Markets · 6 pages · 12 min

Why a print at night can be a bad guide

A small after-hours trade can cross a wide spread and say little about the next official open.

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From the opening

A nighttime print is one trade in the thin after-hours book, often for a small size. It can be a bad guide to the next regular-session price because it may have crossed a wide spread or reflected a quote that the returning crowd will replace. The opening covers one thin trade is not a verdict, a wide spread distorts the print, and the next open is a new auction.

The rest of the brief — the later sections and the reading notes — opens after Stripe confirms payment.

Inside

  • One thin trade is not a verdict
  • A wide spread distorts the print
  • The next open is a new auction
  • Heavy night volume is different
  • Where the idea stops applying
  • A distinction worth keeping

Sources

  • After-hours price discovery
  • Closing auction versus extended-hours prints