:00 and closes around 09:00. Tokyo opens around 03:00 and closes around 11:00. London opens around 10:00 and closes around 20:00. New York opens around 16:00 and closes around 02:00 the next day.
The overlap between London and New York runs from about 16:00 to 20:00 Kenyan time. That is the busiest window for EUR/USD. The quietest window is from about 02:00 to 03:00, when New York has closed and Tokyo has not opened. Your stop is least likely to be reached in that hour, but if it is reached, the fill may be poor because few buyers and sellers are present.
Kenya does not change clocks for daylight saving. London and New York do. When they shift, their session times move by one hour in Kenyan time. The London open can become 11:00, and the overlap can start at 17:00. Check the session times again after a daylight-saving change. The calendar you use should show times in your own time zone.
Read the calendar before you place a stop
A scheduled release is a public report or decision with a known time. Examples include the United States jobs report, an interest rate decision, and inflation figures. The calendar lists the time, the previous figure, and the forecast. It does not tell you which way the price will move. It tells you when the market may move faster.
During a release, spreads can widen from a fraction of a pip to several pips. On 0.10 lots of EUR/USD, a spread of 1 pip costs about KSh 129. A spread of 4 pips costs about KSh 516. The extra KSh 387 is paid on entry and again on exit if the spread stays wide. The price can also jump past your stop rather than through it. That means your fill can be several pips beyond your chosen level.
Use the calendar as a filter, not a signal. If a release is due within the next hour, you have three choices. Reduce your size so the same stop risks less money. Widen your stop so normal noise does not trigger it. Or stay out until the first minutes after the release have passed. None of these choices is a prediction. They are ways to keep your risk close to the number you planned.
One stop, two sessions, 30 pips
| Step | Amount | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Instrument | EUR/USD | the pair used in this example |
| Price used | 1.0850 | a round figure chosen for easy arithmetic |
| Position size | 0.10 lots | one tenth of a standard lot, so 10,000 units of the base currency |
| Pip value on 0.10 lots | KSh 129 | one pip on one standard lot is 10 units of the quote currency; 10 units x 0.10 lots = 1 unit of the quote currency, converted to KES at about 129 |
| Distance to the stop | 30 pips | the stop sits 30 pips away from the entry price |
| Risk if the stop is hit | KSh 3,870 | 30 pips x KSh 129 per pip |
| London session in Kenyan time | about 11:00 to 20:00 | Kenya keeps the same clock all year; London shifts by one hour in late March and late October |
| New York session in Kenyan time | about 16:00 to 01:00 | again, this shifts with United States daylight saving |
| Overlap | about 16:00 to 20:00 | both centres open at once; this is usually the busiest window |
Your broker may round the pip value, quote a slightly different conversion rate for the shilling, or add a commission on top. Spreads also widen around scheduled releases, so the price you get filled at can be worse than the price on the screen.
Doing it once, step by step
Follow these steps once to see how session time and a scheduled release change the money at risk on a single EUR/USD position.
- 01
Write your session times in Kenyan time
Open a world clock and note the open and close of London and New York in Kenyan time. Mark the overlap window, which is roughly 16:00 to 20:00. Mark the quiet window, which is roughly 02:00 to 03:00. Keep this note beside your chart.
- 02
Calculate the pip value for your size
For EUR/USD, one pip on 0.10 lots is about KSh 129. On 0.20 lots it is about KSh 258. Multiply the pip value by the number of pips in your stop. A 25-pip stop on 0.20 lots is KSh 6,450. Write this figure down before you enter.
- 03
Check the calendar for the next four hours
Look for releases marked high impact, such as a United States jobs report or an interest rate decision. Note the time in Kenyan time. If a release falls inside your planned holding period, treat it as a risk event. Do not assume the price will move in your favour.
- 04
Compare your stop with the expected spread
Find the current spread on your platform. If it is 1 pip, your entry cost on 0.10 lots is about KSh 129. If a release is near, the spread may widen to 4 pips, costing about KSh 516. The extra KSh 387 is a real cost, not a temporary number.
- 05
Adjust size, stop or timing
If the release is close, choose one change. Halve your size so the same stop risks half the money. Move your stop wider so normal noise does not trigger it. Or wait until the first minutes after the release have passed. Write down which change you made and why.
- 06
Record the fill you actually got
After the trade closes, compare your planned stop with the fill price. If you were filled further away, note the slippage in pips and in shillings. Over time, this record shows which hours and which releases cost you more. Use it to decide when to trade and when to stay out.
The mistake most people make here
The common mistake is to treat every hour as equally tradable and to leave a tight stop in place through a scheduled release. During a release, the spread can widen from a fraction of a pip to several pips, and the price can jump past your stop rather than through it. The result is a fill further away than the KSh 3,870 you planned. Instead, check the calendar before you enter, and either reduce size, widen the stop, or stay out until the first minutes after the release have passed.Check yourself
You hold 0.20 lots of EUR/USD and your stop is 25 pips away. What is the risk in KSh, using KSh 129 per pip on 0.10 lots?
Pip value on 0.20 lots is 2 units of the quote currency, so about KSh 258 per pip. 25 pips x KSh 258 = KSh 6,450.
A release is due at 15:30 Kenyan time. Is the London session open, and is New York open?
London is open, since it runs to about 20:00 Kenyan time. New York opens at about 16:00, so at 15:30 it is not yet open. You are in a single-session window, not the overlap.
Your spread widens from 1 pip to 4 pips on 0.10 lots. How much extra does the wider spread cost on entry?
The extra is 3 pips. 3 x KSh 129 = KSh 387.
Questions that come up next
How do I convert the session times when London and New York change their clocks?
Kenya keeps the same clock all year. London and New York move forward or back by one hour in their spring and autumn. That shifts every session time in Kenyan time by one hour. After a clock change, the London open can move from about 10:00 to about 11:00, and the overlap can start at about 17:00 instead of 16:00. Check the times again after each change rather than assuming they stay fixed.
Why can a stop be filled at a worse price during a release?
A stop becomes a market order once the price touches it. In the seconds around a release, many orders arrive together and the spread widens. There may be no trade at your exact level, so the next available price is used. That price can be several pips away. The gap between your stop level and the fill is slippage, and it is added to your loss.
What does a wider spread cost me if I have not opened a position yet?
You pay the spread when you enter, because you buy at the higher price and sell at the lower one. If the spread goes from 1 pip to 4 pips on 0.10 lots, the extra is 3 pips. At KSh 129 per pip that is KSh 387 more than you planned. On 0.20 lots the same 3 pips cost about KSh 774. The cost is taken at entry, before the market has moved.
Should I avoid trading entirely on days with a major release?
Not necessarily. Many people trade on those days and accept the conditions. The choice depends on your plan and your stop distance. You can reduce your size, widen your stop so it sits beyond the likely jump, or wait until the first minutes after the release have passed. What matters is that the decision is made before you enter, not during the move.
Does the calendar tell me which direction the price will go?
No. The calendar gives the time of a release, the previous figure and the forecast. It does not predict the reaction. A figure can come in above or below forecast and the price can still move either way. Treat the calendar as a warning about when conditions may change, not as a signal. Anyone who says a release gives a certain direction is describing something the calendar does not contain.
Are the session times the same for every broker's calendar?
The times vary between brokers and calendar providers. Some show East Africa Time, some show server time, and some show a different zone by default. The session hours themselves also shift with daylight saving. Always check which time zone your calendar is set to, and compare it with your own clock. A release shown at 15:30 on one calendar may appear at a different hour on another.
In Kenya
- Currency
- The shilling, written KSh (KES)
- Regulator
- The Capital Markets Authority (CMA) licenses and supervises firms offering these products in Kenya
- Funding
- M-Pesa and bank transfer are the common ways to move money to and from a trading account
- Time zone
- Kenya keeps one clock all year, so session times shift only when London or New York change their clocks
- Costs
- Spreads, commissions and conversion charges vary between brokers; read the fee schedule before funding
The words used on this page
- Slippage
- The difference between the price your stop was set at and the price it was actually filled at. It happens when the market moves quickly and no trade is available at your exact level. It adds to a loss or reduces a gain.
- Spread
- The gap between the price at which you can buy and the price at which you can sell. You pay it when you enter a position. It is usually small, but it can widen around scheduled releases.
- Session
- A block of hours when the main financial centres are open for trading. Sydney, Tokyo, London and New York each have one. When two sessions overlap, more orders compete and the price often moves faster.
- Scheduled release
- A public report or decision with a time announced in advance, such as a jobs report or an interest rate decision. It appears on an economic calendar with the previous figure and a forecast. It can widen spreads and cause sharp price jumps.
- Stop
- A standing instruction to close your position when the price reaches a level you chose. It does not close at that exact level. Once triggered, it closes at the best price then available.
- Overlap
- The window when two sessions are open at the same time. For EUR/USD the busiest overlap is London and New York, from about 16:00 to 20:00 Kenyan time. Price movement and slippage are often greater in this window.
What to take away
- The hour you choose changes what a stop costs you, because fills are closer to the level you set in quiet hours and further away in busy ones.
- In Kenyan time the London and New York overlap runs from about 16:00 to 20:00, and the quietest hour is around 02:00 to 03:00.
- A scheduled release can widen the spread from a fraction of a pip to several pips and push the price past your stop rather than through it.
- Check the calendar before you enter, and decide then whether to reduce size, widen the stop, or wait until the first minutes have passed.