Alpha Capital and trading around the news
Free to trade news during the evaluation. On Qualified Analyst Pro, One, Three and Direct accounts, no new trades and no closing within five minutes either side. This is what their own help page says, read on 9 October 2026, with what it means in practice underneath.
By Mike, founder of MacroSetup. Page updated . We are not affiliated with Alpha Capital, there are no affiliate links on this page, and their own page is linked below.
The rule, in their own terms
- During the evaluation
- During the evaluation phases you can trade freely during all news releases.
- Once funded
- On Qualified Analyst Pro, One, Three and Direct accounts you may not open new trades or close existing ones on the targeted instruments inside the window. On the Alpha Swing plan news trading is allowed, but a trade opened from 2 minutes before to 2 minutes after a release has to stay open for more than 2 minutes to count.
- The window
- 5 minutes before to 5 minutes after. Speeches and conferences count for their whole duration, plus 5 minutes either side.
- What it costs you
- A stop gain or take profit that fills inside the window is a soft breach, and profit from it is not eligible for a performance fee. Losses stay yours.
- Which calendar counts
- Their own list of events in the article, which counts when at least one of Myfxbook and Forex Factory calls that release high impact.
Source: Alpha Capital's own help page, read on 9 October 2026. Firms change these rules without announcing it, so check theirs before you rely on ours.
Alpha Capital news calendar: this week's high-impact releases
The high-impact releases for the eight major currencies for 2 to 6 November 2026, from our own calendar, in Amsterdam time with the UK time beside it. The ones Alpha Capital's rule names are marked: one this week. Its own list can hold more than those, so check theirs before a trade on a funded account.
Tuesday 3 November
- 04:3003:30 UKAUDRBA decisionHigh impact
- 22:4521:45 UKNZDNew Zealand labour marketHigh impact
Wednesday 4 November
- 11:0010:00 UKEUREurozone inflationHigh impact
Thursday 5 November
- 13:0012:00 UKGBPBoE decisionHigh impact
Friday 6 November
- 14:3013:30 UKUSDUS jobs reportHigh impactOn Alpha Capital's list, 5 min either side on the main funded programme
- 14:3013:30 UKCADCanada jobs reportHigh impact
What trips people up
- A trade opened more than 5 minutes before the event may be held through it.
- The list reaches further than the currency: US CPI, the Fed decision and payrolls restrict all instruments, euro news restricts pound instruments and the other way round, and Canadian news restricts oil.
- Profit from fills they consider unrealistic during high-impact news can be taken away.
Knowing the window is not the hard part
Knowing which release lands on which currency, and when, is. A rule about five minutes only helps if you saw the event coming that morning.
MacroSetup flags every high-impact release for both currencies in a setup, with the time, before the session starts. This week's events for the eight majors are public on the calendar page, and what the research does with them is on the page for prop traders.
The other firms
The windows run from 2 to 10 minutes, and what happens afterwards runs from a share of the profit to a closed account. Worth reading before you pick your next challenge. All 16 firms side by side.
Questions about Alpha Capital and news
Does Alpha Capital allow news trading?
By Alpha Capital's own help page, read on 9 October 2026: yes in the evaluation, but once funded only on the Alpha Swing plan, with a 2-minute minimum hold around releases. Where it applies, the window runs 5 minutes either side of a release. If you trade inside it: profit not eligible for the performance fee. Of this week's releases, US jobs report on Friday 6 November at 13:30 London time falls under Alpha Capital's rule. Alpha Capital's help page
What is the Alpha Capital news window?
5 minutes before to 5 minutes after. Speeches and conferences count for their whole duration, plus 5 minutes either side. Their own list of events in the article, which counts when at least one of Myfxbook and Forex Factory calls that release high impact.
What happens if you trade inside the Alpha Capital window?
A stop gain or take profit that fills inside the window is a soft breach, and profit from it is not eligible for a performance fee. Losses stay yours.
Where is the Alpha Capital news calendar?
Their own list of events in the article, which counts when at least one of Myfxbook and Forex Factory calls that release high impact. This week's high-impact releases for the eight majors, with the times, are on this page and on our calendar page. Members also see them on every setup that holds one of the two currencies. This week's calendar