Gap strategies: do you trade the weekend gap?

The Sunday open sometimes gaps far from Friday's close, and gap traders try to fade or follow the gap depending on context. It's a thin, fast market with wide spreads — a specialty, not a starting point.

Gap strategies: do you trade the weekend gap? — bid-ask spread diagram
The bid-ask spread on a currency pair

Have you traded gaps?

  • your rule for fade versus follow
  • how the thin Sunday liquidity affected fills
  • whether the gap usually closed in your data
Gap strategies: do you trade the weekend gap? — risk-reward diagram
A risk-reward ratio of 1 to 2

The weekend gaps guide explains the mechanics and the risk.

Background: Weekend gaps: why prices jump when the forex market reopens

Currencies stop trading on Friday evening, but the news doesn't. What happens to your positions and stops when the market reopens at a different price.

What is a weekend gap in forex?

A difference between Friday's closing price and the first price when the market reopens on Sunday, caused by news or events over the weekend.

Will my stop-loss protect me from a gap?

Not fully. A standard stop is triggered when the market reopens and fills at the first available price, which can be beyond the stop. Guaranteed stops, where offered, avoid this for a fee.

Read the full guide

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