News rule
The news rule bans opening or holding positions in a window around high-impact economic events. It is one of the most frequent causes of failure for reasons unrelated to results. Run this calculation now: news trading rules at prop firms
Windows and scope
The typical window runs from 2 to 5 minutes before until 2 to 5 minutes after the release. Events are usually the high-impact entries of a specific economic calendar named in the contract — rate decisions, US payrolls, consumer inflation.
Scope varies: some firms ban only opening and closing inside the window, others ban holding any position, and some restrict only the instruments directly affected by the event.
How not to breach by accident
Pending orders triggered inside the window count as an opening. A stop hit during the release usually does not count, but some contracts say it does. And the broker server clock, not your computer, is what the audit uses.
The safe path is to close positions and cancel pending orders well before the hour, and to record each firm's rule next to the account rather than trusting memory on the day.