Short answer
A forex calendar, also called an economic calendar, lists scheduled data releases and central bank decisions, with how much each one usually moves the market, the forecast and, once published, the actual figure. Prices react to the gap between actual and forecast, often within seconds, and spreads can widen sharply. US jobs and inflation figures and Federal Reserve decisions move gold and the major pairs most.
Economic calendar
On this page
How to read the forex calendar: what each column means
The live forex calendar on this page is a TradingView widget that updates on its own. Each row is one scheduled release or decision:
| Column | What it tells you |
|---|---|
| Time | When the figure is due. Check which time zone the calendar shows before relying on it. |
| Country or currency | Whose economy the figure describes, for example USD for the United States. |
| Event | The release itself: jobs report, consumer prices (CPI), interest-rate decision and so on. |
| Importance | How much this event has tended to move the market, usually low, medium or high. |
| Actual | The published figure, filled in at the moment of release. |
| Forecast | What economists expected on average, also called the consensus. |
| Previous | Last period’s figure, sometimes revised in the new release. |
Impact levels
High-impact events are the ones that have historically moved a currency most: US jobs and inflation figures, and central bank rate decisions. Medium-impact events, such as retail sales or business surveys, move prices less often. Low-impact ones rarely matter on their own.
The rating says nothing about direction, and it doesn’t promise a move. A low-rated figure can still shake prices if it is a big surprise, and calendars don’t always agree on what counts as high impact.
Actual vs forecast vs previous
By the time a figure comes out, the forecast is usually already in the price. What moves the market is the surprise: how far the actual figure lands from the forecast.
An illustration with made-up numbers: economists expect the US economy to have added 150,000 jobs, the report shows 60,000, and last month’s figure is revised down from 180,000 to 120,000. That is a large miss plus a downward revision. Weaker US data has often weighed on the dollar and supported gold, because traders then expect lower US interest rates. But that is a tendency, not a rule. Wages, the unemployment rate, revisions and officials’ comments can pull the other way, and first reactions are often reversed within minutes.
The events that move gold and the majors most
| Event | Published by | When | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|---|
| US jobs report (non-farm payrolls, NFP) | Bureau of Labor Statistics | Usually the first Friday of the month, 08:30 New York time | Jobs and wages shape expectations for US interest rates |
| US consumer prices (CPI) | Bureau of Labor Statistics | Monthly, 08:30 New York time | Inflation is the Federal Reserve’s main concern |
| US rate decision (FOMC) | Federal Reserve | Eight scheduled meetings a year; statement at 14:00 New York time, press conference about 30 minutes later | Moves the dollar against almost everything, and gold |
| Euro-area rate decision | European Central Bank | Every six weeks; decision at 14:15 Frankfurt time, press conference at 14:45 | EURUSD and the other euro pairs |
The next US jobs reports are due on 4 December 2026 and 8 January 2027, and the next Fed decision on 9 December 2026. Other central banks matter for their own currencies: the Bank of England for pound pairs, the Bank of Japan for yen pairs and, if you trade USDZAR, the South African Reserve Bank.
In your local time
Nigeria, Ghana, South Africa and Kenya don’t change their clocks, but New York does. From 1 November 2026 to 13 March 2027, US releases arrive at these times:
| Nigeria (WAT) | Ghana (GMT) | South Africa (SAST) | Kenya (EAT) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 08:30 New York (NFP, CPI) | 14:30 | 13:30 | 15:30 | 16:30 |
| 14:00 New York (Fed statement) | 20:00 | 19:00 | 21:00 | 22:00 |
From 14 March to 6 November 2027 they come one hour earlier. Our forex trading hours page has the full session tables.
What happens to spreads and prices around news
- Spreads widen. In the seconds around a high-impact release, fewer buyers and sellers are quoting, and the gap between the buy and sell price can grow well beyond its usual size.
- Prices jump. The price can skip levels entirely, so stop and pending orders may be filled at a worse price than the one you set. This is called slippage.
- Margin can rise. Some brokers raise margin requirements around major news. Exness says in its help centre that leverage can change around important releases.
- Leverage magnifies all of it. On one standard lot of EURUSD a pip is worth about $10, so a sudden 30-pip move is about $300: most of the balance of an account holding a few hundred dollars.
Many beginners choose to stay out of the market for the minutes around high-impact releases, or trade much smaller. Watching a release on a demo account shows you how the spread and the price behave without risking money. For gold specifically, see how to trade gold.
Common questions
What time is NFP in Nigeria?
The US jobs report (non-farm payrolls) is published at 08:30 New York time, usually on the first Friday of the month. From early November to mid-March that is 14:30 WAT; from mid-March to early November it is 13:30 WAT. The next releases are due on 4 December 2026 and 8 January 2027.
What does high impact mean on an economic calendar?
It is the calendar's estimate of how much an event has typically moved the currency in the past, usually shown with colours or one to three bars. It says nothing about direction, and a low-impact event can still move prices if the number is a big surprise.
What is the difference between forecast and previous?
Previous is last period's figure, sometimes revised in the new release. Forecast, or consensus, is the average expectation of economists surveyed before the release. Markets have usually priced in the forecast already, so the reaction tends to come from how far the actual figure lands from it.
Why did the price move the opposite way to what the number suggested?
Other parts of the same release, revisions to earlier months or comments by officials can outweigh the headline figure. The first move after news is often reversed within minutes, which is one reason trading the news is risky.