Module 6 · Session Selection: Which Profile to Trust
When the Overnight Profile Matters
All-time highs and wide-range overnight moves — plus the pre-market routine.
In this lesson you'll
- Identify the two cases where the Globex profile becomes a real reference
- Use the overnight POC/VAH/VAL at all-time highs and after catalysts
- Run a repeatable pre-market routine
You generally ignore Globex because the volume is too thin to set structure. But there are two specific situations where the overnight profile comes onto the chart as a real reference.
1. The market is at all-time highs
In uncharted territory there is no prior structure overhead — no old shelves, no value areas from previous days at these prices. Everything that exists just got built. The overnight profile is the only auction history above the prior RTH high, so the Globex POC, VAH, and VAL become the working levels until NY opens and starts adding its own volume on top. At ATH, overnight structure is the structure.
2. A large overnight move with a wide range
If Globex moved on a wide range — news, geopolitics, an overnight catalyst — the volume is no longer just noise. Real participants traded that move and a meaningful profile got built. Treat the overnight POC and value area as live references for the open. The first reaction at the overnight POC, VAH, or VAL once NY opens often tells you whether the move will be accepted or faded.
The pre-market routine
- Mark yesterday's RTH POC, VAH, VAL, plus the visible HVNs and LVNs.
- If price is at ATH, or overnight ran a wide range on a catalyst, add the Globex POC and value area.
- Identify any multi-day / multi-week HVNs sitting near current price on the composite profile.
- Note where overnight has traded relative to those levels.
- Decide the scenario at the open: open inside value (rotation), open above VAH (acceptance higher or rejection back), or open below VAL (mirror).
Key takeaways
- Default to the prior day's RTH profile; Globex is usually too thin to matter.
- Two exceptions: at ATH (no overhead structure) and after a wide-range overnight catalyst.
- In those cases the Globex POC/VAH/VAL are live references — watch the first NY reaction.
- Pre-market: mark RTH levels → add overnight if it qualifies → note position → pick the open scenario.
Check your understanding
Pick an answer to reveal instant feedback. Answer every question to complete the lesson.
Why that's off: On a normal night Globex is too thin to set structure — the prior RTH profile rules.
Why that's off: RTH is primary, but ATH and catalyst nights are the two genuine exceptions.
Why that's off: Expiration timing isn't the qualifier — uncharted price or a wide catalyst range is.
Two cases: (1) at ATH there's no prior structure overhead, so the overnight profile is the only auction history above the old high; (2) a wide-range catalyst move means real volume printed overnight and a meaningful profile got built.
Why that's off: Trading without levels at ATH is exactly when the overnight map is most useful.
Why that's off: The prior RTH POC sits below and says nothing about price discovery above the old high.
Why that's off: Round numbers may coincide, but the overnight auction levels are the real reference.
In uncharted territory everything overhead 'just got built,' so the overnight profile is the only structure above the prior RTH high. Its POC/VAH/VAL are the working levels until the NY open layers its own volume on top.
Educational content only. Nothing here is financial or trading advice. Order-flow and options patterns shift probabilities; they never guarantee outcomes.