Sessions, news and the calendar
What you learn in 3 minutesA reader asked: "I set my stop on USD/ZAR before work, and by lunchtime it was gone. I did not touch anything. What moved it?" This lesson shows which hours a pair actually moves, and which scheduled releases can widen the spread enough to reach a stop that looked safe. We use USD/ZAR near 18.4100 and put every money figure in rand, because the rand is what leaves your account.
20 pips on 0.10 lots — what the spread costs in rand
| Step | Amount | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Instrument | USD/ZAR | the pair used in this example |
| Price used | 18.4100 | a round reference price for the sums below |
| Position size | 0.10 lots | one tenth of a standard lot |
| Move in pips | 20 pips | the distance from entry to stop in this example |
| Value of 1 pip | R1.00 | for 0.10 lots on USD/ZAR, 1 pip is 0.0001 x 10,000 units = R1.00 |
| Loss if the stop is hit | R20.00 | 20 pips x R1.00 = R20.00, before costs |
| Spread before the release | 15 pips | a typical quoted spread in quiet hours; it varies between brokers |
| Spread during the release | 60 pips | a wider quoted spread is common around scheduled data; it varies between brokers |
| Extra cost from the wider spread | R45.00 | (60 - 15) pips x R1.00 = R45.00, on this position size |
| NFP release time | 14:30 SAST | US Non-Farm Payrolls is usually released at 08:30 New York time, which is 14:30 in South Africa |
| US rate decision time | 20:00 SAST | the US Federal Reserve usually announces at 14:00 New York time, which is 20:00 in South Africa |
Your broker may round pip values, quote a different spread, or add commission or a swap on top. The rand figures here are worked from the numbers shown, not promised outcomes.
The mistake people make here
The common mistake is to place a stop during a quiet hour and assume it will behave the same way at 14:30 or 20:00 SAST. Spreads can widen sharply around scheduled releases, and a stop can be filled at a worse price than the level you chose. Instead, check the calendar first, note the release times in South African time, and either size the position for the wider spread or stay out until the first minutes after the release have passed. If you are not sure how your broker handles news, test it on a demo account before using real rand.Check yourself
On 0.10 lots of USD/ZAR, if 1 pip is worth R1.00, what is the loss on a 25-pip stop?
25 pips x R1.00 = R25.00, before costs.
If the spread is 20 pips before a release and 55 pips during it, what is the extra cost on 0.10 lots of USD/ZAR?
(55 - 20) pips x R1.00 = R35.00 extra, before any commission or swap.
A US release is scheduled for 08:30 New York time. What time is that in South Africa?
14:30 SAST, because South Africa is usually two hours ahead of New York when US daylight saving is in effect. This shifts by an hour when the clocks change, so always check the calendar in your own time zone.
In South Africa
- Currency
- The rand, written R (ZAR). Your profit, loss, spread and swap are all settled in rand.
- Regulator
- The Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) licenses financial services providers in South Africa. Check that a provider appears on the FSCA register before you deposit.
- Funding methods
- EFT, instant EFT and bank cards are common ways to fund a trading account. Processing times and fees vary between providers.
- Session times
- London runs from about 10:00 to 19:00 SAST and New York from about 15:30 to 24:00 SAST. The overlap, roughly 15:30 to 19:00, is usually the busiest window for USD/ZAR.
- Calendar times
- Scheduled releases are published in the time zone of the country issuing them. Convert to SAST before you plan an order, and remember the one-hour shift when the US or UK changes clocks.