The recurring macro calendar, in UTC

The events that move currency markets repeat on a fixed schedule. This page lists them in UTC so you can
set the reminders once and use them all year.

Monthly

• NFP — US non-farm payrolls.
  The first Friday of the month, 12:30 or 13:30 UTC depending on the season. The largest volatility event of
  the month.
• US CPI. Mid-month, same time of day. For currency markets this is usually the most
  important release after the rate decision itself.
• US retail sales. Around the middle of the month.
• Manufacturing and services PMI. Early in the
  month for the month just ended, released region by region through the day.
• US initial jobless claims. Every Thursday. Small impact, but consistent.

By meeting cycle

• The Fed — eight meetings a year, announced in the late UTC afternoon with a press
  conference half an hour later. The press conference usually moves markets more than the decision
  itself.
• The ECB — eight meetings a year, announced around midday UTC.
• The Bank of England — eight meetings; the market reads the vote split in the minutes
  closely.
• The Bank of Japan — eight meetings, announced in the Asian morning. JPY pairs move
  sharply around it.
• The RBA (Australia) — meets more often, announced in the Asian session. It feeds
  directly into AUD/USD.

Weekly

• US crude oil inventories — Wednesday afternoon
  UTC. The biggest weekly volatility event for oil. There is an unofficial report on Tuesday that usually
  gives an early signal.
• Positioning reports from market participants — at the end of the week, showing which
  way the large players are leaning.

The hours of the day, in UTC

• 23:00–08:00 — the Asian session. Moderate liquidity, good for JPY and AUD pairs.
• 08:00–17:00 — the London session. The largest volume and the tightest spreads.
• 12:30–17:00 — the London/New York overlap. Peak liquidity, and the window in which
  most US data is released.
• 20:00–22:00 — the changeover. The thinnest part of the day; avoid opening new
  positions.

Three notes about times

• Daylight saving. The US and Europe shift by an hour at different points in the year, so
  release times move with them. Do not memorise a fixed clock time.
• The broker’s server time usually differs from yours. Check by comparing the timestamp
  of the latest H1 candle with your actual time.
• A public holiday in London or New York thins liquidity for the whole day, even though
  the market stays open.

How to use this calendar

Two minutes each morning: open the economic calendar, filter to
the currencies you trade and high impact, and put the times in your own diary. That alone avoids most of the
losses that come from not knowing there was news today.

This article is for information only and is not investment advice. Conditions and fee levels are published by the brokers and can change at any time — check with the broker you actually use. Leveraged forex and CFD trading carries a high level of risk and can cost you your entire deposit.