Major pair
EUR/USD through the Lens: sessions, pips and liquidity
EUR/USD is the price of one euro in US dollars: the euro is the base currency and the dollar is the quote. It is the most heavily traded pair in the world, moved mainly by interest rate expectations on both sides of the Atlantic. SMC traders read it through session highs and lows, sweeps and fair value gaps.
Pair facts
| Base currency | EUR (euro) |
|---|---|
| Quote currency | USD (US dollar) |
| Type | Major pair |
| One pip | 0.0001 |
| Usual quote | 5 decimals (the last digit is a tenth of a pip) |
| Pip value, standard lot (100,000 EUR) | 10 USD |
| Pip value, mini lot (10,000 EUR) | 1 USD |
| Pip value, micro lot (1,000 EUR) | 0.1 USD |
Pip values are exact in the quote currency (USD). In another account currency they change with the exchange rate. No prices, no levels, no forecasts on this page: it is a description of the pair, not a view on it.
What EUR/USD is
EUR/USD joins the currencies of the two largest economic blocs in the foreign exchange market. The euro is managed by the European Central Bank in Frankfurt and the dollar by the Federal Reserve in Washington. The pair is a major, and it is the one that most beginners meet first, because it is traded everywhere and its dealing costs are usually the lowest of any pair.
What moves it over weeks and months is mostly the gap between what markets expect the two central banks to do with interest rates, along with growth and inflation data from the euro area and the United States. Some traders call the pair "fiber". That is desk slang, not an official name, and you can ignore it safely.
When EUR/USD moves
EUR/USD trades around the clock from Sunday evening to Friday evening New York time, but its activity is far from even. It is usually quiet while only Asia is open, wakes up when Frankfurt and London start dealing, and is usually busiest during the hours when London and New York are both open. Most scheduled United States data lands in the New York morning, and euro area data lands in the European morning.
On ForexLens the kill zones are fixed windows in New York time: Asia 20:00 to 00:00, London 02:00 to 05:00 and New York 07:00 to 10:00. For EUR/USD the London and New York windows are the ones SMC traders watch most closely, and the Asia window is mostly treated as the range that the later sessions react to.
How EUR/USD tends to behave
Among the pairs on this site EUR/USD is one of the calmer ones. Its typical daily movement, measured in pips, is usually smaller than that of the yen crosses or the pound pairs, and its spread is usually the tightest available. Calm is relative: around a central bank decision or a major data release it can move quickly and spreads can widen for a few moments.
Because so many participants trade it, EUR/USD often acts as the reference for the dollar as a whole. When the dollar strengthens broadly, EUR/USD tends to fall while USD/CHF and USD/CAD tend to rise. That is a tendency, and it breaks often enough that it should never be used as a signal.
How smart money concepts are applied to EUR/USD
SMC traders start by marking where liquidity is said to rest: above the Asia range high, below the Asia range low, above equal highs and below equal lows. A common reading is that London takes one side of the Asia range in a liquidity sweep, and that the real direction only shows afterwards. When that first push reverses it is called a Judas swing.
After a sweep, the reading looks for a change of character and a fair value gap left by the move away. That is a description of what the chart did, not proof of who did it. Because EUR/USD ranges are comparatively small, stops are measured in fewer pips than on a yen cross, and size is worked out from that distance. You can practise the sweep reading in Sweep or Break.
EUR/USD questions
What is the pip value of EUR/USD?
One pip on EUR/USD is the fourth decimal place of the price. Because the quote currency is the US dollar, one pip on a standard lot of 100,000 euros is worth 10 US dollars, on a mini lot of 10,000 it is worth 1 dollar, and on a micro lot of 1,000 it is worth 10 cents. If your account is in another currency, that amount is converted at the current exchange rate.
When is EUR/USD most active?
EUR/USD is usually most active while London and New York are both open, roughly 08:00 to 12:00 New York time, and it is often lively at the London open as well. It is usually quietest in the hours after New York closes. This describes when the pair tends to move, not when anyone should trade it.
Is EUR/USD a good pair for beginners to study?
It is a reasonable pair to learn on, because it is heavily traded, its spread is usually tight and its moves are usually smaller than those of the crosses. None of that makes it easy to profit from. Most retail traders lose money on every pair, EUR/USD included, so treat it as a chart to study before it is anything else.
Why do some traders call EUR/USD fiber?
Fiber is trader slang for EUR/USD. The usual explanation is that it is a play on "cable", the old nickname for GBP/USD, with fibre optics as the newer technology for the newer currency. The origin is folklore more than record. The name carries no meaning for how the pair trades.
Other pairs
Practise on simulated charts
ForexLens games use simulated prices on several pairs. Start with structure, then liquidity and sessions.