Short answer
For short expiries, the safest rule is to stop trading the affected assets from 15 minutes before to 15 minutes after a high-impact release such as a Fed or ECB rate decision, US jobs data (NFP) or US inflation (CPI). Price can jump in either direction within seconds, which turns indicator signals into coin flips.
The releases that matter most
| Release | Usually when (New York time) | Moves |
|---|---|---|
| US Non-Farm Payrolls (NFP) | First Friday, 08:30 | USD pairs, gold |
| US CPI (inflation) | Mid-month, 08:30 | USD pairs, gold |
| Federal Reserve decision | 8 times a year, 14:00 | Everything priced in USD |
| ECB decision | 8 times a year, Europe morning | EUR pairs |
| US crude inventories | Wednesday, 10:30 | Oil, USD/CAD |
Convert these times to your zone with the market hours clock, or check the trading-hours page for your country.
The 15-minute rule
- Each morning, check an economic calendar for high-impact events.
- Block out 15 minutes before and after each event for the affected assets.
- Trade other assets, or take a break.
What about OTC?
OTC assets are priced by the broker and may not react to real news. That does not make them safer — it makes them a different market. Keep those results separate.
FAQ
Can I profit from news?
Some traders try, but the first seconds after a release are very fast and spreads in the real market widen. For most people, avoiding the window is the better choice.
How this page was made: drafted with AI assistance from public sources and our own test logs, then checked and edited by the ExpiryLab editorial team. The date above shows the last check. How we test · Editorial policy