ES Session Recap — Tuesday, August 18, 2026

ES gapped down 42.50 points at the open on Tuesday, August 18, 2026 and settled at 7,715.50, −53.25 points (−0.69%) versus the prior regular-session close. The regular session traded a 25.00-point range between 7,710.25 and 7,735.25, closing in the lower part of the range.

Overnight trade ahead of the open ranged from 7,716.50 to 7,770.50. The day session took out the overnight low, which is worth logging if you track overnight-range behavior as part of your prep.

Price built a 18.75-point initial balance (09:30–10:30 ET, 7,716.50–7,735.25) and broke below it, extending about 33% of the IB range below the IB low at the furthest point.

Session volume totaled roughly 1,216,436 contracts across the trading day, with about 963,371 traded during regular hours.

One session is a data point, not a pattern. The way to use a day like this is to compare it against the distribution: how often ES breaks its initial balance in this direction, what range expansion typically follows, and how similar sessions resolved. Profitabul's paid report engine computes exactly those statistics over historical sessions.