Time zones for traders (UTC, GMT, New York, London)UTCBeginner
Every session, killzone and news release is tied to a clock. Pick one time zone for your chart and your rules, and convert everything else to it.
What it means
UTC is the world reference clock and never changes for summer. GMT is the same as UTC in practice. London runs on GMT in winter and BST (UTC+1) in summer. New York runs on EST (UTC−5) in winter and EDT (UTC−4) in summer.
Most ICT material is written in New York time, because the New York midnight open, the 08:30 data and the 09:30 stock open all sit on that clock. Most European traders think in London time. Both are fine; mixing them in one plan is where mistakes start.
Quick conversions for most of the year: London = New York + 5 hours, UTC = New York + 5 hours in winter and + 4 in summer, Central Europe (Frankfurt, Paris) = London + 1, Vilnius and Kyiv = London + 2.
In WickCheck Replay you can switch the chart clock at the bottom right: UTC, New York, your computer's time, a list of major cities, or any time zone in the world.
How to spot it
- Write your trading window once, with the city next to it, for example 13:30–16:00 London.
- Set the chart clock to the same city before you mark sessions or killzones.
Common mistakes
- Copying a killzone written in New York time onto a chart set to your own local time.
- Writing rules in UTC and forgetting that the market opens move by an hour twice a year.
Asian, London and New York sessions and the ICT killzones, with exact times in New York and London time, daylight saving notes and test rules.
Related terms
What a mechanical test can and cannot tell you about smart money concepts.
Education only, not financial advice. Definitions vary between teachers; these are ours, written for clarity.