Canadian and US data at 8:30 AM Eastern

[Fairman]

Canadian and US data at 8:30 AM Eastern

A large share of North American data lands at 8:30 AM Eastern: employment, CPI, retail sales, jobless claims, and more. For scalpers, it is the most reliable volatility event of the typical week, hence tempting.

The mechanics at the release are consistent. Spreads widen sharply in the seconds before. The first print moves price quickly, usually with a spike beyond the eventual direction. Then it either continues or reverses within a minute as participants digest details.

The pitfalls are well known: slippage, requotes, partial fills. A less obvious problem is that many traders target the same setups. Everyone places breakout orders around the pre-news range, so the order flow becomes crowded and the fills get worse.

Some traders prefer to trade the second move, after the initial reaction. Others stay out entirely on lower-tier data, since the movement is small relative to costs.

Rank releases by the actual average move in the pair being traded, using historical data. The list will not match the calendar's importance labels.

Which 8:30 releases produce a tradable move in the pairs you follow?