Forex news release is an important catalyst for short-term movements the forex market. How to trade forex successfully on the forex news release is becoming increasingly important for traders. Generally, no less than seven pieces of data are released daily from the eight major currencies or countries that are most closely followed. So for news traders, there are plenty of opportunities.
What Are the Key Releases?
When trading news, you first have to know which releases are actually expected that week. Second, it is key for you to know which data is important. Generally speaking, these are the most important economic releases for any country:
1. Interest rate decision
2. Retail sales
3. Inflation (consumer price or producer price)
4. Unemployment
5. Industrial production
6. Business sentiment surveys
7. Consumer confidence surveys
8. Trade balance
9. Manufacturing sector surveys
How Do I Actually Trade News?
The most common way to trade news is to look for a period of consolidation ahead of a big number and to just trade the breakout on the back of the number. This can be done on both a short-term intraday basis and a daily basis. For news traders, this would have provided a great opportunity to put on a breakout trade, especially since the likelihood of a sharp move at this time was extremely high.
But trading news is harder than you might think. The primary reason is volatility. You can be making the right move but end up being stopped out, or the market may simply not have the momentum to sustain the move.
Opportunities were plentiful for breakout traders, but bullish momentum in the dollar was so strong that such a bad payrolls number failed to put a sustainable dent in the currency’s rally. One thing you should keep in mind is that, on the back of a good number, a strong move should also see a strong extension.
Can I Avoid Getting Hit by Volatility When Trading News?
The answer to capturing a breakout in volatility without having to face the risk of a reversal is to trade FX SPOT options. A number of different FX brokers offer a variety of exotic options. Exotic options generally have barrier levels and will be profitable or unprofitable based on whether the barrier level is breached. The payout is predetermined and the premium or price of the option is based on the payout.
A double one-touch option has two barrier levels. Either one of the levels must be breached prior to expiration in order for the option to become profitable and for the buyer to receive the payout. If neither barrier level is breached prior to expiration, the option expires worthless. A double one-touch option is the perfect option to trade for news releases because it is a pure non-directional breakout play. As long as the barrier level is breached – even if the price reverses course later – the payout is made.
A one-touch option only has one barrier level, which generally makes it slightly less expensive than a double one-touch option. The same criterion holds – the payout is only made if the barrier is breached prior to expiration. This is a good option to buy if you actually have a view on whether the number will be stronger or weaker than the market’s consensus forecast.
A double no-touch option is the exact opposite of a double one-touch option. There are two barrier levels, but in this case, neither barrier level can be breached before expiration – otherwise the option payout is not made. This option is great for news traders who think that the economic release will not cause a pronounced breakout in the currency pair and that it will continue to range trade.
In summary, If you want to trade forex successfully in the FX market, key considerations to keep in mind are knowing which releases are expected when, which ones are most important given current economic conditions and how to trade based on this market-moving data.