Economic calendar
Also called: Economic calendar, Forex calendar, News calendar, Data calendar, Ekonomik takvim
A schedule of data releases such as inflation, jobs and rate decisions, showing when each comes out, the previous value and the forecast.
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What is an economic calendar?
An economic calendar lists scheduled data releases that can move markets. Each row shows the release, its country, the time, the previous value, the forecast and, once out, the actual figure. Most calendars rate releases as low, medium or high impact.
The big movers are well known. US nonfarm payrolls (NFP) come out most months on the first Friday. Inflation (CPI) arrives monthly. Central bank rate decisions from the Fed, the European Central Bank or Turkey's central bank come a few times a year on dates announced in advance. GDP, retail sales and PMI figures are watched closely as well.
Read the times in your own time zone. Many US releases come at 8:30 New York time, which shifts against other countries when daylight saving starts or ends on different dates. Check your calendar's time zone setting once.
How do you read it?
Markets react less to whether a number is good or bad than to how far it lands from the forecast. The forecast is already in the price. If US annual inflation is expected at 3.1 percent and comes in at 3.1, there's often just a brief wobble. At 3.4, the market starts pricing rates staying higher for longer and the dollar can strengthen.
Here is what that surprise can look like. EUR/USD sits around 1.0880 before the release with small candles. On the number, two 5-minute candles take it to 1.0820: 60 pips. At the same moment a 1-pip spread can widen to several pips, and orders may not fill where you wanted.
Check the previous value too, because some data gets revised. NFP often revises the prior month. Even if the new figure meets the forecast, a downward revision can send the market the other way.
Open the calendar at the start of each trading day. If you hold a position into a high-impact release, decide in advance: cut size, review the stop against the structure, or close before the number.
Try it on a chart
This chart comes from right after a data release. Compare the candles before the release with the ones after it, and look at how far price has travelled. Whichever you pick, Buy, Sell or Wait, think about where your stop would go.
The data is out. Your turn: read the chart and make your call.
No sign-up needed. Take a guess; when the chart opens, you'll see why.
The most common mistake: chasing the first candle
The data hits, price drops 60 pips in two candles and you sell near the low. Where does the stop go? The logical place is where the move started, 60 pips higher. 1R becomes huge, and a tighter stop gets taken by the first bounce.
Ignoring the calendar entirely. You spot a clean setup on a quiet chart, and ten minutes later a rate decision lands and price jumps your stop. The setup wasn't wrong; the timing was.
Interpreting the number yourself and picking a direction. A strong jobs report sometimes lifts the dollar, and sometimes the market focuses on wages or revisions instead. Rather than guess what the number means, watch how price reacts and decide once the move builds structure.
What the calendar doesn't show
It only lists scheduled releases. An unexpected remark from a central banker, a geopolitical event or major company news won't be on it, yet can move price just as hard.
Impact ratings are rough. A high-impact release can do nothing on the day, while a low-impact one can move markets if that topic is in focus. Treat the ratings as a heads-up, not a measurement.
At release time price can swing both ways. The first candle wicks down, the second closes up; the first minutes don't always show the real direction. That's why many traders avoid opening new trades just before and just after a release and wait for price to build structure.
Frequently asked questions
How do you read an economic calendar?
Each row shows the release, country, time, previous value, forecast and actual figure. The key is the gap between forecast and actual: the market prices the forecast in advance and reacts to the surprise. The impact column roughly shows how much a release usually moves price. Make sure the times are set to your own time zone.
Should you trade during news releases?
You can, but the risk is high. On high-impact data spreads widen, price can swing dozens of pips in seconds and stop orders can fill worse than planned. Many traders avoid new trades a few minutes either side of the release. If you want to trade after the news, wait for the first structure price builds, not the first candle.
Which economic releases move markets the most?
Central bank rate decisions, inflation and employment data usually bring the sharpest reactions. In the US, nonfarm payrolls, the Fed decision and CPI move dollar pairs, gold and indices together. In Turkey, the central bank's rate decision and the monthly inflation figure stand out. Which release matters most also depends on what the market is focused on at the time.
