Trading around high-impact news

What it is

Scheduled economic releases can move markets hard in seconds. The biggest for most traders are US non-farm payrolls (NFP, usually the first Friday of the month), US CPI inflation, the Federal Reserve's rate decisions (FOMC) and central bank decisions in your own markets.

Around these releases spreads widen, liquidity thins, and price can spike both ways before choosing a direction.

How to spot it

• Check the calendar every morning; UNFLD's News page grades each release's impact per currency.
• Releases are usually at 08:30 or 10:00 New York time (13:30 or 15:00 UK), FOMC decisions at 14:00 New York (19:00 UK).

How to use it

• Decide in advance: be flat before high-impact news, or have a specific plan for it.
• Avoid holding tight stops through the release; slippage can fill them far away.
• After the release, let the first spike settle and trade the structure that forms.

Common mistakes

• Entering a market order seconds before the release.
• Not knowing a red-folder event was due.

Related