Forex Spreads During News Events — NFP, CPI, FOMC Data From 5 Brokers

Every forex broker claims tight spreads — but those numbers come from ideal conditions. The real test of a broker's spread infrastructure is what happens during the 30 seconds after a major economic release. That is when interbank liquidity evaporates, market makers pull their quotes, and your 0.1-pip spread transforms into something far less appealing.

We tracked EUR/USD and GBP/USD spreads second-by-second during 12 high-impact economic events across five brokers: Exness (Raw Spread), IC Markets (Raw Spread), Pepperstone (Razor), XM (Ultra Low), and AvaTrade (Standard fixed). This is the data that broker marketing pages never show you.

Events Tracked

EUR/USD Peak Spreads During Events

*AvaTrade's "fixed" spread did widen during events marked with asterisks, contradicting the fixed spread promise. However, the widening was significantly less than variable spread brokers. During the ECB decision (an expected hold with minimal surprise), AvaTrade held its normal 0.9 pip spread.

Key Finding: Exness Recovers Fastest

Peak spread numbers are one dimension. Recovery speed — how quickly spreads return to normal — is equally important because it determines how soon you can trade at reasonable costs after the initial spike.

Exness consistently recovered to sub-1-pip spreads within 15-25 seconds — approximately 5-10 seconds faster than IC Markets and 15-20 seconds faster than Pepperstone. For news traders who wait for the initial spike to pass before entering, this faster recovery means earlier access to tradeable spreads. For Exness's full spread profile, see our Exness review.

GBP/USD: Higher Volatility, Wider Spikes

GBP/USD spreads spike more aggressively than EUR/USD during news events because the pound has lower overall liquidity. Our data shows GBP/USD peak spreads were 40-70% wider than EUR/USD across all brokers during the same events.

The UK GDP miss on March 13 produced the widest spreads in our entire dataset — 7.1 pips on Exness, 8.2 pips on Pepperstone. When economic data dramatically misses expectations, GBP spreads can exceed 8 pips even on the tightest accounts. This is why news trading on GBP pairs requires wider stops and smaller position sizes than EUR/USD. See our EUR/USD spread comparison and the separate GBP/USD data in our broker rankings.

Impact on Different Trading Styles

Scalpers

If you scalp with 5-8 pip targets, a 3-5 pip spread spike eliminates your edge entirely. Close all scalping positions 5 minutes before high-impact releases and wait at least 2 minutes after for spreads to normalize. This is not optional — it is mathematically necessary for profitability. See our best broker for scalping guide.

Day Traders

Day traders with 20-50 pip targets can hold through news events but should ensure their stop losses account for potential spread widening. A 20-pip stop on EUR/USD during NFP can be triggered at a 25-pip adverse move when the 5-pip spread spike is added to the price movement. Set stops wider during known events or exit before the release.

Swing Traders

Swing traders with 100+ pip targets are least affected by spread spikes. The momentary 3-5 pip widening is irrelevant against a 200-pip target. However, if your stop loss is close to current price during a news release, you face the same risk as day traders. Review your open positions before every scheduled high-impact event.

News Event Traders

If you specifically trade news events (straddle strategies, momentum trades), the spread spike is part of your cost structure. Factor it into your strategy: your minimum target must exceed the expected spread spike + your normal profit target. On EUR/USD, this means minimum 10-15 pip targets to remain profitable after the 3-5 pip spread cost.

Strategies to Minimize News Spread Impact

1. Check the calendar daily: Know exactly when NFP, CPI, FOMC, ECB, BOE, and other high-impact releases are scheduled. ForexFactory and Investing.com both provide event calendars with impact ratings.
2. Close scalps before releases: Exit all short-term positions at least 5 minutes before a high-impact event.
3. Widen stops on open positions: If you have a swing trade running, consider widening your stop loss by 10-20 pips before a major release, then tightening it after the event passes.
4. Use limit orders instead of market orders: Limit orders fill at your specified price or better, protecting you from slippage during the spike. Market orders fill at whatever the current ask/bid is — which during NFP could be 3-5 pips worse than the pre-event price.
5. Trade the reaction, not the release: Wait 2-3 minutes after the data drops. Let the spread normalize, let the initial knee-jerk reaction play out, then enter based on the confirmed direction. This approach sacrifices the first 30-50 pips of the move but drastically improves execution quality.
6. Consider fixed spreads for news trading: AvaTrade's fixed spread model provides more predictable costs during events, though their "fixed" spreads do widen moderately during the highest-impact releases. See our hidden fees in zero spread accounts for related analysis.

The Overnight Rollover: The Other Spread Trap

News events get the attention, but the daily rollover period (21:00-22:00 UTC) produces spread widening every single day that many traders overlook. Our data shows EUR/USD spreads average 1.0-1.5 pips across all brokers during rollover — 10x wider than peak-session levels.

This affects anyone who enters or exits positions during this window: swing traders adjusting positions in the evening, automated systems operating 24 hours, and traders in timezones where rollover coincides with active hours (midnight in the Gulf, 5 PM in New York).

The simple rule: avoid opening or closing positions between 21:00-22:00 UTC. If your automated system places orders during this window, add a time filter to pause execution.

Our Recommendation

For news-aware trading, use Exness Raw Spread. It offered the smallest peak spreads and the fastest recovery to normal levels across all 12 events in our dataset. The $7 commission is worth the execution quality during volatile periods.

If you specifically trade news events as a strategy, consider maintaining an AvaTrade account for its relatively stable fixed spreads during releases, while using Exness for all normal-conditions trading. This dual-broker approach costs a few dollars per month in additional platform fees but provides optimal execution across both conditions.