Understanding Impact Levels

How event impact levels and notifications work

Economic events are classified by their expected impact on market volatility. TradeLog tracks the two levels that matter most for trading decisions -- High and Medium impact -- so the calendar stays focused on events that can actually move your markets. Understanding these levels helps you decide whether to trade, stand aside, or adjust your position sizing around news releases.

Impact Level Color Coding

Red (High Impact) -- Events that typically cause major market moves: interest rate decisions, Non-Farm Payrolls, GDP releases, CPI data. These can move markets by 50-200+ pips in seconds.
Amber (Medium Impact) -- Events with moderate market impact: retail sales, PMI data, employment claims. These cause noticeable but more contained moves.

News events showing red (high) and amber (medium) impact indicators

Notifications and Alerts

When notifications are enabled, the News item in the sidebar shows a badge with the number of remaining high-impact events today (or tomorrow), and the Journal page shows a pre-event alert banner with a countdown -- so you stay informed while working in other parts of the application.

Sidebar badge -- the News menu item shows the number of remaining events today (or tomorrow)
News page Next Event box -- a countdown timer and the name of the next high-impact event, with a red pulsing alert when it is less than 10 minutes away
Journal alert banner -- a warning banner with a countdown (and sound alerts) appears on the Journal page from 15 minutes before a high-impact event
Bell icon on the News page header -- toggles these alerts on or off

Trading Around News Events

The data shown for each event includes three key values: Forecast (what analysts expect), Previous (the last reported value), and Actual (the real value once released). Markets typically react to the difference between the Actual and Forecast values, not the absolute number.

High-impact news events can cause extreme volatility, wide spreads, and slippage. Many prop firms have specific rules about trading during news. Check your prop firm's rules in the Prop Firms page before trading around high-impact events.

Consider closing or reducing positions before high-impact events, or widening your stop losses to avoid being stopped out by the initial volatility spike. The News Calendar's countdown timer helps you plan ahead.

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News Calendar Overview