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Forex (Foreign Exchange) trading is the buying and selling of currency pairs with the aim of profiting from changes in exchange rates. It is the largest and most liquid financial market in the world, operating 24 hours a day, five days a week.

In Forex trading, currencies are always quoted in pairs — for example, EURUSD represents the Euro against the US Dollar. When you buy a currency pair, you are buying the base currency and selling the quote currency. When you sell, you do the opposite. Example If EURUSD is trading at 1.1000, it means 1 Euro is worth 1.10 US Dollars. If you believe the Euro will strengthen against the Dollar, you would buy the pair. If the rate rises to 1.1100, you profit from the difference.

At Spec Markets, Forex is traded as Contracts for Difference (CFDs). CFD trading allows you to speculate on price movements without owning the underlying asset. This means you can potentially profit from both rising and falling markets by going long (buy) or short (sell).

Warning:CFD trading involves significant risk and may not be suitable for all investors. You can lose more than your initial deposit. Please ensure you fully understand the risks involved before trading.

Spec Markets offers a wide range of Forex currency pairs with competitive spreads and flexible leverage. To explore available instruments, log in to your Client Area or visit specmarkets.com.

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Warning:All content published on the Spec Markets blog is for informational and reference purposes only. Spec Markets and its team members do not provide personalised market analysis or trading advice. All trading decisions should be based on your own independent assessment and risk tolerance.

An economic calendar tracks scheduled financial events and data releases that can impact the markets — such as interest rate decisions, employment reports, and inflation figures. Monitoring these events helps traders anticipate potential market volatility and plan their trading activity accordingly.

Log in to your Client Area and navigate to the Calendar icon at the top of the page to view upcoming economic events.

Economic events are typically categorised by:

• Date & time — When the event is scheduled to be released
• Currency — The currency most likely to be affected
• Impact level — Usually indicated as low, medium, or high impact
• Previous / Forecast / Actual — Comparing the previous result, market consensus forecast, and the actual released figure helps traders gauge whether the outcome was better or worse than expected.

High-impact events — such as central bank interest rate decisions or Non-Farm Payrolls (NFP) — can cause significant price movements and spread widening in a short period of time. Being aware of upcoming events allows you to:

• Avoid entering new positions immediately before a high-impact release
• Set appropriate Stop Loss levels to manage unexpected volatility
• Identify potential trading opportunities based on the outcome.

Tip:For more information on how news events affect spreads, see Why did spreads widen?