Economic calendar
Releases, forecasts and actual figures, in your own time zone. Time zone, currencies and impact are set with the icon at the top right of the calendar.
How to read the calendar
Each line is a release: an inflation, employment or growth figure, a central bank decision, a speech. The impact column separates the releases that move the market from those that go unnoticed.
Three figures matter: the previous value, the forecast, meaning the economists' consensus, and the actual figure. The market mostly reacts to the gap between the forecast and the actual figure, not to the figure itself.
A better-than-expected figure usually supports the currency concerned, because it makes a central bank more likely to raise rates, or less likely to cut them. It is only a tendency: the context and the expectations already priced in matter just as much.
Using it to trade
Before opening a position, check what is scheduled for both currencies of the pair during the life of the trade. A major release can widen spreads and take out a stop in seconds.
Many traders avoid entering just before a high-impact release, or reduce their size. On a funded account, also check the prop firm's rules: some forbid trading around major announcements.
Frequently asked questions
What time are releases shown in?
In the time zone chosen in the calendar settings. Check it once: it is the most common reason a release seems to arrive at the wrong time.
Which releases should I watch first?
Central bank rate decisions, inflation, employment and, to a lesser extent, growth and activity indices. Filter impact to the highest level to keep only those.
Are figures published live?
Yes, the actual figure appears as soon as it is released. The data comes from Tradays, the calendar of MetaQuotes, the publisher of MetaTrader.
And your trades around the news?
My Trading Book records your MT5 trades on its own and shows you, for each session, the day's releases next to your results.
Discover My Trading Book →Calendar provided by Tradays (MetaQuotes). Information provided for reference only, not investment advice. Read the risk warning.