NFP (non-farm payrolls)

Non-Farm Payrolls (NFP) is a key monthly economic report from the U.S. Department of Labor. It counts the total number of paid workers in the U.S. economy, excluding government employees, private household employees, non-profit organization employees, and farm workers. This data provides insight into the health of the U.S. labor market and is a major indicator of economic growth.

For retail traders, NFP releases can cause high volatility and wide spreads in USD pairs. For instance, EUR/USD spreads might widen from 0.8 pips to 5 pips or more. Traders often use stop-loss orders to manage risk, but significant slippage can occur due to rapid price movements. Many traders avoid opening new positions during the immediate release to mitigate this risk.