ICT New York Midnight Open (NYMO): How to Actually Use It | Darya Filipenka

Traders use the New York Midnight Open (NYMO) in different ways. This is my approach. It is grounded in ICT principles (see second video below), though my interpretation differs slightly (first video). The New York midnight open is not a standalone trading level; it is a contextual framework for understanding accumulation, manipulation, and distribution within the intraday cycle.

 

Black horizontal line represents the NY Midnight Open (NYMO).
Red shaded area: discount entry zone at FVG; Green shaded area: expected premium extension target zone.

Option 1: Breakout Continuation (FVG)
A strong body closure past NY midnight open sets up a trend play. Enter on the retest of the first 3m/5m Fair Value Gap (FVG or imbalance) formed after the break. Stop loss goes beyond midnight open or the nearest swing point; target 2R.

Option 2: Liquidity Sweep Continuation
Price wicks through NY midnight open but fails to close past it, indicating a sweep. Enter at the next candle open once an opposing order block (OB) forms to confirm continuation. Stop loss goes at the sweep swing point; target 2R.

Option 3: Weak Breakout Reversal
A weak closure or immediate rejection wick at midnight open signals a fakeout. Enter a reversal play at the next candle open once a counter-trend OB forms. Stop loss goes at the midnight open or recent swing level; target 2R.

Option 4: Higher-Timeframe Inversion
A strong breakout hits a higher-timeframe (HTF) key level, forcing a reversal. Enter at the next candle open when the initial breakout FVG fails and acts as an Inversion FVG (IFVG), aligned with an opposing OB. Stop loss goes at the HTF swing point.

A key misconception is treating it as a level to trade from. Price does not react to it because it is "magical"; it serves as a reference point. Its value is understood through the Power of Three: accumulation, manipulation, and distribution. The New York midnight open often marks the transition between these phases.

 

ICT NYMO Explained.

 

Think of a sprinter: accumulation is the setup, manipulation the adjustment, and distribution the race. The move does not begin at the New York midnight open—it begins only after price leaves and holds away from it.

Stage 1: Accumulation

Defined by range-bound price with no clear direction or strong volume, often forming around the daily open. Intraday, price frequently consolidates near the New York midnight open. Position relative to the level is meaningless here; directional bias is not yet established and the dealing range is still forming.

Stage 2: Manipulation

The false move before the real move. Price may trade above or below the level to induce liquidity, but this does not define premium or discount. It is typically a setup. Price should interact with higher-timeframe levels and show a reaction, confirmed by order flow shifts or displacement. Once price completes this and returns through the level, manipulation is likely ending.

Stage 3: Distribution

The real move begins only after a decisive break and close beyond the NYMO level. Sweeps or consolidation indicate continued manipulation. A strong close, typically with displacement, confirms expansion. Repeated returns to the level signal that the range is still forming.

Dealing Range Perspective

The Dealing Range is the price range between a defined high and low that establishes premium and discount. The New York midnight open acts as the center of the developing range. Only after distribution begins do true expansion, clear premium/discount zones, and defined swings emerge. These cannot be traded meaningfully until price holds away from equilibrium.

 

Invalidation

If price fails to hold after a break, distribution is not active. Rejections (sweeps without close) and weak closes followed by reversals signal lack of confirmation. Strong, sustained closes are required. Continuous trading above and below the NYMO level without expansion indicates ongoing accumulation—best to stay out.

 

Invalidation Signal: If price fails to hold away from the NYMO, distribution is

inactive and the market remains undecided. Not every touch is significant. 

 

Retest Logic (Time-Based Behavior)

If the level is not retested between 3:00–7:00 a.m. New York time (range formation window), the probability increases of a retest between 8:30–11:00 a.m. If it is retested early, the range is often balanced and distribution may continue. If not, the level becomes a likely pullback or mitigation target, creating higher-probability setups.

 

How to Trade It

Wait for a strong close beyond the NYMO level, then look for a retracement into the first fair value gap; enter on reaction with risk beyond the level. Alternatively, treat sweeps as continuation setups with confirmation via order flow and structure, refining entries with candle sequences, order blocks, or fair value gaps.

If a break lacks conviction, wait for confirmation such as a break in opposing structure. In optimal conditions, combine a strong break, order flow confirmation, and higher-timeframe alignment. If a higher-timeframe objective is reached immediately after the break, favor reversal setups.

 

Some Extremely Useful Statistics

The following statistics can be used to align with what occurs between 3:00 and 7:00 a.m. to confirm a potential retracement.

► SPX / ES: If price opens at 9:30 a.m. above the New York midnight open, there is a 58% chance it will retrace to that level. If price opens below the New York midnight open, the probability of a retracement increases to 69%. 

► On Thursdays, there is a stronger tendency to retrace to the New York midnight open when price opens below the level. On these days, the probability increases to 88%.

► NDX / NQ: If price opens above the New York midnight open, there is a 57% chance of a retracement. If price opens below the level, there is a 63% chance of a retracement back to the New York midnight open.

► On Tuesdays there is a 67% chance of a retracement to the New York midnight open if price opens above the level, and a 73% chance of a retracement if price opens below it. 

► Gold: If price opens above the New York midnight open, there is a 47% chance of a retracement to that level. This idea should again be aligned with higher-timeframe levels and the 3:00 to 7:00 a.m. range—specifically, what occurs during that window. If price opens below the New York midnight open, there is a 51% chance of a retracement.

 Reference:

Darya Filipenka (January 14, 2026) - ICT New York Midnight Open (NYMO) Explained (video)

  

Michael J. Huddleston on how to use the New York Midnight Open.

 

See also:

Darya Filipenka (2024) - ICT Silver Bullet Strategy. 

Darya Filipenka (2024) - ICT AM NY Session A+ Setup based on Quarterly Theory. 

Darya Filipenka (2022-2024) - ICT Concepts and Infographics. 

Darya Filipenka (2024) - ICT Syllabus for Beginners - How to Study ICT on YouTube. 

Darya Filipenka (2023) - Unlocking Success in ICT 2022 Mentorship: The Smart Money Guide to the Full ICT Day Trading Model.  

S&P 500 – Bearish Structure and 7% Downside Setup | Justin Bennett

On the 4 hour chart, a bearish Break of Structure (BoS) confirms sellers remain in control, so the focus stays on short setups. Just below current price sits a key daily support level (equal lows), which also functions as a weekly external low—making it structurally critical.

 » On the daily time frame, a fair value gap (FVG or imbalance) stands out as a critical zone for the coming week. 

This gap has not yet been fully mitigated, leaving unfinished business in the market. «

S&P 500 (4 hour candles).

For next week, the primary setup is a rally into a daily Fair Value Gap (FVG) that has not yet been mitigated. If price trades into this area—especially into premium above recent highs—the objective is to wait for a lower time frame Change of Character (CHoCH) before entering shorts. No confirmation, no trade.

 » Price always moves from liquidity to inefficiency and vice versa, or from internal liquidity to external liquidity and vice versa. «

Longer term, a weekly close below the external low would signal acceptance and a higher timeframe shift. That opens the path toward a large unmitigated weekly imbalance, implying roughly a ~7% downside move (toward the 6,000 region).

 

» The next logical target is a large unmitigated weekly imbalance left behind by a strong displacement candle. 

This zone has never been retested and represents a magnet for price. Projecting into that imbalance suggests a

potential move of approximately 7% to the downside, bringing the S&P 500 toward just above the 6,000 level. «

S&P 500 (weekly candles).

  

In short: bearish structure, wait for a retrace into imbalance, confirm weakness, then target continuation lower.

 

Reference:

Justin Bennett (March 20, 2026) - S&P 500: This Is Only The Beginning (7% Drop). (video). 

[obviously recorded before the March 20 market open.] 

 

S&P 500 (4-hour candles; March 20 market close): bearish 4-hour FVGs and Premium/Discount levels.

Nasdaq (4-hour candles; March 20 market close): bearish 4-hour FVGs and Premium/Discount levels.

 

 

    

See also:

 JadeCap (2026) - All Five ICT Entry Models Explained. 

orderbloque (2025) - Market Logic Based on Liquidity, Volume, and Inefficiency.

Michael J. Huddleston (2023) - ICT Liquidity - The Financial Market's Zero Sum Game. 

WadeFX (2021) - Market Structure and Powerful Setups.

Richard D. Wyckoff (1931) - Accumulation and Distribution Schematics.

Engulfing Bar Strategy | JadeCap

This one pattern helped me make over $4 million in the last three years and even break the world-record payout at Apex. Let me show you exactly how it works:

 

» For a true engulfing pattern, the new candle must break the previous candle’s low and the previous candle’s high. «

 

What Is an Engulfing Bar? We’re simply looking for two candles—along with proper context—to define the pattern: Imagine we have a down candle with its open, high, low, and close. The next candle is what determines whether we have an engulfing bar. For a true engulfing pattern, the new candle must break the previous candle’s low and the previous candle’s high. It completely “engulfs” the previous range (aka Outside Bar/Candle).

 

So picture the first down candle closing. The next candle runs below that low, takes it out, reverses, pushes above the prior high, and closes somewhere near the top half of its range. That two-candle formation gives us a tremendous amount of information about where the next candle—or even the next several candles—may go.

 

Understanding the Context: Inside a higher-timeframe candle (4-Hour or daily), there are dozens of smaller candles—1-minute, 5-minute, 15-minute—that form all the micro-structure. Within that lower-timeframe structure, the engulfing pattern represents:

 

▪ A Liquidity Raid

▪ A Shift in Market Structure

▪ A Smart Money Reversal

▪ A Market Maker Buy Model (for bullish engulfing)

So although it's only two candles on a higher timeframe, those two candles often reflect an entire lower-timeframe reversal model.

The key is the closure. Many beginners think a candle will close as an engulfing bar, only for it to close weakly or back inside the prior range. That invalidates the pattern. A proper engulfing bar should close with a strong, decisive body—typically in the upper 50% for bullish setups, or the lower 50% for bearish setups.

Bullish vs. Bearish Examples: For a bullish engulfing bar, the second candle runs below the prior low, reverses, and breaks the prior high (Outside Candle). For a bearish engulfing bar, it runs above the prior high, reverses, and breaks the prior low. Both reflect a higher-timeframe representation of a lower-timeframe Market Maker Model.

 

» Every setup has a failure rate. «

 

What Most Traders Don’t Realize: Every setup—Engulfing Bars, Fair Value Gaps (FVGs), Market Maker Models—has a failure rate. I learned this the hard way after blowing dozens of accounts trying to trade every engulfing bar I saw. Two things matter:

1. Every setup fails sometimes. If you backtest these candles, you'll see some of them lose. Your job is not to find the magical 100%-win-rate setup. It doesn’t exist. You may find these patterns work 60% of the time. Your winners must be managed well enough to pay for the losers.
2. Location matters. A lot. When I was new, I took every engulfing bar. That was a huge mistake.
   ▪ If you're bullish, you want the engulfing bar to form at a swing low, ideally after taking out sell-side liquidity.
   ▪ If it forms after taking out buy-side liquidity—at a high—it's often a sign of exhaustion and more likely to fail.
   ▪ The reverse is true for bearish setups.

Avoid:

▪ Bullish engulfing bars printed at or after taking out buy-side liquidity.

▪ Bearish engulfing bars printed at or after taking out sell-side liquidity.

 

These filters alone drastically improve your win rate.

 

The $98,000 Example: Let’s walk through the trade from last week. We printed a large bullish engulfing candle immediately after FOMC. The candle swept sell-side liquidity, reversed, broke the prior high, and closed strongly—exactly what we want at a swing low. We were also inside a daily Fair Value Gap (FVG), adding even more confluence.

 

Bullish Engulfing Bar Setup in the NZDUSD (4-Hour candles). 

My first target was buy-side liquidity above the highs. Since the market was near all-time highs, I was also looking for a move toward the psychological 25,000 level. As soon as the futures market reopened at 6 p.m., I entered with a 20-lot position. My stop was below the weekly open. I was looking for roughly a 1:3 risk-to-reward.

 

On the lower timeframes, the price action continued to confirm the model—bullish FVGs forming on the way up, continuation structure holding. Meanwhile, bearish engulfing candles printed at swing lows failed, exactly like we want to see.

 

I showed the live account login on the video: real balance, real fills, floating around $93,000 at one point. But the dollar amount doesn’t matter. If your account is small, making $200 or $400 using the same rules is identical—it’s just a matter of position size. Years ago, I was risking $500–$1,000. As my net worth grew, I increased my risk proportionally. Eventually, price hit my target and I closed the trade for roughly $98,000.

 

Final Thoughts: Engulfing bars are easy to spot—but only powerful when combined with

 

    ▪ Proper context

    ▪ Liquidity understanding

    ▪ Market structure

    ▪ Higher-timeframe narrative

    ▪ Disciplined trade management

 

Your homework is to backtest and forward-test these exact setups: where the engulfing bar forms, where the liquidity sits, where your stop should go, and how to trail it as price moves in your favor. Scaling in, adjusting stops, and managing the trade all revolve around that one pattern.

With this engulfing bar strategy and the rules I just shared, you now have everything you need to start identifying high-probability opportunities. Remember: profitable trading isn’t about talent or luck—it’s about discipline, patience, and following your rules every single time.

Reference:

JadeCap (Sep 27, 2025) - I made $98,741 Trading This Simple Candlestick Strategy. (video)

 

Stop using the wrong timeframes. Use H4 and M15.

 

See also:

JadeCap (July 18, 2025) - Simple ICT Day Trading Strategy That Works Every Day.
JadeCap (July 17, 2025) - ICT Intraday Liquidity & Volatility Trading Playbook.

Michael J. Huddleston (2022) - Trading the Outside Day Candle. (video) 

Michael J. Huddleston (2022) - The Two Fair Value Gaps: Profiting from Imbalance. (video) 

Larry Williams (1998) - Outside Bar Trading Setups. 

Trading Inside or Outside the Daily and Weekly Range | Stacey Burke

When a market opens outside of the previous day's range and then auctions around the open, one's first impression is that there is no directional conviction present. In reality, the mere fact that the opening is beyond the previous day's range suggests that new other time frame activity has caused price to seek a higher or lower level. Given that the market has opened out of balance, there is a greater chance that directional conviction will develop than if the market had opened and auctioned within the range. An Open-Auction outside of range has the potential to be a big day, while an Open-Auction within value usually lacks conviction.

 

There are only three things price can do:
1. Breakout from a Range and Trend.
2. Breakout from a Range and Reverse.
3. Trading Range between Highs and Lows.

[...] In the large majority of cases, activity during any given day has direct and measurable implications on the following day. It is only on the relatively rare occasion when a market moves extremely out of balance that there is no correlation between two consecutive days. Understanding these implications enables a trader to more successfully visualize developing market activity.

The salient concept here is market balance. The relationship of the open to the previous day's value area and range gives valuable clues to the market's state of balance and what kind of risk/opportunity relationship to expect on a given trading day. In short, the greatest risk and opportunity arise when a market opens outside of the previous day's range. This indicates that the market is out of balance.

When a market opens out of balance, the potential for a dynamic move in either direction is high. Conversely, a market that opens and is accepted (auctions for at least one hour) within the previous day's value area embodies lower risk, but also less opportunity. The acceptance of price within the previous day's value area indicates balance, and therefore reduces the potential for a dynamic move.

Quoted from:

James F. Dalton, Eric T. Jones & Robert B. Dalton (1999) - Mind over Markets.

 

[The Value Area is a range where approximately 70% of the prior days volume traded. 

The range is derived from one standard deviation on either side of the mean which is roughly 70%.]

 

 Reference:
Stacey Burke (Mar 08, 2023) - Best Scalping Day Trading Secret For Beginners - How To Scalp Forex & Stock Market. 

 

See also:

Stacey Burke Trading - YouTube Channel.

Stacey Burke (2022) - Best Trade Setups Playbook.

GhostTraders (2022) - External and Internal Range Liquidity. 

 Aksel Kibar (2022) - Breakouts that are NOT followed by Pullback.
Aksel Kibar (2022) - Breakouts that are followed by Pullback.
Aksel Kibar (2022) - Breakouts that are followed by a hard Re-Test of Pattern Boundary.

 The Inner Circle Trader (2017) - Intro To ICT Optimal Trade Entry.

Al Brooks (2012) - Trading Ranges. 

Point & Line | Charles Drummond

And, with succinct regularity, it became obvious that all of the input for several days, weeks and months gave birth to each day's high/low/close in a constant manner and this expression when analyzed, signaled the story in relation to its past history - the mathematical dot, and the movement of prices around it.  

 

 

S&P 500 (weekly candles; upper left), S&P 500 (daily candles; upper right), 

S&P 500 (4-hour candles; lower left), S&P 500 (1-hour candles; lower left).

 

Gracious me, there were constants all over the place:

• prices each day moved a maximum of "x" mm away from the ‘dot' line.
• prices each day, moved a maximum of "x" cents up or down from the dot itself.
• prices eventually stop moving above the main line in an up market into an area or channel just under the line, and in an up moving market, prices are topping.
• the dots started to move closer and closer together in an upmarket and the market was topping.
• dots swung off the main dot line - bells ringing left and right - market is topping.
• the dot is swinging more, it's falling under or above. The dot didn't swing under or above. And since it didn't, and not doing what it's supposed to do, the opposite is happening.
• instead of the dot going up exactly in a straight line, or down in a straight line, they are "snaking" very close to each other, horizontally - we're in a congestion.

Often I can tell, two days into a congestion that we're into a congestion.

Quoted from:
Charles Drummond (1979) - How to make Money in the Futures Market ... and lots of it.

 

  

See also:

Charles Drummond & Ted Hearne - Official Website.

Wikipedia (2023) - Drummond Geometry.

Ted Hearne (2022) - Drummond Geometry: Uncover Hidden Market Structure.
Ted Hearne (2007) - Drummond Geometry: Picking Yearly Highs and Lows in Interbank Forex Trading.  

In: David Keller (2007) - Breakthroughs in Technical Analysis.