EA news blackouts: what's your process?
Posted: Thu Oct 22, 2026 2:59 pm
Most scalping EAs should not trade around major news. How to implement this reliably?
Options:
1. Manual: turn off the EA before news. Simple but error-prone.
2. Calendar file: download the calendar weekly as CSV, EA reads it and blocks trading around listed events.
3. MT5 built-in calendar: MQL5 has CalendarValueHistory() and related functions that access the economic calendar directly.
4. External service: a web API that the EA queries.
Key settings:
- Which events: high impact only, or medium too?
- Which currencies: only the pair's currencies, or all?
- Window: minutes before and after.
- What to do with open positions: close, leave, or tighten stops?
Pitfalls:
- Calendar times in different timezones.
- Events rescheduled at short notice.
- Unscheduled news isn't in the calendar.
- In the tester, the MQL5 calendar may not work the same as live.
How do you handle news in your EAs?
Options:
1. Manual: turn off the EA before news. Simple but error-prone.
2. Calendar file: download the calendar weekly as CSV, EA reads it and blocks trading around listed events.
3. MT5 built-in calendar: MQL5 has CalendarValueHistory() and related functions that access the economic calendar directly.
4. External service: a web API that the EA queries.
Key settings:
- Which events: high impact only, or medium too?
- Which currencies: only the pair's currencies, or all?
- Window: minutes before and after.
- What to do with open positions: close, leave, or tighten stops?
Pitfalls:
- Calendar times in different timezones.
- Events rescheduled at short notice.
- Unscheduled news isn't in the calendar.
- In the tester, the MQL5 calendar may not work the same as live.
How do you handle news in your EAs?