How to read an economic calendar

What the calendar lists

An economic calendar lists scheduled releases: inflation (CPI), employment reports, growth figures and central-bank rate decisions, with the time, the country, the previous value, the forecast and, after the release, the actual figure.

Why prices can move fast

Prices reflect expectations. When an actual figure differs from the forecast, expectations change at once, and spreads can widen and orders can fill far from the requested price.

Using it in your routine

Check the calendar at the start of the day and the week. Decide in advance how your plan treats high-importance releases: stay out, reduce size, or trade only after the release. Write that rule in your plan and note in your journal how trades near releases behaved.

Our free tools page has a live economic calendar you can filter by country.