OctaFX Demo vs Real: Mobile-First Transition And The APAC Behavioural Gap
By Joanne Cassar / 12. Oct 2026
read moreWhen a major release hits — Non-Farm Payrolls, CPI, a central bank rate decision — liquidity providers pull back their quotes for a few seconds to protect themselves from the volatility. Brokers running a dealing-desk (market-maker) model often widen spreads dramatically or reject orders altogether during this window, because they're taking the other side of your trade. ECN/STP brokers, by contrast, pass your order straight to liquidity providers, so while spreads still widen, execution tends to be more consistent and re-quotes are far less common.
Pepperstone and IC Markets are two of the most commonly referenced brokers among news traders, largely due to their Raw/Razor ECN accounts, which route orders directly to liquidity pools rather than through a dealing desk. FP Markets and ThinkMarkets are also frequently cited for similar reasons — low-latency infrastructure and a stated no-dealing-desk model.
That said, "best" is relative to your regulatory region, account size and the specific pairs you trade around news — always verify current execution statistics and terms directly with the broker, since these can change.
Spreads during major news releases can widen by 5–10x their normal size in seconds, and even a well-regulated ECN broker cannot guarantee execution at your requested price during extreme volatility. Slippage — both for and against you — is a normal part of news trading, not a sign of broker misconduct. Stop-losses can also be skipped over ("gapped") during extreme moves, meaning your actual loss can exceed what you planned for.
Is ECN better than market maker brokers for news trading?
Generally yes. ECN/STP brokers route orders to external liquidity rather than taking the other side of the trade themselves, which tends to reduce (though not eliminate) re-quotes and order rejections during volatile news events.
Can a regulated broker restrict news trading?
Some brokers do apply restrictions or disclaimers around trading specific high-impact news events — this is disclosed in the account terms, so it's worth checking before you rely on a broker for this strategy.
Do all brokers widen spreads during news?
Yes, virtually all brokers widen spreads during major news releases because liquidity providers pull back their quotes; the difference between brokers is how much they widen and how quickly they return to normal.
Is a low spread meaningless during news events?
Not meaningless, but less relevant in that moment — the advertised low spread applies to normal market conditions. What matters more during news is execution reliability and how the broker handles the spread spike, not the baseline number.
Not financial advice — verify current execution conditions, regulation and terms directly with any broker before trading.